Bears to Expand Search Outside Chicago for New Stadium Location, Indiana Considered

Chicago Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren told season-ticket holders that the team is expanding its search for a new stadium site, including spots in Northwest Indiana.

"We have been told directly by State leadership our project will not be a priority in 2026 despite the benefits it will bring to Illinois," he wrote. "... This is not about leverage. We spent years trying to build a new home in Cook County. We invested significant time and resources evaluating multiple sites and rationally decided on Arlington Heights. Our fans deserve a world-class stadium. Our players and coaches deserve a venue that matches the championship standard they strive for every day. With that in mind, our organization must keep every credible pathway open to deliver that future."

llinois Governor JB Pritzker responded to Wednesday's statement.

"Suggesting the Bears would move to Indiana is a startling slap in the face to all the beloved and loyal fans who have been rallying around the team during this strong season," his spokesman Matt Hill said in a statement to Robert McCoppin and Dan Petrella of the Chicago Tribune. "The governor's a Bears fan who has always wanted them to stay in Chicago. He has also said that ultimately they are a private business that makes their own decisions, but the governor has also been clear that the bottom line for any private business development should not come at the full expense of taxpayers."

As McCoppin and Petrella noted, the Bears also considered moving to Gary, Indiana back in 1995 before abandoning the idea. Both then and now, it's possible dangling Indiana as a relocation point could simply be a negotiation tactic.

The Bears have named the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights as their preferred destination for a new stadium, but noted that Northwest Indiana is also within their marketing area.

Per McCoppin and Petrella, the Bears' plan for Arlington Heights is "contingent on the General Assembly letting the team negotiate its long-term property taxes with local schools and other taxing bodies" but the Bears would pay for the stadium themselves. That legislation has been resisted, however, with many decision-makers wanting the team to assist paying off the $500 million debt from Soldier Field's renovation in 2003. The team isn't responsible for the debt—the city's hotel tax was supposed to foot the bill—but it remains a sticking point, and legislators weren't moved by the team's offer of $25 million toward the debt.

So Northwest Indiana has entered the negotiations, while fans of the Bears are faced with the possibility of their favorite team being moved elsewhere.