On Wednesday night in the Dominican Republic, an FC Cincinnati Academy graduate hit a milestone only 9 had ever done before with the club – and a first of its kind in the history of the club as well.
Andrei Chirila, younger brother of forward Stefan Chirila, made his FC Cincinnati first team debut with a start in the Concacaf Champions Cup. The 18-year-old center back played all 90 minutes in the victory over O&M FC and helped The Orange and Blue earn a clean sheet in the process with a 4-0 score line.
The debut marked his elevation to the first team squad after starting in the FC Cincinnati Academy and then following the player development pathway of signing with FC Cincinnati 2 in MLS NEXT Pro. He and his brother now become not only the first pair of brothers to play for FCC, but also the first family duo to progress through the FCC system in its entirety and play for the first team.
Stefan Chirila, 20, joined FC Cincinnati first, followed shortly by his brother Andrei. The duo – who have both represented the United States at the Youth National Team level, with Stefan also representing the Romanian Youth National Team on multiple occasions – originally hail from Allentown, Pennsylvania, but now live together in Cincinnati and have since Stefan signed with FC Cincinnati 2 in 2024.
While Andrei has not yet signed a first team contract, joining the squad this time on a Short-Term Agreement, he has trained regularly with the first team and is on a professional contract with FCC 2, all the same. This preseason, Andrei joined the first team in Clearwater, Florida, for the entire preseason, working with the group every day and playing in four preseason friendlies.
It was during this time that Andrei impressed FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan, who chose to start him in the Concacaf Champions Cup game as a result.
"His performance through preseason. He's been very consistent with his play, I think you see tonight, his ability to play forward. He found some really good passes that can help us break pressure and get his teammates in really good spots with some space to attack,” Noonan said of Chirila. “And I thought his physical duels, the aerial duels, were better than what we've seen. That was promising... so he was out on the field because he's been performing strong through preseason."
In 2025, when Stefan Chirila signed with the first team and made his FCC debut, he chose to wear his kit with the name “S. Chirila” on his back rather than just his last name in anticipation of a moment like this. So, when Andrei Chirila took the field on Wednesday at Estadio Cibao in his number 88 kit, there was no chance for confusion as the ‘A. Chirila’ was emblazoned on the shirt -- fulfilling a prediction, or perhaps rather a goal, for the duo that was set in motion a year earlier.
On Wednesday night, in terms of statistics, Andrei registered 74 completed passes (including a key pass, which is defined as a pass that leads to a shot on target) and a 94.9 percent completed passing percentage. But the stats don’t grasp the full picture of what impressed his coaches the most.
“I like the moments of frustration when he doesn't get it right, or his teammates maybe have an action that has the connection off,” Noonan said of the poise and attitude Chirila carried himself with. “He's got something about him.”
The Short Term Agreement Andrei signed to join the squad for this Concacaf Champions Cup match is only valid for that one match (or more specifically, a four-day window), and while he is eligible to receive three more call-ups, he will return to FC Cincinnati 2 for their season when it begins and continue his development there.
But in an impressive debut, the FC Cincinnati Academy graduate showed what may be down the pipeline for the first team in the years to come.
