Spend any time around Orlando Johnson, and whatever preconceived notions of sympathy one might have had before encountering him will quickly go out the window
Johnson, 23, has got it going on. He’s got a handsome face, a cool hairstyle, and a lean, muscular, tall frame. He has traveled the country for free to play soccer, and will again at the end of this month as captain, representing the Chicago Fire in the Major League Soccer All-Star Game in Charlotte, North Carolina. The fact that Johnson’s team is part of the MLS’ Special Olympics unified soccer program doesn’t diminish the significant accomplishments he’s already made.
“I’m really excited,” Johnson says of the July 29 game, which will be nationally televised and played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. “I didn’t really see it coming at all.”
The Fire, through the MLS Works program, has a team of athletes with intellectual disabilities who represent the team at various exhibition matches in Chicago and select road matches. This is Johnson’s third year with the Fire, but it’s his first as a captain. He already has represented the Fire in places such as New York and California, flying with the regular team and staying at its hotel. He will be playing against chosen all-stars from other MLS teams in Charlotte.
“I didn’t expect he would be chosen to play in the all-star game, but he’s been playing phenomenal for (the Fire),” said Johnson’s father, Anthony. “He’s had a lot of goals this year, and I think that’s what helped get him selected.”
Anthony Johnson says his son has Asperger’s Syndrome, which in 2013 was lumped more broadly into a classification of autism spectrum disorder. People with the condition generally have more difficulty in social interactions and reading nonverbal cues. Orlando can understand anything said to him, but “it takes him a few more seconds to process it and be able to respond,” his father said.
“He’s highly functional, but he has issues with communication and comprehension. In conversation, he just needs a little time to think about what you just said to him,” Anthony said. “In athletics, he still processes things a little slower but his speed makes up the difference. On a soccer field, you wouldn’t think he has any special needs or anything.”
Under rules governed by the Special Olympics, players cannot compete past the age of 25. Before he gets that old, Johnson hopes to achieve a dream of playing professional soccer somewhere against “normal” men. With speed that nearly placed him in the Illinois High School Association state tournament as a freshman track sprinter at Calvary Academy, it might not be a pipe dream for Johnson to play pro soccer somewhere. It would be a long shot, no doubt, but he possesses genuine athletic talent that is rare for people at any level, special needs or not.
“That’s my goal, to play pro soccer,” Johnson said.
Johnson played for the regular Calvary Academy teams in track, basketball and soccer, and graduated in 2022 with a 3.4 grade-point average. He might have had a good shot at a college scholarship somewhere, but the COVID-19 pandemic virtually wiped out his sophomore and junior seasons. Living on his own in college would have presented challenges, but wouldn’t have been impossible.
Not ready to give up his athletic dreams, Johnson joined the Special Olympics program in 2023, and has played soccer for the Chatham Chargers, a club team, since graduation. His father watches every game and also is the coach of the Chargers’ flag football team.
“He’s very gifted in athleticism. You put him in any sport, and he’ll pick it up fast,” said Anthony, a retired U.S. Army servicemember who now does information technology work for the state. “He has played flag football for me for two years, and he dominates. He’s got a lot of highlight reels of him catching the ball with one hand. He played a lot of basketball starting in his elementary years, but gradually soccer became his best sport, especially during the COVID years when they let kids play some sports outside.”
Johnson works part time doing custodial work for Springfield School District 186. He has a younger sister and parents who have been married since before he was born.
“I’m blessed,” he said.
As Johnson left the interview, Anthony stood on his porch and reflected on the journey from his son being diagnosed with autism at birth to where things stand today.
“It’s not easy. The parents have to be willing to make a sacrifice,” Anthony said. “But that’s our son, and we’re going to give everything that we have to make sure we set him up for success.”
This article appears in July 9-15, 2026.
