Robert Lewandowski has joined Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire on a two-year deal after leaving Barcelona, the club confirmed on Monday. The 37-year-old Poland striker ended a four-year stint in La Liga at the end of the season when his contract expired, and his signing was announced on the board outside Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs. One restaurant handed out 100 free Polish hotdogs to celebrate, while the Chicago Bulls also put out a message welcoming the striker.
Lewandowski, who scored 120 goals in 193 games for Barcelona and helped them win three La Liga titles and the 2025 Copa del Rey, had attracted interest from AC Milan and the Saudi Pro League. He is expected to become one of the highest earners in MLS. His arrival promises to be a huge boost to Chicago, which boasts one of the largest Polish communities outside Poland.
“Robert Lewandowski joins MLS side Chicago Fire on a two-year deal after leaving Barcelona.”
“His arrival reinforces our ambition to compete for trophies and raises the standards for the club to heights worthy of this city,” said Gregg Berhalter, the Fire’s director of football and head coach. “We cannot wait to get to work with him and have Chicago see first-hand why he is among the most revered sporting icons in the world.”
Lewandowski spent 12 seasons in Germany’s Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, winning 10 league titles and leading Bayern to the 2020 Champions League title. He scored 344 goals across all competitions over eight seasons at Bayern, the second-most in club history behind Gerd Müller. He was considered the frontrunner to win the 2020 Ballon d’Or, but the award was not given out that year because of the Covid-19 pandemic. He finished second in voting in 2021 and won the Best Fifa Men’s Player Award in 2020 and 2021.
His 697 total goals for club and country since his debut in 2008 are the seventh-most in history and the third-most among active players, behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He is Poland’s all-time leader in appearances (167) and goals (89), having played in each of the last four European Championships and the past two World Cups before Poland failed to qualify for 2026.
Chicago Fire are third in the MLS Eastern Conference standings after snapping a seven-year playoff drought last season. They return to action after the World Cup break on 17 July against Vancouver. The move also coincides with the opening of the club’s new stadium, McDonald’s Park, and their state-of-the-art Endeavor Health Performance Center opened last year. Lewandowski joins a designated player slot pending the approval of his visa and the completion of an international transfer certificate.