Chicago City Wire

Chicago Fire FC faced a narrow defeat against Charlotte FC, ending with a 4-3 scoreline at Bank of America Stadium. The match saw Charlotte take an early lead with Karol Swiderski scoring in the eighth minute. Chicago equalized in the 25th minute when Fabian Herbers redirected a cross from Ariel Lassiter into the goal. However, Charlotte scored two more goals in the first half and added another by Liel Abada in the second half.

Kellyn Acosta scored for Chicago with a long-range shot in the 67th minute, and Tom Barlow reduced the deficit further in stoppage time. Despite their efforts, Chicago could not overcome Charlotte's lead.

Chicago Fire will host Nashville SC at Soldier Field on October 19 for their final regular season match of 2024. The game will be available globally on MLS Season Pass and locally on WRTO 1200 AM (Spanish) and WLS 890 AM (English).

Chris Brady made six saves during the match, becoming one of only six goalkeepers in Fire history to achieve over 100 saves in a single season since Sean Johnson did so in 2012. With his performance this season, Brady joins notable names like Zach Thornton and Jon Busch.

Fabian Herbers achieved his career-high eighth goal contribution this season with three goals and five assists. Kellyn Acosta also matched his personal best for goals in a single season while surpassing his previous record for appearances.

Federico Navarro recorded his first assist of the year, aiding Acosta's goal. Former University of Wisconsin-Madison teammates Tom Barlow and Chris Mueller collaborated professionally for their first time since college days.

Injury absences included Chase Gasper and Andrew Gutman due to leg injuries, along with Maren Haile-Selassie and Hugo Cuypers for personal reasons.

The game was officiated by referee Segii Boiko with assistant referees Ian McKay and Mike Nickerson, fourth official Tori Penso, VAR Jose Carlos Rivero, and AVAR Mike Kampmeinert. Attendance at the stadium was recorded at 26,899 spectators.