Bears back away from Illinois deadline
Monday, Apr 6, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I went over all this and more with subscribers this morning. From ABC7 last week…
One Illinois lawmaker says he still thinks the Arlington Heights proposal has the upper hand over Indiana, and new comments from Chicago Bears leadership suggest the team is being patient with Springfield.
Appearing on NBC’s “Pro Football Talk,” Bears President Kevin Warren dispelled the notion that time is running out for an Arlington Heights Bears stadium deal.
“We don’t have a set deadline, but I am confident that sometime this spring slash summer, we’ll know,” Warren said. […]
“What the Bears said today is important. They did not come in with an artificial deadline. They came in with seriousness,” said Illinois state Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago.
* ChicagoBears.com…
Bears chairman George H. McCaskey and President/CEO Kevin Warren provided a stadium update this week at the NFL owners meetings.
Speaking to Chicago reporters at the Arizona Biltmore, Warren revealed that the organization expects to decide whether to build its new fixed-roof stadium at one of two sites in Arlington Heights, Ill., or Hammond, Ind., by late spring or early summer.
“We have been working on our stadium and feel very strongly that we are making progress,” Warren said. “We are in an excellent position. The target is to make sure that we have a decision made by … late spring, early summer.” […]
“I believe they continue to work on the PILOT legislation,” Warren said. “I believe they are scheduled to come back at some time in the middle of April. PILOT is not specifically for the Chicago Bears. I think the perception and the focus from a legislation standpoint is that it is good for business in Illinois to be able to allow businesses to at least have a manageable amount of taxes that they will be required to pay. This is something the Illinois legislature has been working on for many years.” […]
“The fact of the matter is we don’t have a deal to consider right now,” McCaskey said. “In Indiana, we have a great site. There’s some due diligence that needs to be completed before we can fully evaluate the site, and we have a legislative framework in place. In Arlington Heights, we have a site that’s shovel-ready, but we don’t yet have a legislative framework. There are prudent and wise and responsible public servants in Indiana working on it, and there are prudent and wise and responsible public servants in Illinois working on it.
“If I could offer one football analogy, just as the course of a game, things ebb and flow. They go back and forth. Sometimes there is great momentum on one side; sometimes the momentum shifts suddenly to another side. I’ve said to our family, ‘We need to be patient and let the deal come to us.’ We think a deal will materialize somewhere. We’re comfortable with either site. We have people at the Bears working with public servants in both Indiana and Illinois trying to get this done.”
* Heavy.com…
When asked about the Bears’ stadium situation during a press conference at the owners meetings, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell put a little pressure on the franchise. He said, “It’s really important that they come to a resolution on this relatively soon… This is an important time to get this resolved.”
* Indiana Capital Chronicle…
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said at the owners meeting that the Bears need to move forward with a replacement for their current home of Soldier Field along Chicago’s Lake Michigan shore.
“It’s important,” he said. “I’ve spoken to officials in Illinois. This is an important time to get this resolved sooner rather than later.”
- Candy Dogood - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:10 am:
The Bears are so bad at lobbying and public relations that the NFL is worried that they will ruin lobbying and public relations for all of the other teams.
- RNUG - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:19 am:
Cutting through all the diplomatic flattery and doublespeak: the organization kinda prefers Arlington, but we’re still trying to get a better deal.
- Jerry - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:22 am:
The Bears are free to build the TV studio, producing about 12 “shows” a year, where ever they want to. The Bears need to pay all taxes on a business thats only open 3% of the time in a given year.
Somebody, for the love of God, EXPLAIN this to President Warren.
If the Bears need money, go get a loan at the bank George. Or sell the team. Move to Indiana cause they are offering you a Free TV Studio.
Tax Certainty for the Citizen of Illinois, not for a business only open a few days a year.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
- H-W - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:27 am:
=== NFL Commissioner Goodell said the Bears need to move forward with a replacement for their current home of Soldier Field ===
Why is the Commissioner making (external) demands upon the organization?
- Save Ferris - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:31 am:
“Why is the Commissioner making (external) demands upon the organization?”
They thing it’s a way to help the Bears negotiate with the State. “See, Kam? We need to move on this or our $2 billion loan is at risk from approval by the Commissioner.” The NFL doesn’t care about timing. All they want is for the stadium to get built as it will increase franchise value for the Bears and all other teams as well.
Funny that Kevin’s quote of “We don’t have a set deadline, but I am confident that sometime this spring slash summer” matches up with the legislature’s meeting schedule.
If Indiana was viable, they’d already have said yes to that and put up a FOR SALE sign on Arlington.
- G'Kar - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:34 am:
H-W, I was going to ask the same thing.
- Friendly Bob Adams - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:34 am:
I think Goodell is lobbying on behalf of all NFL teams to gouge their local governments for new stadiums every 15 or 20 years.
It’s the wealthiest most powerful sports league in the world and they like to throw their weight around.
- Downstate - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 10:58 am:
I’ve seen the argument that Bears can’t get fans to travel to Hammond, IN. Counter to that is the fact that a stadium 1 hour to the east (South Bend) draws 33% more football fans than Soldier Field can even hold for six home games per year.
- TNR - Monday, Apr 6, 26 @ 11:55 am:
== Roger Goodell said at the owners meeting that the Bears need to move forward with a replacement for their current home of Soldier Field ==
Why? It’s far from the best stadium in the world, but it ain’t falling apart either.
One of the things that has gotten lost in all the debate is that the lease the Bears signed on their last tax-supported stadium deal runs through 2033…that’s eight more seasons.
They want to break it because the annual penalty they’d pay for leaving Soldier Field early (around $11 million) would be absolutely dwarfed by the added cashflow streams from a new stadium.
Let’s just keep that in mind whenever the Bears regurgitate their high-minded rhetoric about “improving the fan experience,” as if they’re engaged in some sort of civic crusade for the public good.