In December, Chicago Bears CEO Kevin Warren revealed the team was exploring Northwest Indiana for its new stadium project.
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The Bears hoped to have shovels in the ground by the end of 2025 at the Arlington Heights location, but the team has not had success working with both local and Illinois government bodies to speed up the process.
Chicago has had tremendous success under first-year head coach Ben Johnson, winning the NFC North and finishing the regular season with an 11-6 record. Despite generating buzz by getting to host a home playoff game against the Green Bay Packers on Saturday night, Illinois is not planning to make the Bears a priority in 2026.
Per CBS News, Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch suggested on Tuesday at an event at the City Club of Chicago that the Illinois General Assembly is more worried about focusing on affordability this year than the Bears’ project.
Frankly, it appears that’s what the voters in the state want, as too many citizens are having a hard time paying their bills.
“I don’t know anyone that has knocked on a door and (had) someone say anything about the Chicago Bears and we have to stay focused on the things that people care about right now,” Welch said.
State calls the Chicago Bears Northwestern Illinois bluff
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Welch isn’t taking the team’s threats to move to Northwest Indiana seriously at the moment, seeing it as more of a bluff.
Forget 2025, that’s already gone. It appears Warren and the Bears have an uphill battle to get shovels into the ground by the end of 2026.
It’s unfortunate Chicago is struggling to gain traction with Illinois despite having success on the field. With the Bears potentially playing multiple home games in the postseason as a No. 2 seed, the team has an argument that the economics are good for a new stadium.
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