Dean, Gal, and Mueller Earn New Contracts
The Chicago Fire's 2026 roster is already continuing to take shape, and three more players saw their contract renewals confirmed this afternoon – Jonathan Dean, Jeff Gal, and Chris Mueller. The announcement comes six days after the club re-signed homegrown products Chris Brady, Sergio Oregel, and Mauricio Pineda to multi-year deals.
Dean's confirmed return is the most significant of the three today, even if it doesn't come as any surprise. The 28-year-old fullback has been a backup for much of 2025, sitting behind Leonardo Barroso, but has still managed 25 appearances, including 16 starts, totaling 1,459 MLS minutes. The Georgia native has been a reliable squad player at the MLS level since joining the Fire in a surprise move from USL side Birmingham Legion ahead of the 2023 season.
In a similarly unsurprising move, backup goalkeeper Jeff Gal will return for another season. The 32-year-old, who joined the Fire from the Swedish league in January 2023, was the third-string goalie in his first two seasons but was bumped up to #2 this year due to the retirement of Spencer Richey. He has seen plenty of action in 2025, recording seven appearances due to Chris Brady's call-up to the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The implication would be that Gal will remain the second keeper in 2025 given that he performed fairly well in his minutes.
Finally, Chris Mueller will return in 2026 after not seeing the field once in 2025. The Chicagoland native was diagnosed with a heart condition in preseason and has been on the Season-Ending Injury list since the summer. Mueller has always been expected to make a full recovery and will return to action as soon as he receives medical clearance.
While the Dean and Gal extensions were expected based on their solid performances as backups, Mueller's was anything but a certainty; the 29-year-old struggled to find a consistent rhythm in 2024, and has not had the opportunity to roll back into form due to his extended medical absence. Nonetheless, the two-time U.S. international has plenty of quality, and will be hoping to bring that back to the table in the new year.
