Sports
Could Bears leave Chicago? Indiana passes bill to lure team across state lines
The Chicago Bears have played at Soldier Field for over 50 years, but have been looking for a location to build a new domed stadium and a site in Indiana is becoming a real possibility. The Indiana House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee passed a crucial bill Thursday in an effort to move forward in getting the stadium built.
The bill is for establishing a Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority to finance, construct and lease a stadium and was passed with a 24-0 vote.
“The passage of [the bill] would mark the most meaningful step forward in our stadium planning efforts to date,” the Bears said in a statement, via the Associated Press. “We are committed to finishing the remaining site-specific necessary due diligence to support our vision to build a world-class stadium near the Wolf Lake area in Hammond, Indiana.”
The Illinois House Revenue and Finance Committee was set to hold a hearing Thursday for a bill allowing the Bears to negotiate long-term property tax rates with local governing bodies, but it was canceled.
“Illinois was ready to move this bill forward. After a productive three-hour meeting yesterday, the Bears leaders requested the [Illinois General Assembly] pause the hearing to make further tweaks to the bill,” Matt Hill, a spokesperson for Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said. “This morning, we were surprised to see a statement lauding Indiana and ignoring Illinois.”
The Bears first looked into building a stadium in Arlington Heights, Illinois, a northwest Chicago suburb, with the team purchasing the land in 2023. In December, Bears president Kevin Warren said state leaders informed him that the project was not a priority for 2026.
Meanwhile, Indiana Governor Mike Braun has been lobbying for the team to controversially move across state lines. Playing in a different state than a team name suggests is nothing new for NFL teams as the New York Jets and New York Giants both play in New Jersey. Soldier Field is about 15 minutes from the Indiana-Illinois state line.
The journey to get a new stadium has gone on for years and the team has hit numerous road blocks. In September 2022, the Bears revealed a plan for Arlington Heights including restaurants, shops and more, costing almost $5 billion. Warren’s goal was to have the Arlington Heights construction plans in September so they could put in a bid for the Super Bowl by 2031.
The team is looking for $855 million in public funding for infrastructure to build in Arlington Heights, according to a team consultant report from last September. The Bears also sought for the Illinois legislature to pass a bill freezing property taxes for large-scale construction projects, which would’ve allowed them to begin building in 2025, but none of their requests were granted.
The team announced in December that they were expanding their search to outside Illinois, saying the new stadium is not just for the fans, but would bring jobs and revenue for the state.
“Consequently, in addition to Arlington Park, we need to expand our search and critically evaluate opportunities throughout the wider Chicagoland region, including Northwest Indiana,” a letter to fans from Warren read. “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.”
Since making the move to Chicago in 1921, the Bears have played at Wrigley Field and Soldier Field and the team has never owned the stadium they call home. They’re hoping to change that and looking in multiple states to do so.