After a tough midweek loss in the U.S. Open Cup in Minnesota, the Chicago Fire are back at Soldier Field on Saturday. They’re back in MLS action – now the only competition the team has entered – and are set to host expansions ide San Diego FC for the first time.

While teams have a reputation across sports for being easy opponents during their inaugural seasons, San Diego has been anything but. The team currently tops the Western Conference (although Vancouver is a point behind with a game in hand) and leads the league with 44 goals and a +15 goal differential.

Unlike St. Louis City, who soared to the top of the standings early during their first season in 2023 before fading later in the year, San Diego’s record is propelled off the back of a coherent tactical philosophy backed by high-end talent, headlined by Mexican international Hirving “Chucky” Lozano and Danish international Anders Dreyer, who is making a case for league MVP in his first year in the league.

The match continues the tough schedule for the Fire, which has seen the team face the three top teams in MLS’s Eastern Conference as well as the third-best team in the Western Conference over their past five matches across all competitions.

Despite playing well in those matches, the team has little to show for their toils, having lost all four of those matches. A win over San Diego would end the difficult stretch on a high note as the team enters the final third of their season.

Series History

All time: This is the first meeting between the two teams

What to Expect

San Diego

Although this is San Diego FC’s first season in MLS, the team has deep footballing roots: The team’s primary owner is Mohamed Mansour, who also owns the Right to Dream Academy. The academy was started in 1999 by former Manchester United scout Tom Vernon and became a rare example of a successful academy unattached to a professional club.

That changed after Right to Dream was purchased by Mohamed Mansour in 2021. The group soon began acquiring professional teams, starting with Egyptian club FC Masar and continuing with FC Nordsjælland in Denmark. San Diego, however, which came with an eye-watering $500 expansion fee paid by the group, is, in many ways, the jewel in the crown.

The connection to a scouting network and other pro clubs gave San Diego a leg up with scouting, but even with that, the results so far have been surprising. The team went undefeated in its opening four games, including a 2-0 win over the LA Galaxy in their season opener (defeating the MLS Cup champions seemed impressive at the time), and concluding with a 1-1 draw against the Columbus Crew.

Since the start of May, the team has lost just twice, notching eight wins and a draw along the way. They’ve done it by playing fun-to-watch, possession-based football. Although the team has real difference makers – Lozano and Dreyer have both been fantastic – the collective has been playing well.

Those results are due in no small part to the work of Head Coach Mikey Varas, who Gregg Berhalter brought into the coaching staff of the U.S. Men’s National Team during his tenure there. Varas has given the team a distinct tactical identity from the start of the season, playing a more intricate system than many other expansion teams have managed.

Mikey Varas has quickly implemented a style that's propelled San Diego to success (Chadd Cady-Imagn Images)Fire Head Coach Gregg Berhalter praised his upcoming opponent, saying San Diego have “a good team spirit. They played well, been well coached, good playing style. Aggressive in all phases of the game. Good in offense to transition…. So for me, it’s one of the more exciting teams in the league for sure.”

San Diego seem poised to eclipse the accomplishments of St. Louis, Atlanta. Los Angeles FC and Seattle, all of whom put together strong inaugural seasons but stumbled at the first hurdle in the playoffs.

If San Diego can maintain the form they’ve shown to date and advance in the postseason, that would put San Diego in pretty rarified air as expansion teams go, but there’s still a lot of soccer left between here and there.

Chicago Fire

With the Fire having played 120 minutes on Tuesday in the loss to Minnesota, squad rotation is going to be a key question for Berhalter and his staff. “It was actually the worst-case scenario, right? ”

Berhalter said that the loss to Minnesota on Tuesday “was actually a worst case scenario,” with the team going down a man, playing a full thirty minute extra time period, and still losing. “We have an idea for how we want to rotate guys and get minutes for certain guys and the plan gets out the window” with the red card early in the match. Still, “this is what I’m really proud of, and I think it’s encouraging: The effort and fight in that game, dealing with a situation like that.”

A significant factor in the “worst case scenario” is that the red card went to center-back Omar González, forcing the team to play Sam Rogers for basically a full 90 minute match once extra time is figured in. That creates an acute challenge at the position for the Fire, who are dealing with long-term injuries to Christopher Cupps and Carlos Terán.

The team is also shorthanded in the midfield, with injuries to Kellyn Acosta and Rominigue Kouamé. Both have been back in training this week, but as to whether or not they’ll be available? Berhalter has said that will be a gametime decision.

Nonetheless, on Saturday, “we’ll put two center-backs on the field. We don’t know who or how yet,” Berhalter said, vowing to “get through the week.” The Fire coach later said that it’s an “opportunity to play three games in a week, and you know, that happens all the time around the world, so you know we’ll rest some guys, we’ll play some guys more, and we’ll get through the next eight days.

Projected Starting XI

Match Information and How to Watch

Date and Time: Saturday, July 12, 2025, 7:30 PM CTForecast: Temperatures in high 70s at kickoff, with chance of precipitation early likely clearing by kickoffLocation: Soldier Field, Chicago, Ill.TV: Apple TV – MLS Season PassNote: Singer DannyLux will be performing for fans in attendance following the match