Chicago Fire FC Training Notes – June 30, 2026

The Chicago Fire trained on Tuesday but incoming signing Robert Lewandowski was not yet present with his new club.

Lewandowski is not in Chicago yet as he awaits his P-1 visa and International Transfer Certificate. Chicago Fire FC director of football and head coach told reporters that the club is hoping to have him available against the Vancouver Whitecaps when MLS resumes play on July 16 at Soldier Field, but that all comes down to whether his visa comes in before then. 

The Chicago Fire, who are currently third in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference behind only Inter Miami and Nashville SC, made headlines around the world yesterday when they announced that they’ve signed the Polish legend to a two-year deal after his contract with FC Barcelona expired this spring. 

Chicago announced that Hugo Cuypers opted to give the number nine jersey, which he has worn since joining the Fire ahead of the 2024 MLS season, to Lewandowski when he arrives and the striker had this to say about giving up his jersey number amidst a Golden Boot-leading season in 2026. 

“The No. 9 kit means a lot to any striker, and few deserve it more than Robert,” Cuypers said in a statement. “His goals, consistency, and professionalism have been inspiring. To now call him a teammate is really special.

“Robert is one of the greatest No. 9’s ever, and it wouldn’t look right if he was playing with another number. It was an easy decision for me to give it to him and I really hope we can achieve a lot of things together on the pitch.

“I’m excited for our Club to welcome him to Chicago and get on the pitch together and create great moments for our fans.”

There was a training session for the Chicago Fire on Tuesday and it was a long, tough session that lasted nearly two hours in the 90-plus degree heat. 

Leonardo Barroso, who hasn’t played since April 11 vs Atlanta United, was a participant in training while Chicago Fire II captain Trip Fleming and right back Damian Nigg were with the first team for Tuesday’s session. Fire Academy goalkeeper David Molenda joined Josh Cohen and Jeff Gal on the small field for their work before joining the rest of the team after warmups. 

Mbekezeli Mbokazi was not back yet after South Africa was eliminated from the FIFA World Cup on Sunday by teammate Joel Waterman and Canada in California. 

Quotes from media availability with the Chicago Fire’s Gregg Berhalter, Philip Zinckernagel and David Poreba:

Gregg Berhalter on the “difficulty” of the pursuit of Lewandowski:

“I don’t know if difficult is the right word, because Robert was great and his representative, Pini Zahavi, is a top class player agent and he knows how to deal with this. But there was a lot of competition. There was a lot of competition abroad in all different areas, so that made it somewhat complicated. 

“But what we did was we showed him what we have, we showed him the possibilities of Major League Soccer. When you start to show a player the facilities that we have in Major League Soccer, whether that’s the stadiums or the trading grounds or the organization of the league, it stacks up very favorably compared to other leagues. The facilities are absolutely top-class, whether that’s here or across the league. 

“So when you start to show that to a player and you start to think about the possibilities of being part of something, trying to build a world class club, him being the main figure in a world class club, it starts to become quite appealing to these top level players.”

On ownership’s contribution to the pursuit of Robert Lewandowski:

GB: “It starts and ends with Joe Mansueto. When I talked to him about this potential move, there was absolutely zero hesitation, 100% support and he was very focused on making it happen. 

“When you have an owner like that who wants to build a world-class club, things are a lot easier. You see the training facility, the plans for the stadium, I think that the missing piece is attracting a player like Robert. 

“It was an effort by the whole organization but it was certainly all made possible by Joe.”

On Tuesday’s training session:

GB: “It’s 92 degrees out and we just had a two hour training session, so you could tell the guys were working hard. It was probably the hardest training session of the year and it had nothing to do with Robert being here and not being here, it was the physical periodization that we were prescribing for today.”

The guys worked hard. There’s been a great response. Everybody’s excited about Robert coming in. The team’s excited and it’s a big moment for the club.”

Philip Zinckernagel

On the news over the last 48 hours and today’s training session:

PZ: “We just had the hottest session of the year but we’re trying to raise the standards. It’s great, great news for the team, great news for the club. Everyone’s pretty excited. 

It’s not that often you get to play with some of the best players in the world and a guy like him, that the club is able to bring him in, is just a sign of this project. So, yeah, it’s been a fun 48 hours.”

On what the signing of Robert Lewandowski means for the Chicago Fire:

PZ: “This is a guy that has enormous experience with some of the best clubs and players in the world, and I personally hope that he can come in and share that with the group and be a leader. He’s a guy that seems like a very professional striker and a guy in general who you want to win titles with, which is what he has done his whole life. 

“Hopefully he can help us raise the bar in this club so we can try to win some titles.”

On the potential of having a forward duo of Robert Lewandowski and current MLS Golden Boot leader Hugo Cuypers:

PZ: “When you have two good strikers that have a lot of quality, it shouldn’t be a problem. Hugo’s a smart guy, he can adapt and I think Robert probably will make him even better. System-wise, we have been playing a little bit within a 4-4-2 though, with a little bit more of a 10 kind of player, so I don’t think it’s going to change that much. 

“Coming into the next period, we have so many games that it might be okay to be able to rotate and change the system sometimes and have more solutions, but I’m obviously still expecting Hugo to play every minute and score a lot of goals, so hopefully they will figure it out together.”

David Poreba

On handling the news of being teammates with Robert Lewandowski as a Polish-American:

DP: “It’s incredible news, not only for the team and the club, but for the whole league, for MLS, for the city, for the Polish community, not only the Polish community, but for everyone. This is a legend, one of the best strikers of all time and being Polish myself, it’s going to be a dream come true for him to be here, honestly.”

“Being a Chicago kid, playing for the Fire was always a dream for me. I went to games as a five-, six-year-old with my dad, back when [Cuauhtémoc] Blanco was playing, so this team and club truly means everything to me. Growing up Polish, having Polish parents, I grew up in a Polish family. The culture at home was Polish, we spoke Polish, ate Polish food, I’m just as much Polish as I am American. I always watched Robert whether it was at Bayern [Munich] or [Borussia] Dortmund, with the National Polish national team, he was an idol of mine growing up, so it’s just amazing that he’s coming here.”