• Loading stock data...
Saturday, June 7, 2025

Bears to Stay in City of Chicago, but Questions Remain

  • The NFL team ends its flirtations with moving to the suburbs.
  • The project still carries lots of questions about financing, design, and the team’s Arlington Heights land.
Quinn Harris-USA TODAY NETWORK

The Bears’ long and winding tour of potential stadium sites across the Chicagoland region is coming to an end. 

The NFL team confirmed Monday it intends to remain in the city of Chicago, and it is focusing on a lakefront site in downtown Chicago that is currently a parking lot for the adjacent Soldier Field. The latest development in the saga largely confirms previous reports detailing the Bears’ rising interest in that parking lot site. 

The team’s intent to stay in the city, after numerous prior flirtations with moving to the suburbs, also arrives amid a potential “financing partnership” with the White Sox in which both teams would take a more collaborative approach to help ensure their respective efforts to build new stadiums get done. There is not a finalized plan for how to pay for the new facility, but the Bears have pledged $2 billion toward the effort.

“The future stadium of the Chicago Bears will bring a transformative opportunity to our region—boosting the economy, creating jobs, facilitating mega events, and generating millions in tax revenue,” Bears president Kevin Warren said. “We look forward to sharing more information when our plans are finalized.”

Big Interest 

The Bears’ stadium saga remains one of the most closely watched issues across the NFL—as well as the rest of the sports industry. Despite being the country’s third-largest media market, Chicago, for years, has been shut out of hosting major events such as the Super Bowl and Final Four, as it does not have a large-scale domed stadium. The team’s project aims to rectify that, and a prior version of its stadium plan centered on a $5 billion project that includes a domed venue and a mixed-use development.

Over the past year, the Bears have either considered or received inbound interest from the city of Chicago, as well as the suburban locales of Arlington Heights, Aurora, Naperville, Richton Park, Waukegan, and Country Club Hills. That far-flung search, however, now appears poised to end with the shortest possible move for the Bears.

About That $197 Million Purchase …

The latest turn, however, also raises the question of what the Bears will do with the former Arlington International Racecourse property it purchased in early 2023 for $197 million. A tax dispute helped derail original plans to build a stadium there, but if the team were to resell all or part of the property, that money could be funneled toward the new downtown stadium.

The Soldier Field parking lot site, meanwhile, has a prior history of thwarted development. In 2016, Star Wars creator George Lucas planned to house a significant art and movie memorabilia collection on the grounds, but he ultimately dropped that plan amid local opposition. To that end, it remains to be seen how extensive the team’s additional development around the stadium will be.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

YouTube Scores Early Win Over Disney in Fight About Exec

A Los Angeles judge blocks an injunction sought by ESPN’s parent company.

Silver: NBA Local Media Woes Could Hurt Expansion Momentum

Las Vegas and Seattle have long been rumored as expansion cities.

Rodgers Signing Defies Steelers Reputation but Further Boosts Team’s Profile

The NFL team long known for avoiding drama signed a mercurial quarterback.

Featured Today

Jan 24, 2017; Davidson, NC, USA; The Davidson Wildcats student section cheers during the first half against the Duquesne Dukes at McKillop Court at John M. Belk Arena. Davidson defeated Duquesne 74-60.

Every College Wants a Flashy Basketball GM Hire Right Now

The role is more important than ever, and the definition is ever-evolving.
August 31, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; The Goodyear blimp flies over Ohio Stadium during the first half of Saturday’s NCAA Division I football game between the Akron Zips and the Ohio State Buckeyes.
June 6, 2025

Why the Goodyear Blimp Is at Every Major Sports Event

The airship wasn’t built to cover sports. Now it’s a regular presence.
May 27, 2015; Paris, France; Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) knocks the clay off her shoe during her match against Simona Halep (ROU) on day four of the French Open at Roland Garros
June 4, 2025

Roland-Garros’s Iconic Red-Clay Surface Is a Precise Alchemy

The exact science behind maintaining the French Open’s red clay.
Alex Jensen introductory press conference on Monday, March 17, 2025.
June 3, 2025

Alex Jensen Started Utah Utes HC Job While Still Coaching the Mavs

How Jensen began building an NCAA program while patrolling the Dallas sideline.
Soccer

Chicago Stars Aren’t Asking for Taxpayer Stadium Money—Yet

A unique new law will compel Illinois lawmakers to consider women’s teams.
June 2, 2025

Bears Suburban Stadium Deal Inching Forward Despite Cost Questions

State legislators discussed a Bears-friendly bill, but ran out of time.
June 3, 2025

While Bears and White Sox Stall, Chicago Fire Make Stadium Move

The proposed $650 million stadium will be privately financed.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

In Episode 7 of Portfolio Players, go inside the boardroom with Avenue Capital CEO and former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry on Giannis’s future, women’s sports, and upstart leagues like TGL and Unrivaled. 
Dec 26, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; A general view of Soldier Field before a game between the Chicago Bears and Seattle Seahawks
May 30, 2025

Pritzker Was a Hard ‘No’ on Bears Stadium. Now Maybe Not

The state spent $100,000 on a legal consultant.
May 30, 2025

Chiefs, Royals Stadium Plans Hit Political Wall As Both Parties Say No

Both Republicans and Democrats in Missouri oppose public funding for stadiums.
Feb 14, 2024; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of the Kansas City Royals 1985 and 2015 World Series championships on the scoreboard at Kauffman Stadium at the Truman Sports Complex.
May 28, 2025

Chiefs, Royals Stadium Public Funding Standoff Nears Endgame

Missouri legislators will review stadium bonds for the Chiefs and Royals.
U.S. Women's Golf
May 27, 2025

U.S Women’s Open Will Play on Courses Once Reserved for Men

Erin Hills Golf Course in Wisconsin is hosting this week’s tournament.