Soldier Field has been the home of the Chicago Bears since 1971, but it appears that may be in jeopardy in the coming years.
There has been talks of the team potentially moving to Arlington Heights after the team purchased Arlington International Racecourse, where the team may potentially build a new stadium.
While that remains a possibility, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is proposing an idea for renovations of Soldier Field (seen above last fall) so that the Bears can remain in Chicago.
A mayoral committee is set to recommend that Chicago “explores the possibility” of adding a dome to Soldier Field, along with other significant updates to the venue.
Chicago considers putting a dome on Soldier Field in an effort to keep the Bears from heading to Arlington Heights. https://t.co/Kq5zuzR13m
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) July 6, 2022
The potential addition of a dome would be a costly one, with a Crain’s Chicago Business piece estimating that at between $400 million to $1.5 billion.
This possibility has many around the NFL world talking, with extremely mixed reactions to this possible drastic change to the iconic stadium.
Some think that it is a great idea and that the proposal by Lightfoot is a plausible way to keep the Bears in their long-time stadium.
But I’m pro dome. The more events that can be held at Soldier Field the better (SB, Final Four, Big Ten Championship Game) Just keep it open for Bears games even when it’s zero degrees (not sure if that’s possible)
— Big Cat (@BarstoolBigCat) July 6, 2022
Soldier Field Dome >>> moving to Arlington Heights https://t.co/duum3kCwR5
— Courtney Robb (@courtkrobb) July 6, 2022
I’m absolutely for this, but they need to figure out other issues as well like capacity https://t.co/mjQwfAlFQo
— Nate Gilbert (@NateGilbert) July 6, 2022
However, others feel that this would take away from the nostalgia of Soldier Field, and note that there are other issues with the stadium other than just the open field that would need to be fixed.
I like Soldier Field. But adding a dome doesn't seem like the correct idea.
— Adam Rank (@adamrank) July 6, 2022
adding a roof to Soldier Field is such a perfect example of putting lipstick on a pig that they should probably just change the phrase to that
— Jeremy (@JeromeyR0me) July 6, 2022
This will not expand capacity of the Soldier Field, which is what the Bears want https://t.co/iLrVJqb9es
— 𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐨𝐩𝐞 (@exavierpope) July 6, 2022
A dome hardly solves the issues for Soldier Field.
Plus, a dome would make that building look even dumber than it already does on the outside https://t.co/2jPMIb25Ys
— Matt Eurich (@MattEurich) July 6, 2022
If the city of Chicago wants to keep the #Bears from moving, they’ll need more than a dome on Soldier Field.
Arlington Heights gives them potential for more seats, more parking, stadium ownership rights and outside revenue opportunities. A dome alone won’t fix the big issues.
— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) July 6, 2022
It does appear that there are other pressing issues with Soldier Field that the team would need to fix if they want the Bears to stay there.
The stadium currently has the smallest capacity of any NFL stadium (61,500), and hasn’t been renovated since 2001.
While Soldier Field is a nostalgic stadium that Bears fans may not want to give up, a potential new stadium in Arlington Heights may be a better move if the Bears potentially want to host events like the Super Bowl moving forward.
[CBS Sports; photo from Jon Durr/USA Today Sports]
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.