The Chicago Fire are back. With the World Cup still approaching it's conclusion this weekend, MLS petitioned FIFA to have matches at the end of the tournament – and the Fire take on Vancouver in one of four "showcase" matchups on Thursday.
When the schedule was made last fall, plenty of storylines made the Fire-Vancouver matchup appealing: The match pits one of the West's top teams against one of the league's top offenses last season, with both teams playing an attractive brand of fluid soccer that any fans tuning in from the World Cup are likely to enjoy. It pits Fire Head Coach Gregg Berhalter, who led the U.S. Men's National Team at the 2022 World Cup, against his son's team.
Now the game has one storyline that the schedule makers couldn't count on: The arrival of Polish superstar striker Robert Lewandowski to the Chicago Fire. Now the game pits the Polish superstar, Bayern Munich's second most prolific goalscorer of all time, against his former teammate Thomas Müller, number three on that list.
With Lewandowski all but certain to debut for the Fire on Thursday, ticket sales have been brisk and the team is expecting a large crowd to see the Fire's new star.
This year, the Fire have precious few opportunities to face teams ahead of them in the standings. How will they measure up against the best from the West?
Vancouver Whitecaps
A big question for all the teams in action this matchday is how much rust has accumulated in the nearly two-month span since the MLS season stopped for the World Cup.
We have more data on Vancouver than most: The Canadian Championships stops for nothing ‒ including, apparently, the World Cup. On July 8th, they beat Calvary FC from the Canadian Premier League 4-1.
Five days later, they finished the job with a 1-1 draw in Alberta.
Vancouver Head Coach Jesper Sørensen had significant squad rotation but Brian White and Ryan Gauld, healthy, started in the first leg, Thomas Müller captained the squad in the second.
Neither Andrés Cubas nor Sebastian Berhalter, the two World Cup players on the squad, featured. Reports indicate that Cubas will be available while Berhalter will travel with the team but may sit this one out.
Before the break, Vancouver were in "title contender" form despite absences, and Sørensen's side has been playing a fun-to-watch, flowing football reminiscent of what Backheeled's Andrew Clausen called reminiscent of Berhalter's style on The Bonfire (truly, worth a listen for his analysis — he's been around league circles for almost a decade and has great insights.)
Will Vancouver be in the same form coming out of the break?
Chicago Fire
Getting this out of the way: It is all but certain that Robert Lewandowski will play. As of press time, we are still waiting for official word that the Fire have acquired the international slot they need to let him do so. That is likely a formality with a player of his profile: There are available spots around the league, MLS benefits with Lewandowski playing, and the Fire's sporting department is amongst the league's strongest and best-organized.
Still, Lewandowski's remarks to media on Tuesday made it sound like he is still getting over jetlag and familiar with his teammates. Lewy will play, but those minutes will likely ‒ but not not certainly ‒come off the bench.
If so, we'll likely see him come in alongside, instead of in replacement of, Hugo Cuypers, who comes into this league leading the Golden Boot race.
Around him, the Fire will field a full squad of their preferred XI for the first time since April. Leonardo Barroso is healthy and set for his first minutes with the Fire since April 14th, and his first league minutes since April 11th.
Jonathan Bamba, back with the squad after missing time with a personal issue, will likely get his first minutes since mid-May, with André Franco the only absence.
It's a healthy squad, likely featuring seven of the same starters that beat the Whitecaps 3-1 in Vancouver last year, one of just three home losses across all competitions for the 'Caps in 2025.
Can a Lewandowski-enabled Fire squad repeat the feat at home in 2026?
Lineup and Match Information
