MLS: Ber takes over former Schweinsteiger club

A good three months after his dismissal as US national coach, Gregg Berhalter has a new job.

The 51-year-old is taking over the Chicago Fire, the Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise announced on Tuesday. Berhalter replaced the previous coach Frank Klopas at the former club of 2014 world champion Bastian Schweinsteiger and also takes over the position of football director.

The change will take place after the last main round game (October 19th), and Klopas will continue to work for Chicago as vice president. The team is last in the Eastern Conference with just seven wins from 33 games.

Berhalter was fired as US coach in July – a good two years before the World Cup in his own country – after the early exit from the Copa America. Under the first professional from Energie Cottbus and 1860 Munich, the Americans won the Nations League twice at continental association level (2020, 2024) and the Gold Cup in 2021 and made it to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup.

Berhalter’s Argentine successor Mauricio Pochettino will make his debut against Panama on Saturday (local time) in Austin, Texas.