Bears Stadium Move: Could Soldier Field Be The Bears' Last Season?

When the Chicago Bears kick off against the Minnesota Vikings for their 2026 home opener on Sunday, it will mark the start of their 55th season at Soldier Field. It also may be the last. Hammond, Indiana, certainly hopes it is not. The Bears announced in June that they were moving forward with stadium development plans across state lines in Hammond. This isn't the first time the team has talked about moving to Indiana, as there were discussions in the late 1990s, but none were serious back then. Now? The discussions are as serious as Ben Johnson saying he wants the Bears to have the highest-scoring offense in NFL history.

Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said that while the city has been preparing for this, even he didn't think the work would eventually lead to Hammond potentially becoming the next home of the Bears. "We did a lot of things in Hammond and in Indiana to prepare us for this day," McDermott told OutKick in a recent interview. "But you know, I'd be lying to you if I told you I thought that when we were doing this, I thought we'd be the future home of the Chicago Bears."

How Hammond Prepared for This The Bears completed their review of the Lost Marsh site in Hammond while also doing their due diligence on the Lake Terminal site. McDermott said those potential sites for a stadium came to be through efforts to clean up the area. "The site that we're talking about right now, if you were looking at it when I first took over, it was I don't think the Bears would have even thought it was possible to locate a stadium there because there was so many different landowners," McDermott said. It was underutilized and it was just old-fashioned, old thinking.

"For the first two or three terms, in cooperation with the state government, we started assembling dozens and dozens of acres and we got it to where we have about 300 acres available." But even throughout the process of assembling the acreage, it was never done with the thought that it could one day be the home of the Bears. "I'll be honest with you, never in a million years did I think that we'd one day be the home, the future home of the Chicago Bears," McDermott said. We were just doing it to clean up and hoping that good things would happen and improve the quality of life.

However, acquiring and developing land wasn't the only thing Hammond did to prepare for the Bears. The state of Indiana has more favorable property tax caps than Illinois, which McDermott said was of interest to the Bears. "Another thing that Indiana did to prepare for this day is there's a gap from one side of the state line to the other in what it costs to run a household," McDermott explained. It also covers what it costs to run a business. In Indiana, we enshrine tax caps, property tax caps, into our constitution. And one of the buzzwords of this whole ordeal with the Bears is property tax certainty, which is something the Bears are interested in, and they can't get property tax certainty in Illinois.

"And certainly in year zero and for the next 30 years, they certainly can't get property tax certainty. And in Indiana, ours are enshrined in our constitution," McDermott said. You can't pay over 1%, 2% or 3% depending on your classification. Heather Ennis, president and CEO of the Northwest Indiana Forum, told OutKick in a recent interview that Northwest Indiana has seen billions of dollars invested in the region, not including any potential deal with the Bears. "We're a $52 billion regional economy," Ennis said. We're seeing in the last 10 months over $30 billion of investment committed to the region, and that doesn't even include any of the Bears conversation.

People are getting excited about Northwest Indiana and the fresh opportunities landing in the region, according to Ennis speaking with OutKick. Hammond is riding high on one specific advantage: total cooperation from everyone involved. McDermott has watched 23 years of politics and he claims this current push for the Chicago Bears offers more bipartisan unity than anything he has ever seen. He noted that coordination across federal, state, Republican, and Democratic lines has never been tighter. Senators in Indiana are both working on it. The local congressman is a Democrat while both senators are Republicans. The governor leads as a Republican and McDermott stands as a Democrat. It looks like everyone is moving in perfect lockstep on this project. Governor Braun has stepped up as a great leader for the state, helping Hammond tremendously even though that Democratic city likely did not vote him into office. You cannot tell who is working with whom when they are all pulling so hard for this goal.

The team started by looking at one location in Hammond before shifting gears a couple months ago. Nothing changed except their approach. That flexibility impressed the potential buyer and they just rolled right along. If that is what the Bears want to see, there is no problem; everyone gets back to work. The environment has been very business friendly. The Bears would likely say they are impressed by the cooperation Indiana has shown them.

This is not the first time the franchise has thought about moving here. In the late 1990s, they considered a move to Gary, Indiana, but that deal fell through. That past failure is why McDermott and many others doubted the Bears were serious this time around. He admitted his own skepticism at the start because of that history in Northwest Indiana from the nineties when the plan was supposed to be Gary but never happened. There was a lot of doubt back then about whether the franchise would ever follow through, and people wondered if they were serious now as well.

So he started with lingering doubts but he is also a mayor who likes to close deals. Even if you think there is little chance of success, you still work your tail off trying to make it happen. That was his approach from the beginning. McDermott said he was brought into the fold last year around the holidays, though Governor Mike Braun and the speaker of the House had been involved long before him. He even had to sign nondisclosure agreements to keep things quiet for a while. Things did not feel real until he received a call from a major company that declined to identify about its property being acquired.

When I finally started feeling like this was the real deal, there was a big company in my city that got panicked when they heard calls from Indiana state officials asking about their property acquisition. McDermott could not tell them why exactly at that moment, but there were high fives flying around City Hall because it clicked then. That is when he realized this isn't the nineties anymore; this is a totally different situation now. As for Soldier Field, the Bears have a lease running through 2033. They can pay a fee to break that lease early if they choose to do so.

Soldier Field sits roughly 40 miles south of Halas Hall, the team's headquarters in Lake Forest. Hammond lies about 20 miles south of that lakefront stadium. Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston served as the lead sponsor for Senate Bill 27 in the House. That measure passed without much trouble and set up a funding mechanism for the Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority to construct a future arena within the state.

Huston told OutKick the Bears moving to Indiana would spark opportunities that last for generations. "This project would be a transformational opportunity for Northwest Indiana," Huston said in a statement. "It would deliver lasting benefits across the region and our entire state, building on a foundation that's already been put in place for the last two decades." He noted the area is seeing tremendous growth and potential. An investment of this scale would take that to another level by bringing new jobs and businesses, attracting visitors and residents, and creating opportunities that will benefit Hoosiers for generations.

Indiana has built an environment that keeps costs low for businesses and families while attracting investment and supporting job growth. When the chance arose, state and local leaders saw the potential and moved quickly. That mix of a low-cost, forward-looking setting and a willingness to get things done continues to draw businesses, money, and people to Indiana.

Building the infrastructure requires more than just digging up dirt for a stadium and calling it done. The city needs roads, highways, and utilities ready to handle tens of thousands of fans traveling to games. McDermott pointed out that Hammond sits on the southern tip of Lake Michigan where utility infrastructure is already well developed. "We have a lot of big businesses here," McDermott explained. "We have industrial businesses here. We have a data center here. We have big users of energy and our infrastructure." Because Hammond is located just south of the lake's edge, highways, rail lines, and utilities all pass through it. In a project like this, having such heavy infrastructure already in place helps tremendously when trying to bring in a stadium.

McDermott noted that Arlington Heights, Illinois, about 30 miles northwest of Chicago and another spot the Bears are considering, faces different challenges regarding infrastructure, while Hammond does not have that same problem. Still, McDermott admitted the area needs significant improvements to highways, interstates, and roads. "Although we're going to need a massive infusion of highway and off-interstate and road infrastructure improvements," he said, "$600 million is built into this deal for infrastructure improvements around the proposed footprint of the stadium." They already have a good blueprint that will only get bigger and better.

Ennis added that Indiana has all the infrastructure needed to make a project like this happen, calling the state "the crossroads of America." "We are the region that built America," Ennis stated. "Over 25% of the nation's steel is built here and in our region, and so we have all of the infrastructure to be able to bring a project like this to fruition." They also possess great highway infrastructure connectivity right to Chicago.

Ennis declared they have double tracked the commuter rail line and are extending it further down into Lake County. They view themselves as a true part of the Chicago metro area, relying on an existing base of infrastructure including the beautiful waterfront, great highways, and the current commuter rail system. Improvements will definitely be needed to keep connecting these sites to the opportunities already available there. Yet other regions across the country drool over what we possess in Northwest Indiana today.

Fans worried about the stadium moving from Soldier Field to Hammond found some reassurance. McDermott admitted getting to Soldier Field is easier but explained there are many ways to commute to Indiana. If you sit in downtown Chicago, I understand that trip was a lot easier to Soldier Field, yet we remain connected by highway. We connect by water during certain times of the year and by rail as well. It is far easier to get to Hammond and quicker than it would be to reach Arlington Heights according to McDermott.

The Bears could build a heck of a lot more stadium in Indiana than they can right now because of the financial situation there versus Illinois. So if you are a true fan of the Chicago Bears, I think we will have a better fan experience in Indiana. The team is going to be better in Indiana as well.

McDermott made it clear that the Chicago Bears will remain the Chicago Bears regardless of location. A name change was never discussed during these talks. Not even once did anyone bring up changing the name, and there is absolutely nothing on that table. Listen, some Hammond Bears stuff is going around Northwest Indiana, but I am sure the Bears didn't authorize it. That sounds more like a local pride thing to me McDermott said.

Everybody knows the Chicago Bears are the Chicago Bears without question. That topic has never been broached by the state government or city government either. The team is an icon and there is no way we would ever ask them to change their name. The Bears themselves have echoed this same sentiment in August. We will be the Chicago Bears whether we are in Arlington or whether we are in Hammond Chairman George McCaskey stated back then.

McDermott also clarified that many people assume Indiana residents are automatically Indianapolis Colts fans but Northwest Indiana is Bears country. I know we are in Indiana and everybody thinks just because of our address there that we are Colts fans. That is not the case at all. In Northwest Indiana it is the Bears and probably the Packers are likely second most liked teams. The Colts might be third in the region where we are talking about right now, but this remains Bears country so like I said everybody wants the team to succeed.

The Bears scored 59 points in their Week 1 win against the Carolina Panthers while dominating in the red zone during that game. Using an analogy where a touchdown means the Bears are officially moving to Hammond McDermott said the ball is currently sitting in the red zone. We are in the red zone for sure so where exactly do we sit within it? I think the only people who could answer that question are Mr McCaskey and Kevin Warren. But I definitely think we are deep in the red zone with a lot of work going on right now. It is hard to punch the ball into the end zone since that is where we stand McDermott said.

When you find yourself in the red zone, the defense tightens up immediately and everybody gets shoved into a little box making it even harder to score. I think that describes exactly where we are at this moment but we will eventually punch it in. The ball rests 100% in their court with McCaskey and Bears President Kevin Warren holding all the cards now. So I try not to make promises since I realize this situation is not in my control anymore. I simply hope that everything gets done sooner rather than later.

I hope that the Bears choose Hammond and we start moving forward, and that's all it is really. It's hoping," McDermott said.

"But, you know, the Bears are going to do it when they're comfortable." If they plan on dumping billions into a specific piece of property, then they need total certainty that their move makes sense. That is exactly what is happening right now. I don't blame them for taking time, you know?

Ennis argued that while landing the team would be fantastic news for Indiana, the Bears should feel just as excited about picking such a booming area. "The Bears would, we would be lucky to have the Bears come here," Ennis stated. "But they would be just as lucky to locate here because we really have our act together and our communities are really working in lockstep to make those investments happen." The state is on board too, pushing across every platform to get things done.

As a fans McDermott does not want to disrupt the organization or bug McCaskey and Warren too much. If McCaskey and Warren turn out to be anything like the Bears' offense, they might score in the end zone sooner rather than later. That means making Indiana the team's new home. The Associated Press contributed to this report.