Is the NFL Cool with The Bears Leaving Chicago?

In recent years the direction of people and businesses has been to move away from Illinois. Many of them have gone to Indiana. Dozens of Illinois businesses have crossed the border, equaling thousands of jobs. In recent years, over 50 people per day have moved from Illinois to Indiana. Many of them just across the border into northwest Indiana.

Illinois - Indiana border eastbound I-80/I-94

Now the Chicago Bears football team is seriously weighing moving to Indiana too. Before this week I would have told you that the flirtation with Indiana was only to provide leverage in negotiations with the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois.

Chicago Bears Chairman - George McCaskey

The Bears are the lone NFL franchise from the league's founding that is still playing in its original state. The team began in Decatur, Illinois in 1919 and moved to Chicago in 1921. In 1971 the Bears moved from Wrigley Field to Soldier Field. The 62,500 capacity of Soldier Field is the smallest in the NFL; it's also the oldest venue in the NFL.

Soldier Field - Chicago, Illinois

The team has purchased land in Arlington Heights to potentially build a new showplace, but the city of Chicago would like to keep the team downtown. Then, after attending the Bears/Packers playoff game Sunday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell visited and toured potential stadium sites for the Bears in northwest Indiana earlier this week. The commissioner doesn’t visit potential sites if talks of moving aren’t serious. The league obviously wants the best deal for the team. Plus, the Governor of Indiana is working extra time to make this deal happen.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell at Soldier Field for Bears/Packers playoff game

Pro sports teams move. The Bears began in Decatur. At least six current NFL teams are set up in cities they didn’t begin in, and that’s not counting the teams that are playing in states across borders from where they previously planted their flag. The New York Jets and Giants play in New Jersey. The Kansas City Chiefs are planning on moving from Missouri to Kansas, although Missouri has a gambit to keep the team in the Show-Me State.

There are places less than ten miles of the Illinois/Indiana border that could be developed for a new stadium complex in the Hoosier State, and even if the team moves to Indiana, they would still be called the Chicago Bears. The Windy City casts a big shadow, the Bears brand itself is incredibly valuable. There are billions of dollars at stake for the team, the respective cities, and states. Are the Bears really through dealing with the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois? They wouldn’t be the first. In the meantime, should we begin getting used to the nickname “Hoosier Bears”?