CHICAGO (April 12, 2025) – Chicago Fire FC returns to the lakefront Sunday to face Eastern Conference foe Inter Miami CF.
Chicago comes home following a tough result against the New York Red Bulls in New Jersey. Winger Jonathan Bamba opened his Major League Soccer scoring account with a 32nd minute goal to give the Fire the lead. But New York struck back before halftime, scoring two unanswered goals that proved to be the difference in a 2-1 win for the hosts.
Miami arrives in Chicago following a busy week across two competitions. The Herons welcomed Toronto FC to Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida for Sunday Night Soccer. Toronto FC shocked the home crowd two minutes into first-half injury time with a Federico Bernadeschi goal. But Miami struck back just three minutes later, with Lionel Messi hitting a half-volley from the top of the box to tie the match at 1-1. The score held, but Miami has little time to think about the home draw as they turn their attention to Wednesday’s Concacaf Champions Cup bout with Western Conference side LAFC.
Sunday’s match at Soldier Field marks only the eighth all-time regular season meeting between Chicago and Miami. Chicago has the upper hand in the all-time series, coming in with a record of 4-3-1. The Fire won four of the opening six matches against Miami, punctuated by a 4-1 victory on October 4, 2023, in front of a record Fire crowd of 62,124. But the Herons won their two meetings in 2024, which the Fire will keep in mind going into the match on Sunday.
Game Information
CHICAGO FIRE FC (3-2-2, 11 points) vs. Inter Miami CF (4-0-2, 14 points)
Sunday, April 13, 2025
Soldier Field – Chicago, Ill.
All-Time MLS Regular Season Record vs. MIA: (4-3-1)
Last Game vs. MIA: Aug. 31, 2024 (1-4 L) – Soldier Field – Chicago (Match Recap)
Last Game at MIA: July 20, 2024 (1-2 L) – Chase Stadium – Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (Match Recap)
Keys to the Match
- Ballin' Like Jo: Following Jonathan Bamba’s two-assist Fire debut, expectations were high for the winger to immediately become a top scorer in the league. Instead, the winger became a facilitator on the left, being tied for second in MLS in assists. In his seventh match, Bamba finally got his first goal for the Fire. Adding goal scoring to his arsenal of skills could be a dangerous sight for the league – and what better stage than a sold-out Soldier Field to get his first goal in front of a home crowd.
- Cool, Calm, Carlos: It has been a whirlwind season for Carlos Terán, who began the season paired with Jack Elliott in the backline before an injury minutes prior to his second match of the year knocked him out of action several weeks. But the Colombian center back is back and will be tasked with leading the defense against one of the premier attacking teams in the league. But Terán is not fazed by the task ahead and will be ready for the challenge.
- You Play to Win the Game: "It sounds strange saying this, but it's really not about trying to shut them out. It's about trying to win the game,” said Director of Football and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter. With the quality of players both on the XI and on the bench, Miami has been a problem for opposing defenses. But the Fire’s defense has improved as the season has wound on, and the attack is averaging two goals a game – best for third in the league, and on par with Miami in regular season play.
By the Numbers
1 – Among goalkeepers with a minimum of 600 minutes played in 2025, Chris Brady leads the league in limiting positional errors, per Statsbomb. Calculated as the distance from the optimal position for facing a shot, the Positional Error metric has shown that Brady has been in the right place to make the save more than any other goalkeeper facing as many shot opportunities as he has. The Homegrown goalkeeper has used that positioning to become one of the top netminders in the league having just turned 21.
2 – Midfielder Maren Haile-Selassie leads all current Fire players with two goals, with an assist recorded, in four matches played against the Herons. The two goals he scored both came in the Fire's 4-1 victory over the Herons on October 4, 2023 in front of a sold-out Soldier Field. The brace also clinched the Club’s Golden Boot for Haile-Selassie, leading the way with six goals in 2023.
4 – Four players have scored their first goal in MLS with the Fire this season: Leonardo Barroso, Philip Zinckernagel, Rominigue Kouamé, and Jonathan Bamba, following his tally against the Red Bulls on Saturday. A record 10 Fire players scored their first MLS goal in 2005. Most recently, 2022 saw seven players tally their first league goals with Chicago – a number the current Fire roster is on track to surpass.
How to Watch
First kick at Soldier Field is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast globally on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV and transmitted locally on WLS 890 AM and wlsam.com (English), and Que Buena Fire via the Uforia app (Spanish).
