The NFL’s oldest and one of sports most iconic rivalries involving the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears, may be on the cusp of forever changing.
Earlier today, the Bears Board of Directors voted to further advance relocation efforts to Hammond, Indiana in an official team statement posted to social media.
"We believe a world-class stadium project in Hammond will transform the region, connecting Northwest Indiana to the South Side of Chicago through the Loop and across neighborhoods and suburbs stretching north of the city," Bears Chairman George H. McCaskey and CEO Kevin Warren said in a statement. "It will bring Chicagoland together and deliver new opportunities to its residents and businesses.”
The coming years may see the NFL’s oldest rivalry be rebranded as, “the Green Bay Packers and the Hammond Bears." Doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue the same way.
Bears leaving Chicago would stain historic Packers rivalry
Through a little over 104 years, the two teams have met 213 times (three matchups in the postseason) with 56 of the games taking place at Solider Field. The Packers currently lead the overall series, with a record of 109-98-6.
In that span countless iconic moments have taken place on both sides of the rivalries such as Aaron Rodgers 48-yard TD to Randall Cobb to send Green Bay to the playoffs in 2015 or Caleb Williams helping Chicago overcome an 18-point deficit in this past years NFC Wild Card playoff matchup.
Even off the field players and coaches have continued to contribute with prime examples being former linebacker Clay Matthews announcing “the Bears still suck” to all fans in attendance for the 2025 NFL Draft and the now annual tradition of awkward handshakes between coaches Matt LaFleur and Ben Johnson.
The moments have also taken place outside off football games with the intense emotions of both fanbases expressed with chants of “Packers stink” and “Aaron Rodgers still owns you.”
Making the news more bittersweet is the 2025-26 NFL season being the first time this rivalry felt even after Green Bay had been the victor in recent years as Chicago didn’t have a winning season and postseason appearance since 2018.
No matter what side of the rivalry a person chooses to be on, the Bears foreboding departure from Chicago to Hammond is sad to see. The only possible benefit is every Green Bay, Chicago game from now until a potential departure will have additional implications.
If the final matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears comes to fruition it will be emotional for all involved as one of the NFL’s longtime stadiums in Solider Field is retired and the era of professional football in Chicago ends.
The history between the Packers and Bears will still exist regardless of any relocation, but calling them the Hammond Bears instead of the Chicago Bears feels unnatural.
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