Chicago Fire FC’s Robin Lod spoke with On Tap Sports Net’s Joe Chatz about his first season with the Chicago Fire, his facial injury against Cincinnati, competing for Finland and potential big-name signings

Robin Lod has been a crucial cog in the Chicago Fire’s machine throughout the 2026 Major League Soccer season as the veteran has been called upon frequently in the first half of the season

The Chicago Fire raised many eyebrows when they pulled off the signing of Lod, 33, in the winter after the veteran spent the last seven seasons with Minnesota United. Chicago pulled Lod away from Minnesota by offering a three-year deal when the Loons only offered a shorter-deal, according to the Pioneer Press in Minnesota, and he has already proven worth the long-term commitment.

The ideal vision for the Chicago Fire was that Lod would occupy a super-sub role in Gregg Berhalter’s lineup given the positional versatility that the Finnish do-it-all attacker possesses. Unfortunately for the Fire, they haven’t been healthy enough in 2026 for Lod to be dispatched as such but the veteran has found a way to contribute to winning as a forward, midfielder and a winger in his first season with Chicago. 

After making 185 appearances for Minnesota United, Lod is feeling incredibly comfortable having finally settled in with his family in Chicago as the club prepares for the second half of the MLS season in July. 

“When I chose to come to Chicago I heard this ambitions that the club wants to get better and wants to be up there as the best club in MLS,” Lod told On Tap Sports Net’s Joe Chatz. “So, in a sense, the first half of the season has been going well. We’ve been doing good enough to put us in a position that we can fight until the end of the season, we put ourselves in a good place.”

Lod has experienced plenty of highs throughout his short time in Chicago as he’s collected five goal contributions in over 800 MLS minutes but there was one negative moment that left everyone worried about Lod’s health.

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Lod took the boot of FC Cincinnati’s Kyle Smith to the face when the two sides played at Soldier Field on May 2, bloodying Lod enough to send him to the hospital. Smith was sent off as Lod was helped off the field with blood dripping from his face, leaving everyone in the crowd on the lakefront worried about Lod’s ability to see.

May 23, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Fire FC forward Robin Lod (17) controls the ball against the Toronto FC during the second half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn ImagesCredit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

To make matters even worse for Lod, his parents were in Chicago from Finland for the game. They were terrified to see the youngest of their three children in such distress but were forced into grandparent mode as they transported the Lod children home while the Fire’s forward was joined by his wife at the hospital. 

Being with family was crucial at that moment for Lod as he was worried about whether he would be able to see long-term after taking a cleat to the face so close to his left eye. 

“In the moment I had a little bit of panic because once you get up and you realize that you can’t see anything with your left eye, you are thinking ‘am I gonna be like half-blind from now on?’”

Fortunately, all is well regarding the long-term outlook on Lod’s face and the cleat completely missed his eye. The facial damage did force Lod to wear a face mask ahead of the FIFA World Cup, which was a busy time for him even though Finland wasn’t competing.

Lod was with Finland’s national team during the international window right before World Cup that they didn’t qualify for. Lod started their 4-0 loss to Germany in Mainz before he was an unused substitute against Hungary in Budapest. 

Finland has never made the men’s World Cup and has only qualified for one EURO tournament (2020) in its history, which is the product of the competitive nature of UEFA competitions. For Lod and Finland, not being in the World Cup allowed for the group to transition in some new, younger faces during their most recent camp. 

The window with Finland was an enjoyable experience for Lod, who has also been enjoying seeing European soccer fans experiencing American culture shock at the World Cup over the last few weeks. 

“For Finland it’s always been tough, we’ve only been in one Euro tournament. The World Cup qualifiers in Europe are really tough because you have to win your group and you play against France, or Spain, Germany, all these countries. And even if you manage to get second place, you still have to fight through the playoff brackets, which is tough. 

“But it’s disappointing for us. We got experience and these games, when you get to play away against Germany and see what is the highest standard in national level, and you try to get the good things out of them and then start to focus on the Euro qualifiers. 

“With our national team, we are in a transition phase, there’s a lot of like experienced players moving on in the past year or two. So there’s a lot of young players who are a little bit inexperienced on the national team scale, so it’s good that they got the experience and we can start to build up for the next qualifiers.”

The Chicago Fire are in a good place entering the second half of the season, they’re currently third in the Eastern Conference, but that hasn’t stopped them from trying to add serious, world-class talent to their roster. 

The Fire’s transfer targets before Lod arrived included Kevin De Bruyne, Neymar and Patrick Berg and now the Chicago Fire are tied to the likes of Leon Goretzka and Robert Lewandowski in this transfer window. The intent that the club has shown by targeting top talent has helped motivate the group amidst a strong start to 2026, according to Lod. 

“The easiest part is talking about wanting to be a big club and having the ambition to win. Obviously when the club is showing that they have the ambitions to do it, you give a little bit extra motivation for the players because at least the club is giving you all the tools to do well. 

“The focus for the player is just for you to do the work, so it’s really great as a player to feel that the club wants to thrive. Then you can just come there and do the work and enjoy the role.

“If there’s any big names to come to play, obviously it’s a pleasure to play with them because you can learn or learn so much from their careers. So we’ll see.”