Chicago City Wire

Chicago Fire FC and U.S. Soccer have announced that Christopher Cupps, a defender from the Chicago Fire Academy, has been selected for the U.S. Under-17 Men's National Team roster. The team will compete in the 2025 Concacaf Under-17 Championship Qualifiers. Additionally, defender Chase Nagle will join the team as a training player until February 10. The qualifiers are scheduled to take place from February 3 to February 16 in San José, Costa Rica.

The U.S. Under-17 team is led by head coach Gonzalo Segares, a former Chicago Fire player. The team is set to face the U.S. Virgin Islands at 7 p.m. CT on February 10, followed by a match against St. Kitts and Nevis at 7 p.m. CT on February 12. The United States will conclude the group stage against Cuba at 7 p.m. CT on February 15. The first two matches will be held at Estadio Nacional de San José, while the third match will take place at Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto in Alajuela.

Cupps is a member of the Academy's Under-19 age group and played regularly for Chicago Fire II during the MLS NEXT Pro regular season in 2024. He appeared in 15 matches (starting in ten) and logged 975 minutes for Chicago Fire II last year. Cupps also took part in the first phase of preseason with Chicago Fire's first team, playing 45 minutes against Brazilian club Fortaleza on January 19 and completing a full match against Sporting Kansas City on January 25.

In November, Cupps joined the U.S. Under-17 national team for a domestic training camp in West Palm Beach, Florida. He was also part of the U.S. Under-16 squad that traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in May 2024 for international friendly matches against Argentina and Uruguay.

This marks Nagle's first involvement with a youth national team training camp.

"Chicago Fire FC Communications - @ChicagoFire"