Match Information
Chicago Fire FC (5-2-2, 17 points) vs. FC Cincinnati (3-4-3, 12 points)
Saturday, May 2, 2026
7:30 p.m. CT
Soldier Field – Chicago
How to Watch: Apple TV
English: Evan Weston & Dax McCarty
Spanish: Sergio Ruiz & Walter Roque
How to Listen: WLS 890 AM // TUDN Chicago 106.7-HD2
English: Max Anderson & Joe Chatz
Spanish: Omar Ramos & Teresa Limón
Match Preview
Chicago Fire FC will face FC Cincinnati in league play for the second time in two weeks, this time at Soldier Field for Military & Veterans Appreciation night, presented by Magellan Corp.
The Men in Red come into a busy week in hot form, with a 5-0 victory over Sporting Kansas City being the latest in a five-game unbeaten streak in league play. After a quiet first half on Saturday night, winger Philip Zinckernagel opened the scoring with two goals against Sporting, before setting up the first of Hugo Cuypers’ two goals for the night. The connection helped Cuypers become the first player in Fire history to score in six straight games in which he appeared and go up to fourth in goals scored all-time among Chicago Fire greats.
FC Cincinnati arrives in similarly hot form, unbeaten in four straight MLS matches. In their last match, the Orange and Blue hosted Red Bull New York at TQL Stadium. Forward Kévin Denkey tallied twice in the first half and goalkeeper Roman Celentano recorded six saves in a 2-0 shutout of the Eastern Conference rivals. The sides are thus set for a new meeting just two weeks after a 3-3 draw at TQL Stadium that was marked by Cuypers’ first brace of the season.
All-Time MLS Regular Season Record vs. CIN: (4-7-4)
Last Match vs. CIN: April 19, 2025 (2-3 L) – Soldier Field – Chicago (Match Recap)
Last Match at CIN: April 18, 2026 (3-3 D) – TQL Stadium – Cincinnati (Match Recap)
Hyundai Keys to the Match:
- Anchors Aweigh: It’s been smooth sailing for Hugo Cuypers recently. After two goals in Cincinnati, Cuypers scored another two in the 5-0 win over Sporting KC last week. His eight goals in six matches are only one behind MLS leaders Sam Surridge and Petar Musa, and now he faces the Orange and Blue again.
- First to Fight: Chris Brady and the Fire backline have gotten five shutouts in nine league matches. But a lot of their work has been made easier by proactive defending in the midfield from Dje D’Avilla, who faces a stern test this Saturday against perennial MVP candidate Evander.
- A Toast to the Host: Soldier Field has not been friendly for visiting teams. In five matches there this season, the Fire have posted four shutout victories, outscoring opponents 11-2 in that span. Home field advantage will be key against a high-scoring Cincinnati side off to a slower start this year.
Match Notes
- Chicago Fire FC enters Matchday 11 with the third best Expected Goals (xG) mark in the league. Per MLS, the metric quantitatively measures chance quality and works as a more consistent measure of performance than goals alone. The Fire have 20.42 xG in league play, just ahead of Cincinnati’s 19.72 and behind two of the most dynamic attacks in the league in San Jose (27.64) and Vancouver (26.47).
- Goalkeeper Chris Brady and the Fire defense have recorded five shutouts in their first nine matches of the season, the best such mark since doing the same in 2022. In that season, Gabriel “Gaga” Slonina recorded a Fire-best 12 clean sheets to finish the year; Brady can reach the halfway point of that record in only the 10th match of the season with a clean sheet against Cincinnati.
- Along with setting the Fire record for most consecutive games with a goal (6) Saturday against Kansas City, forward Hugo Cuypers also moved up to fourth all-time for most goals in Club history. The Belgian striker has scored 35 goals in 70 regular season matches with Chicago, two more than fifth-place David Accam. Next up for Cuypers is third-place Chris Rolfe, who scored 48 in 178 games with the Men in Red from 2005-2014.
Starting XI
Lineups notes will be posted approximately one hour before first kick.
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