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The Chicago Bears have some big plans for the stadium to replace their longtime home of Soldier Field. Of course, they aren't planning to pay for it all themselves.
The team is set to reveal plans Wednesday for a $4.6 billion project to build a new enclosed stadium on the Lake Michigan lakefront area, according to the Chicago Tribune, with the team planning to pledge $2.3 billion to make it happen. That would leave Illinois taxpayers on the hook for $2.3 billion.
For perspective, that works out to $183 per Illinois resident.
The stadium itself will reportedly cost $3.2 billion to build, with another $1.4 billion in infrastructure improvements (public transportation, parking garages, parks). Taxpayers would technically cover the infrastructure improvements and $1 billion in newly borrowed money, which would involve new bonds for the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority (ISFA).
A $4.6 billion stadium (or a $3.2 billion stadium) would be the second-most expensive stadium in sports history, behind only SoFi Stadium, the home of the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers. That project was funded entirely by Rams owner Stan Kroenke.
These plans come after the Bears already spent $197 million to buy the Arlington International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights, Illinois. They are now apparently set to abandon those plans, with the team reportedly unable to reach an agreement over property taxes with local schools in Arlington Heights.
The Bears' lease at Soldier Field, which is nearing its 100th birthday, runs through 2033.
The Chicago White Sox would also like $2 billion
The Bears are pursuing their public funding in parallel to the Chicago White Sox, who have already unveiled plans for a stadium just outside Chicago's South Loop area.
The price tag was initially reported as $1 billion, but a subsequent interview by team owner Jerry Reinsdorf revealed the price tag would be closer to $2 billion. He heavily hinted that Illinois declining to cover the money would endanger the team's future in Chicago.
It remains to be seen if the Bears will employ similar scare tactics, and if anyone would believe them. The teams have recently discussed a financial partnership.
Wait until you hear how much Illinois still owes for the last Bears and White Sox stadium projects
The Bears and White Sox already had some financial ties, as they both received their most recent major rounds of funding for stadiums via the ISFA.
A 2% hotel tax has been used to pay bonds that covered renovations for Soldier Field and Guaranteed Rate Field, but the debts have outpaced that income. Per the Tribune, taxpayers still owe $629 million on renovations for stadiums that both teams are now trying to abandon while asking Illinois to pay billions to help them do so.
Some of the proposed borrowing would reportedly be used to roll over that debt, with a plan to pay it off over the course of 40 years.
One sports economist the Tribune spoke to, J.C. Bradbury, was skeptical of the plan, to say the least:
“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me,” Bradbury said. “The Bears aren’t going to leave one of the most iconic football markets in the country. Tell the Bears to pay for their own damn stadium, and if they don’t like it, to go jump in Lake Michigan.”
We'll see if Illinois legislators have a similar reaction.
Daniel Weinman was crowned winner of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event on Monday, taking home a record breaking $12.1 million in winnings. Weinman had to outlast the other 10,043 entrants to take home the prize and get his hands on his share of live poker’s largest ever prize pool – a staggering $93,399,900. As well as taking home the prize money, 35-year-old Weinman also got his hands on the WSOP Main Event bracelet. The huge bracelet contains 500 grams of 10-karat yellow gold, as well as 2,352 various precious gemstones.
Daniel Weinman won the World Series of Poker's main event world championship on Monday in Las Vegas, earning $12.1 million along the way. Playing in the tournament for a 16th year, Weinman was tops in a deep pool of 10,043 players vying for $93.39 million. His victory came after just 164 hands at the final table. "I was honestly on the fence about even coming back and playing this tournament," the 35-year-old Atlanta native told reporters afterward. Weinman's final table featured Jan-Peter Jachtmann, who landed in fourth place and took home $3 million, as well as Toby Lewis, who finished seventh and secured $1.42 million. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the main event's entry pool far outpaced the previous record of 8,773 set in 2006. "I've always kind of felt that poker was kind of going in a dying direction, but to see the numbers at the World Series this year has been incredible," Weinman said. "And to win this main event, it doesn't feel real. I mean, [there's] so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well." Steven Jones finished second, securing $6.5 million. And Adam Walton settled for third and a $4 million prize.
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