Rafael Czichos

Last updated

Rafael Czichos
2018-08-19 BFC Dynamo vs. 1. FC Koln (DFB-Pokal) by Sandro Halank-007.jpg
Czichos with 1. FC Köln in 2018
Personal information
Date of birth (1990-05-14) 14 May 1990 (age 35) [1]
Place of birth Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) [1]
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Phoenix Rising
Youth career
FSV Verden 04
–2008 TSV Ottersberg
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2008–2010 TSV Ottersberg 62 (15)
2010–2012 VfL Wolfsburg II 23 (1)
2012–2015 Rot-Weiss Erfurt 99 (9)
2015–2018 Holstein Kiel 99 (12)
2018–2022 1. FC Köln 103 (4)
2022–2024 Chicago Fire 86 (6)
2025– Phoenix Rising 0 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 28 August 2025

Rafael Czichos (born 14 May 1990) is a Saudi-German professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for USL Championship club Phoenix Rising.

Contents

Career

Born in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia while his father worked there, [2] Czichos began his career at TSV Ottersberg and joined VfL Wolfsburg II in 2010. In 2012, he signed with then 3. Liga side Rot-Weiss Erfurt. After signing with Holstein Kiel, Czichos first played in the 2. Bundesliga when the team won promotion in 2017. [3]

However, Kiel failed to win promotion after the 2017–18 season and he was sold to newly relegated side 1. FC Köln for a fee of €1.8 million. [4] He made his debut, including his first goal, for the club in a 2–0 victory against VfL Bochum on 4 August 2018. [5] Having been an undisputed starter in the first half of the 2021–22 season, he left 1. FC Köln in January 2022, with half a year left on his contract. kicker described the move as "surprising". [6]

On 2 January 2022, Czichos transferred to Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire on a three-year contract. [7] [8] Czichos was released by Chicago following their 2024 season. [9]

On 28 August 2025, Czichos signed with USL Championship side Phoenix Rising on a contract that would keep him at the club through 2026. [10]

Personal life

In a July 2018 interview Czichos revealed he was a life-long fan of Werder Bremen. [11]

References

  1. 1 2 "Rafael Czichos". Chicago Fire FC. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  2. ↑ "Rafael Czichos: Erste Schritte in Saudi-Arabien". WAZ Online (in German). 29 June 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  3. ↑ "Rafael Czichos". Kicker (in German). Archived from the original on 24 July 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  4. ↑ ""Herausragender" Czichos unterschreibt für vier Jahre in Köln". kicker Online (in German). 7 June 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  5. ↑ "Der selbsterklärte Dominator in der falschen Liga". Süddeutsche.de (in German). 5 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  6. ↑ "Überraschender Abgang: Czichos verlässt den 1. FC Köln". kicker (in German). 2 January 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  7. ↑ "Chicago Fire FC Acquire Defender Rafael Czichos from FC Köln". Chicago Fire FC. 2 January 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  8. ↑ "Chicago Fire FC sign defender Rafael Czichos from German Bundesliga". mlssoccer. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  9. ↑ "Chicago Fire FC Announces 2024 Roster Decisions | Chicago Fire FC". chicagofirefc.
  10. ↑ "Phoenix Rising Adds Defender Rafael Czichos Through 2026 Season". PHXRisingFC.com. Phoenix Rising . Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  11. ↑ "Interview: FC- Neuzugang Rafael "Rafa" Czichos über seine ungewöhnlich Karriere". Kölnische Rundschau (in German). 5 July 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.[ permanent dead link ]


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.