When Was Soldier Field Built for the Chicago Bears and the City?

When was Soldier Field built? originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

When was Soldier Field built? What's the history of one of the NFL's oldest stadiums? Here's a rundown of Soldier Field and its history in Chicago.

In 1919, Chicago decided to hire an architectural team to begin the construction of Soldier Field, then called Municipal Grant Park Stadium.

In 1925, the stadium was renamed to Soldier Field in honor of U.S. Soldiers who died during World War I. 

The Chicago Bears, founded in 1920, played select charity games at Soldier Field but played their games at Wrigley Field, the home stadium of the Chicago Cubs. 

It wasn't until 1971 that the Bears agreed to a three-year deal with the city and Soldier Field to have their home games played at the stadium. At the time, the NFL required teams to play games in a stadium with at least 50,000 seats for spectators, forcing the team's move from Wrigley. 

In 1987, Soldier Field was named a historic landmark. 

In 2003, led by President Ted Phillips, the Bears reconstructed the interior of Soldier Field with a new design and seating for fans. They preserved the exterior of the stadium as a keepsake of the landmark but reconstructed the rest. 

For the 2002 season, the Bears played their home games at the University of Illinois' football field. The renovations took up the entire season and cost over $600 million. 

In 2019, Chicago's lone professional soccer team, the Chicago Fire, left Toyota Park, now known as SeatGeek Stadium, to make Soldier Field their home stadium for home games. 

In 2021, the Bears announced they won a bid they placed on Arlington Park to start the development of a new stadium. Their departure from Soldier Field is inevitable and will come in the near future. 

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