Chicago Bears
The Pride and Joy of Illinois
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. They are one of two remaining franchises from the NFL's founding in 1920, along with the Arizona Cardinals (originally the Racine Cardinals of Chicago). The Bears play their home games at Soldier Field on the Near South Side, adjacent to Lake Michigan. The team headquarters, Halas Hall, is in the Chicago suburb of Lake Forest, Illinois. The Bears practice at adjoining facilities there during the season, and began hosting training camp at Halas Hall in 2020 after major renovations. The franchise was founded in Decatur, Illinois, on September 20, 1919, became professional on September 17, 1920, and moved to Chicago in 1921. The Bears played home games at Wrigley Field on Chicago's North Side through the 1970 season; they have played since then at Soldier Field. The team have won nine NFL Championships, eight before the AFL–NFL merger and one Super Bowl. They hold the NFL records for the most enshrinees in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the most retired jersey numbers. The Bears' NFL championships and overall victories are second behind the Green Bay Packers, with whom they have a long-standing rivalry. The Bears reached their greatest modern period of success in the 1980s under head coach Mike Ditka, with whom they won Super Bowl XX in the 1985 season. The Bears appeared in their second Super Bowl during the 2006 season, which they lost to the Indianapolis Colts. Since 2006, the Bears have struggled to find regular success, going fifteen years in between playoff wins from 2011 to 2026. During that time, the Bears have had 23 different starting quarterbacks and six different head coaches. In September 2025, a sale of a minority stake in the team valued the Bears at $8.9 billion.
Quick Facts
- First meeting
- 1921
Lore & Background
Originally named the Decatur Staleys, the club was established by the A. E. Staley food starch company of Decatur, Illinois, as a company team. The company hired George Halas and Edward "Dutch" Sternaman in 1920 to run the team. The team moved to Chicago in 1921, where the club was renamed the Chicago Staleys. In 1922, Halas changed the team name from the Staleys to the Bears. The team moved into Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise. The Bears' rivalry with the Green Bay Packers dates back to 1921. In the first NFL Championship, the Bears played against the New York Giants, defeating them 23–21. The teams met again in the 1934 NFL Championship where the Giants, wearing sneakers, defeated the Bears 30–13 on a cold, icy day at the Polo Grounds.
Reader's Guide
The Bears' rivalry with the Chicago Cardinals, the oldest in the NFL, was key in four out of the first six league titles. The Bears' rivalry with the Green Bay Packers is one of the oldest and most storied in American professional sports, dating back to 1921. The Bears' greatest modern period of success was in the 1980s under head coach Mike Ditka, with whom they won Super Bowl XX in the 1985 season.
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