Chicago Fire FC II announced that the Club has signed Honduran midfielder Edson Rocha to an MLS NEXT Pro contract. His contract with Chicago Fire FC II will run through the 2024 season. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We identified Edson at the U-20 Concacaf Championship last year in Honduras and were impressed by his technical skill and his potential to develop in the environment at Chicago Fire FC,” said Chicago Fire II General Manager Alex Boler. “He is calm on the ball, and his mentality is excellent. We are very excited to welcome Edson to Chicago.”
Rocha, 19, made his professional debut at age 17 with Platense F.C. in the Liga Nacional de Honduras during the Apertura season. He joins Chicago Fire FC II having spent the last two seasons playing for Platense F.C., recording 13 professional appearances (eight starts) and 604 minutes of playing time during the Clausura 2021-2022 season.
“Edson is a young player who has already shown a level of maturity, commitment and ambition in coming to the U.S. to join a new Club,” said Chicago Fire II head coach Ludovic Taillandier. “Despite being so young, he already has experience with his national team. He is a player that can strengthen our midfield as he benefits from our environment and continues to develop as a person and as a player.”
The young midfielder is from Puerto Cortés, Honduras, and has represented the Catrachos at the youth international level. Most recently, Rocha featured for the Honduras U-20 Men’s National Team that qualified for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup for the eighth consecutive time since 1977.
Rocha was part of the squad that defeated Antigua, Jamaica and Costa Rica in Group D at the 2022 Concacaf U-20 Championship in Honduras in June of last year. Honduras went on to defeat Curaçao in the Round of 16 and Panama in the quarterfinals before falling to the eventual-champion United States in the tournament semifinals. Rocha played in all six of Honduras’s matches in the tournament and remains age-eligible to participate in the 2023 U-20 World Cup in Indonesia from May 20-June 11, 2023.
Transaction: Chicago Fire FC II signed midfielder Edson Rocha to an MLS NEXT Pro contract through the 2024 season.
Name: Edson Rocha
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 165
Date of Birth: June 29, 2003
Hometown: Puerto Cortés, Honduras
Birthplace: Puerto Cortés, Honduras
Citizenship: Honduras
Last Club: Platense F.C.