Robert Lewandowski is heading to MLS. The Chicago Fire announced Monday that the Polish striker has joined the club through the 2027-28 season, pending visa approval and international transfer certificate clearance.
Lewandowski will occupy a designated player roster spot for the Fire, who are riding high at the midpoint of the season. Chicago sits third in the Eastern Conference with 26 points after ending a seven-year playoff drought last year.
The 37-year-old arrives as one of the most decorated forwards in modern soccer. He spent four seasons at Barcelona, where he scored 83 goals in 134 league matches and helped the club capture three La Liga titles. Before that, he played 12 seasons in Germany's Bundesliga, first with Borussia Dortmund and then with Bayern Munich.
His tenure in Munich proved especially prolific. Over eight seasons, Lewandowski scored 344 goals across all competitions, the second-most in Bayern's history behind only Gerd Müller. He was part of teams that won 10 Bundesliga titles and captured the Champions League in 2020.
The striker has accumulated serious individual accolades as well. He finished second in Ballon d'Or voting in 2021 and won the Best FIFA Men's Player award in both 2020 and 2021. In 2020, when the Ballon d'Or was not awarded due to the pandemic, he was widely considered the favorite.
Lewandowski's international resume is equally impressive. He holds Poland's all-time records for both appearances (167) and goals (89), and appeared in each of the last four European Championships and two consecutive World Cups. Poland's failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup will end that streak.
His career tally stands at 697 goals across club and country since 2008, ranking third among active players behind Cristiano Ronaldo (975) and Lionel Messi (917). Among all players in the sport's history, that places him seventh.
Author James Rodriguez: "Lewandowski joining MLS at 37 is a statement about the league's ambitions, but questions linger about whether he's making this move for sport or for the paycheck."
Comments