Match Information
Chicago Fire FC (5-3-2, 17 points) vs. Red Bull New York (3-5-3, 12 points)
Saturday, May 9, 2026
1:30 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: Rudy Hodgson & Joe Chatz
Spanish: Liz Jimenez & Teresa Limón
Match Preview
Chicago Fire FC will close out a four-game homestand against Red Bull New York onMarvel™ Day, presented by Hyundai, kicking off at 1:30 p.m. at Soldier Field.
The Men in Red will face their old rivals for the 72nd time in the regular season with an ace up their sleeve – forward Hugo Cuypers, who struck twice for a third consecutive match in the 3-2 loss to FC Cincinnati last Saturday night. The Belgian forward will look for an eighth consecutive match with a goal on Saturday against New York, which he has faced four times to the tune of a goal and an assist. Aiding him will be Philip Zinckernagel, who has scored or assisted in a career-high five straight games.
With his two goals on Saturday, Cuypers is now tied for the league lead in goals scored with 10. His co-leader, FC Dallas forward Peter Musa, became the first player to score 10 times in 2026 with a game-winner in his side’s 2-0 shutout of New York on Saturday night at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, N.J. After a quiet first half, Musa gave his side a 1-0 lead before teammate Sam Sarver tallied the second with minutes left in regulation. The result dropped Red Bull to 11th in the Eastern Conference with a visit to Chicago on the horizon.
All-Time MLS Regular Season Record vs. RBNY: (33-22-16)
Last Match vs. RBNY: July 26, 2025 (1-0 W) – Soldier Field – Chicago (Match Recap)
Last Match at RBNY: April 5, 2025 (1-2 L) – Sports Illustrated Stadium – Harrison, N.J. (Match Recap)
Hyundai Keys to the Match:
- Flame On! Chicago wraps up a homestand with a chance to go as high as second in the Eastern Conference with a win against New York. With two games on the road coming up, a victory could spark the Fire going into the World Cup break later this month.
- It's Clobberin’ Time! Both the Fire and the Red Bulls are among the best 10 teams in goals scored this year. However, New York has allowed the second-most goals in MLS. Can the Men in Red continue the trend and clobber their opponent on Saturday?
- Zinck Smash! Philip Zinckernagel has played at an All-Star level at home this season. Six of his eight goal contributions in 2026 have come at Soldier Field, including two goals and two assists in the last two games. Another heroic performance can close out the homestand with a win.
Match Notes
- Forward Hugo Cuypers became the fastest player to record 10 goals in a single season in Fire history, tallying his 10th goal in only his seventh match of the year. He became the second player in MLS to reach the double-digit mark in 2026 just minutes after Dallas’ Petar Musa struck against New York to take the lead of the league’s Golden Boot race.
- Two matches after tying David Accam for fourth place all-time among Fire scorers with 33 goals, Cuypers has now taken sole possession of that position and looks on pace to get third by the end of the season. The Belgian striker now has 37 goals in 71 regular season matches with Chicago, 11 fewer than Chris Rolfe’s 48. His latest brace has also lifted him to a tie with Rolfe for third-most multi-goal games with six, trailing only Nemanja Nikolić (10) and Ante Razov (16).
- Maren Haile-Selassie can become the 24th player to reach 100 regular season matches for Chicago Fire FC with an appearance on Saturday. The Swiss midfielder’s performance against Sporting KC on April 25 – in which he scored once and assisted three times – was only the eighth time a player had four goal contributions in a match in Club history, which in turn helped him reach 10th place of the Club's all-time assist leaders with 23 overall.
- Besides Cuypers, Chris Mueller, Jonathan Bamba and Joel Waterman have scored against Red Bull New York among the current Chicago Fire FC roster, with Mueller the only player with multiple goals. Bamba’s opening tally on April 5, 2025 in Harrison, N.J. was also his first for the Fire and in Major League Soccer.
- Goalkeeper Chris Brady has faced New York six times in his career, holding a record of 3-1-2 in those matches. Notably, the Homegrown goalkeeper has recorded three clean sheets against the Red Bulls – one each year he has faced the original MLS side.
Starting XI
Chicago Fire FC Director of Football and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter has named the following Starting XI looking for a victory to close out a four-game homestand:
- Two changes were made to the Starting XI that faced FC Cincinnati last weekend at Soldier Field.
- Jonathan Bamba returns to the Starting XI for the first time since recording a game-winning assist in the 1-0 victory against Atlanta United FC on April 11. The winger will look for a return to form that saw him record a goal contribution in three straight matches leading up to that win.
- Joel Waterman will pair up with captain Jack Elliott in the backline. The Canadian international was a key contributor to Chicago’s 5-0 victory over Sporting KC on April 25 – his latest start – helping the Fire earn their fifth shutout in nine matches. Jonathan Dean and Andrew Gutman join them for their fourth consecutive start together at fullback, with Dean on the right and Gutman on the left.
- Leading the attack is the duo of Hugo Cuypers and Maren Haile-Selassie, who combined for three goals and three assists in their last start together up top, the 5-0 victory against Kansas City. Cuypers is looking to extend a Club-record seven-game scoring streak, while Haile-Selassie looks to add to his five goal contributions this year.
- Philip Zinckernagel enters Matchday 12 with a five-game goal contribution streak in tow. The Danish winger has four goals and four assists for the season, all of them coming in the current streak.
- Anton Salétros and Dje D’Avilla line up together in the middle of the park for the ninth time this season. Salétros enters the match in strong form, scoring his first goal with the Fire in the U.S. Open Cup on April 29 before recording his second assist of the season in Chicago’s last match against Cincinnati.
- Homegrown goalkeeper Chris Brady will start game number 103 of his career with the Men in Red. Brady is looking for his fourth shutout against the Red Bulls, which, overall, would match last season’s clean sheet total of six.
- Goalkeeper Josh Cohen; defenders Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Viktor Radojević, and Dylan Borso; midfielders Mauricio Pineda and Sergio Oregel Jr.; wingers Chris Mueller and Puso Dithejane; and forward Jason Shokalook will be available off the bench for Berhalter..
- Defender Leonardo Barroso (Lower Body) and Robin Lod (Face) are unavailable for selection against New York. Midfielder André Franco (Lower Body) remains on the league Injured List and will be unavailable through the World Cup break.
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