Chicago Bears history

In 1922, Halas changed the team name from the Staleys to the Bears.

In spite of all his efforts, professional football just wasn't as popular as the college game, and by 1924 it looked as if the APFA was not going to survive much longer.

After the 1929 season, however, Halas decided to hire Ralph Jones in place of himself as head coach.

3, Bronko Nagurski (FB-LB-T, 1930–37, '43): A four-time All-Pro, Nagurski was an old-time player with modern size and speed.

Consequently, even though the team won the league championship in 1932, by the end of the season the franchise had lost approximately $18,000.

The Bears won three, including the famous 73-0 annihilation of the Washington Redskins in 1940.

Ever-larger crowds attended Bear games, with over 58,000 people watching in 1946 as Chicago defeated the New York Giants for the NFL championship.

In the above photograph, Halas poses with an armful of footballs at the opening of a sporting goods store in Chicago, December 10, 1947.

In 1949, Lujack set an NFL record with 468 passing yards against the Cardinals.

61, Bill George (LB-G-MG-DT, 1952–65): George excelled at linebacker, earning eight Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections in his 14 years with the Bears.

1956: Founder Halas retires as the Bears coach only to return two years later.

89, Mike Ditka (TE, 1961–66): The league's preeminent tight end when he was healthy, knee injuries shortened his window of dominance.

They finally broke a 17-year championship drought with a 14-10 win over the New York Giants in 1963.

In this photograph, Bears quarterback Rudy Bukich (#10) leads the team through practice at Wrigley Field, November 4, 1965.

Under that pile of Packers is Bears running back Gale Sayers, buried on a preseason play in 1966.

When he retired after the 1967 season, he ranked as the all-time leader in coaching victories with 324, a record that stood for 27 years.

By 1968, Halas was ready to relinquish his position as head coach of the Bears for the last time.

The team played home games at Wrigley Field on Chicago's North Side through the 1970 season; they now play at Soldier Field on the Near South Side, adjacent to Lake Michigan.

They moved to Soldier Field in 1971.

The dry spell ended when the Bears drafted running back Walter Payton in 1975, starting a decade of dominance.

However, the front office was hit hard when Mugs Halas unexpectedly died of a heart attack in 1979.

In one of George Halas' last major moves as team owner, he hired former Chicago standout tight-end Mike Ditka as head coach in 1982.

On November 1, 1983, a day after the death of George Halas, his oldest daughter, Virginia McCaskey, took over as the majority owner of the team.

The loss in the 1984 NFL Conference title game to the San Francisco 49ers set the stage for the next season.

The Bears’ 1985 season and its players are legendary: they set a record of fifteen wins to only one loss.

Chicago sports fans braved the frigid cold to celebrate a rare sports championship victory at a ticker tape parade in the Loop, January 27, 1986.

In 1993, McCaskey hired Dave Wannstedt as coach.

He was part of the Bears’ vaunted defensive line during his career and his play earned him induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1998.

Sadly, Payton died of a rare liver disease in 1999 at the age of forty-five.

In 2001, the Chicago Park District, which owns the structure, faced substantial criticism when it announced plans to alter the stadium with a design by architect Benjamin T. Wood of the Boston-based architecture firm Wood and Zapata.

Stadium 2003 - Present / Soldier Field II

Under head coach Lovie Smith, the Bears would again come to prominence, culminating in a Super Bowl appearance in 2006.

The Bears made it to the Super Bowl again in 2007.

Following the 2010 regular season, the Bears returned to the NFC championship game, where they were defeated by their rivals the Green Bay Packers.

Lovie Smith’s coaching career with the Bears was a successful one, but ultimately, his inability to win a Super Bowl lead to his dismissal in 2012.

While the team’s defense improved in the following two seasons, the Bears nevertheless remained one of the worst teams in the NFL. In 2016 Chicago posted a 3–13 record, which equaled a team record for most losses in a season.

Bears wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson (84) plays catch with fans in the stands prior to a 2019 game against the Packers at Soldier Field.

Revenues and operating income are for the 2020 season and net stadium debt service.1.