CHICAGO, IL–Chicago Fire FC made official the second-worst kept secret in MLS by appointing former Columbus Crew assistant Ezra Hendrickson its tenth head coach. He will be formally introduced at a press conference on Monday.
Hendrickson has more than 25 years of domestic experience, Hendrickson joins the Fire with a proven track record of success in MLS, winning 15 major trophies as a coach and a player. He has been an assistant with LA Galaxy, Seattle Sounders, and the Crew and was head coach of Seattle Sounders 2 between 2015 and 2017.
“I am immensely proud and humbled to be named the head coach of Chicago Fire FC,” said Hendrickson in the press release. “There are many people to thank. Firstly, I am grateful to our owner Joe Mansueto for this incredible opportunity. It’s a responsibility that I do not take lightly. Georg Heitz, Sebastian Pelzer, and Eddie Rock have also been supportive throughout this process, and I am excited to work alongside them as colleagues. We must be a team in order to achieve our goals.”
As a player, Hendrickson won eight trophies during 12 MLS seasons (1997-2008). The former defender was an MLS champion with three different teams (2002, 2004, 2008) and won three MLS Supporters’ Shield trophies (1998, 2002, 2008), the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (2001) and the Concacaf Champions’ Cup (2000). He made 266 appearances for six different teams.
“We’re extremely pleased to welcome Ezra to the Club as our new head coach,” said Sporting Director Georg Heitz. “He is a very well-respected coach who has had a highly successful career in MLS. Ezra has worked in winning environments alongside some of the most accomplished managers in the league, and we are confident that he is the right person to help us achieve our goals. I look forward to beginning our work together during what will be an important offseason for the Club.”
It indeed will be an important offseason for the club as they need to rectify the failures last season and supply Hendrickson with some talent that can at the very least return the Fire to a playoff contender. The Fire have had just two playoff games in the last 12 seasons and are at risk of being the third team in MLS history to miss the playoffs five successive seasons. The next season being the Fire’s 25th, they would want to give their fans something to cheer about after the 12 years of famine has that proceeded the first 12 years of relative feast for this club.
IN OTHER NEWS: It was announced on Monday that the Fire will begin its 25th season where they started their very first at DRV PNK Stadium to take on Inter Miami on Saturday, February 26th. The home opener will be the following Saturday, March 5th, against Orlando City. The remainder of the fixture list will be announced at a later date
