| Club: | Chicago Fire FC |
| Season: | 2021 |
| Chairman: | Joe Mansueto |
| Manager: | Raphaël Wicky (Until September 30); Frank Klopas (Interim since September 30) |
| Mgrtitle: | Head coach |
| Stdtitle: | Stadium |
| Stadium: | Soldier Field (capacity: 61,500) |
| League: | MLS |
| League Result: | Conference: 12th Overall: 22nd |
| League2: | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| Cup1: | U.S. Open Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | Canceled |
| Cup2: | Brimstone Cup |
| League Topscorer: | Robert Beric (8 goals, 3 assists) |
| Season Topscorer: | Robert Beric (8 goals, 3 assists) |
| Highest Attendance: | 31,308 (10/23 v. RSL) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 5,593 (9/29 v. NYC) |
| Largest Win: | CHI 3–0 ATL (7/3) |
| Largest Loss: | NSH 5–1 CHI (7/17) |
| Pattern La1: | _two_red_cuff_stripes |
| Pattern B1: | _adidasred |
| Pattern Ra1: | _two_red_cuff_stripes |
| Pattern Sh1: | _red_stripes_adidas |
| Pattern So1: | _3_stripes_navy |
| Leftarm1: | 16164e |
| Body1: | 16164e |
| Rightarm1: | 16164e |
| Shorts1: | 16164e |
| Socks1: | FF0000 |
| Pattern La2: | _chicagofire21a |
| Pattern B2: | _chicagofire21a |
| Pattern Ra2: | _chicagofire21a |
| Pattern Sh2: | _adidasonwhite |
| Pattern So2: | _color_3_stripes_on_white |
| Leftarm2: | FFFFFF |
| Body2: | FFFFFF |
| Rightarm2: | FFFFFF |
| Shorts2: | 16164e |
| Socks2: | 16164e |
| American: | true |
| Prevseason: | 2020 |
| Nextseason: | 2022 |
The 2021 Chicago Fire FC season was the club's 23rd year of existence, as well as their 24th in Major League Soccer. This was the Fire's first season with fans in Soldier Field since 2005 (the Fire had officially moved in 2020, however fans were not allowed in Soldier Field due to the pandemic). The Fire would fail to qualify for the playoffs for the fourth season in a row. Head coach Raphael Wicky was ultimately relieved of his position on September 30, with Assistant Coach Frank Klopas taking over on an interim basis.[1]
As of November 1, 2021
| No. | Name | Nationality | Position | Date of Birth (Age) | Previous Club | Player Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bobby Shuttleworth |  | G | November 7, 2021 | Sacramento Republic | |
| 2 | Boris Sekulić |  | D | November 7, 2021 |  Górnik Zabrze | International |
| 3 | Jonathan Bornstein | | D | November 7, 2021 |  Maccabi Netanya F.C. | |
| 4 | Johan Kappelhof | D | November 7, 2021 | FC Groningen | ||
| 5 | Francisco Calvo |  | D | November 7, 2021 | Minnesota United FC | |
| 6 | Miguel Navarro |  | D | November 7, 2021 | Deportivo La Guaira F.C. | |
| 7 | Ignacio Aliseda |  | M | November 7, 2021 | Defensa y Justicia | International Young Designated Player |
| 8 | Luka Stojanović | M | November 7, 2021 | FK Čukarički | ||
| 9 | Chinonso Offor | F | November 7, 2021 | FK RFS | International | |
| 10 | Álvaro Medrán |  | M | November 7, 2021 | Valencia CF | |
| 14 | Jhon Espinoza |  | D | November 7, 2021 | S.D. Aucas | International |
| 18 | Kenneth Kronholm | | G | November 7, 2021 | Holstein Kiel | |
| 20 | Wyatt Omsberg | | D | November 7, 2021 | Minnesota United FC | |
| 21 | Fabian Herbers | F | November 7, 2021 | Philadelphia Union | ||
| 22 | Mauricio Pineda | | D | November 7, 2021 | North Carolina Tar Heels | Homegrown |
| 23 | Carlos Terán |  | D | November 7, 2021 | Envigado F.C. | International |
| 25 | Nicholas Slonina | | D | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 27 | Robert Berić |  | F | November 7, 2021 |  AS Saint-Étienne | Designated Player |
| 28 | Elliot Collier |  | F | November 7, 2021 | Loyola Chicago | |
| 30 | Gastón Giménez | M | November 7, 2021 | Vélez Sarsfield | International Designated Player | |
| 31 | Federico Navarro | | M | November 7, 2021 | Talleres de Cordoba | International U-22 Initiative |
| 32 | Gabriel Slonina | | G | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 34 | Chris Brady | | G | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 36 | Andre Reynolds II | | D | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown On Loan |
| 37 | Javier Casas | | M | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 38 | Alex Monis | | F | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 39 | Allan Rodríguez | | M | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 40 | Brian Gutiérrez | | M | November 7, 2021 | Chicago Fire Academy | Homegrown |
| 99 | Stanislav Ivanov | M | November 7, 2021 | PFC Levski Sofia | ||
See also: List of Major League Soccer transfers 2021.
| Date | Player | Position | Previous Club | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 12, 2020 | F | Option was exercised | [2] | ||
| November 12, 2020 | M | Option was exercised | |||
| November 12, 2020 | D | Option was exercised | |||
| November 12, 2020 | D | Option was exercised | |||
| November 13, 2020 | F | Signed on a contract through 2023 with an option for 2024 | [3] | ||
| November 23, 2020 | D | Signed on a contract through 2023 with options for 2024 and 2025 | [4] | ||
| December 9, 2020 | M | Signed on a contract through 2023 with an option for 2024 | [5] | ||
| August 6, 2021 | M | Signed as a U-22 Initiative player on a contract through 2025 with an option for 2026 | [6] | ||
| Date | Player | Position | Destination Club | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 12, 2020 | M | Option was declined | |||
| November 12, 2020 | D/M | Option was declined | |||
| November 12, 2020 | M/F | Option was declined | |||
| November 12, 2020 | G | Option was declined | |||
| November 30, 2020 | M | Option was declined; his rights were ultimately traded to Charlotte FC alongside the Fire's 2022 Fourth Round Draft pick in exchange for Charlotte's Fourth Round Draft pick | [7] [8] | ||
| December 17, 2020 | M | Traded to Montreal in exchange for $800k in GAM in 2021 and 2022, possibly up to $1 million, along with a percentage of any future trade | [9] | ||
| August 5, 2021 | M | Sold to RC Lens for an undisclosed fee | [10] | ||
| Pick | Player | Position | Previous Club | Notes | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R2, P33 | D | [12] | ||||
| R2, P47 | F | |||||
| R3, P60 | M | |||||
| Trialist | M | Invited to trial with the Fire for the preseason, due to the partnership with Madison | [13] |
Note: Italics indicate the player left the squad or was loaned out and hasn't returned from loan
| Name | MLS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clean sheets | Saves | ||||
| 1 | | Bobby Shuttleworth | 4 | 73 | 38 |
| 18 | | Kenneth Kronholm | |||
| 32 | | Gabriel Slonina | 4 | 46 | 16 |
| 34 | | Chris Brady | |||
| Player | |||
| 1 | Robert Beric | 8 | 3 |
| 2 | Luka Stojanovic | 8 | 2 |
| 3 | Ignacio Aliseda | 4 | 1 |
| 4 | Alvaro Medran | 3 | 6 |
| 5 | Boris Sekulic | 2 | 4 |
| 6 | Przemyslaw Frankowski | 2 | 3 |
| 7 | Gaston Gimenez | 2 | 1 |
| 8 | Chinonso Offor | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | Francisco Calvo | 1 | 1 |
| Mauricio Pineda | |||
| 11 | Federico Navarro | 1 | 0 |
| Carlos Terán | |||
| 13 | Fabian Herbers | 0 | 4 |
| 14 | Miguel Navarro | 0 | 2 |
| 15 | Jhon Espinoza | 0 | 1 |
| Brian Gutierrez | |||
| Stanislav Ivanov | |||