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The Chicago Fire have completed the signing of South African winger Puso Dithejane from PSL side TS Galaxy. The 21-year-old talent is the next exciting addition for the Fire, who pipped South African giants Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns to Dithejane's signature.
Dithejane, viewed in his homeland as a future South Africa international, joins the Fire as a U-22 Initiative signing. His contract is for four-and-a-half years, running through June 2030, with one additional club option year. Dithejane is predominantly a right winger but can also play as a right back or in attacking midfield, and featured for Bafana Bafana at the 2025 COSAFA Cup, starting in their 3-0 final loss to Angola.
“We’ve been scouting him for a while, and he’s of the most highly regarded talents in South Africa right now,” Fire Director of Football and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter told MIR97 Media in an exclusive interview. “We saw an opportunity and we went for it.”
“He’s a very dynamic winger, he can change the game. He’s a young player who needs development, but really great attitude on the pitch, really good speed and one-on-one ability. He has a lot of attributes that make him an exciting winger, and that’s what we wanted to add.”
This follows in the immediate footsteps of his countryman Mbekezeli Mbokazi, who recently arrived in the Windy City from Orlando Pirates on a similar U-22 Initiative deal. Such contracts are intended for high-potential young players, with other previous examples in Chicago including Jhon Durán, Brian Gutiérrez, and Fede Navarro, all of whom were later sold on in multi-million dollar moves.
For now, the Fire are adding another dimension to their already formidable arsenal, albeit a largely unknown quality. Dithejane will likely be a backup in 2026, but with the Fire playing on three fronts (MLS, U.S. Open Cup, and Leagues Cup) and enduring an unorthodox schedule interrupted by a nearly two-month FIFA World Cup break, a diversity of options is more than welcome.
“We think we have a really good attack, and we wanted to bolster that,” Berhalter said. “We know out schedule is packed next year, we need alternatives, and we think now with, Jo Bamba, Phil (Zinckernagel), Maren (Haile-Selassie), Chris Mueller, and Puso now, we have a really good winger group.”
More moves on the way
To be compliant with MLS registration limits, the Fire will certainly need to move at least one player off of their roster before the start of the 2026 season. It's now increasingly evident that Kellyn Acosta will be at the center of those discussions after he was not pictured on the first day of preseason.
Acosta, who turns 31 in the summer, was a top free agency signing when he joined the Fire ahead of the 2024 season, but has failed to lock down a starting job across the last two years. In 2025, he completely fell out of favor, starting just six total MLS matches and didn't play more than 30 minutes in a game after June.
“We’re working to get Kellyn in a situation where he can continue to get on the field and play,” Berhalter told MIR97 Media. “He was disappointed with his minutes last year, we were disappointed with the amount he played. For him the most important thing is to get game time, so we’re working with him to get that to happen.”
“It’s all about opportunity, and it’s Kellyn finding the right opportunity that he’s comfortable with, and the club is working with him to make it happen.”
As of right now, the Fire would also need to move one other player off of the first team roster to stay below the limit of 30 players. They will also need to find a way to either vacate or acquire several international slots, with Dithejane's addition further contributing to the overload in that category. International slots can also be opened up if players acquire U.S. Green Cards.
