The Chicago Fire have landed FC Porto midfielder André Franco on a short-term loan through the rest of the season, marking the club’s biggest move of the summer window so far. The Portuguese attacking midfielder joins the Fire for the final stretch of the regular season, with the deal designed as a low-risk, potentially high-reward addition.
Franco’s path to Chicago began with him reaching out to the club through Filipe Çelikkaya, the Fire’s top assistant and a former Sporting CP U-19 coach. “This is a player who contacted us,” head coach Gregg Berhalter said. “He reached out to [Filipe] and said, ‘Hey, I’d love to come to MLS and come to Chicago… I see what you guys are doing, I see what direction the club is heading in, and I’d love to be part of it.’”
The deal comes under tight financial constraints. Porto accepted a loan without a transfer fee because Franco would occupy the TAM roster slot left vacant by Chris Mueller, who is out for the season due to injury. The Fire will pay Franco’s full salary for the remainder of the season, while Porto benefits from offloading a player they were eager to move.
Franco’s arrival comes late in the season, meaning he will have limited time to integrate. At the time of writing, he had not yet arrived in Chicago, making a Saturday debut unlikely. Berhalter described the adaptation as a one-day-at-a-time process, noting Franco missed prep for preseason but had a break during the Club World Cup and has since ramped up. He remains an option for the Fire and could be called upon for key matches down the stretch and into potential playoff fixtures.
There are seven days left in the MLS summer transfer window, which closes after August 21. The Fire still have one open senior roster slot and expect further adjustments to the second-team squad in the coming days. Berhalter indicated there would be additional moves, with a clear timeframe. While early speculation mentioned a center back as a possible target, injuries to Carlos Terán and Christopher Cupps have reduced urgency on that front, and attention appears to be focused elsewhere.
The Fire are operating under a “2+4+2” roster model. That means they will not sign a Designated Player in the final days and would instead gain roughly $1 million in General Allocation Money. Importantly, they still have to manage an open international roster slot, so any new signing would need to be an American citizen or a Green Card holder unless an international slot becomes available.
What this means for Chicago: Franco adds technical depth and a different dimension in midfield at a critical time. The short-term nature of the loan means the Fire can reassess in the off-season whether to pursue a longer-term solution, while the immediate goal is to maximize their late-season push and potential playoff run. The signing signals Chicago’s intent to push for a strong finish and to keep options open for the tactical iterations Berhalter wants to deploy in the final weeks.
Summary: Chicago strengthens its midfield options for the final stretch with André Franco on a season-long loan, a move designed to fit tight financial constraints while preserving the flexibility to add more pieces before deadline day.
If you’d like, I can add a short explainer on how the 2+4+2 roster model works and what it means for future signings, or include a brief outlook on how Franco’s skill set could fit into Chicago’s formation and style of play.