About Soldier Field
Soldier Field is an NFL stadium in Chicago, Illinois. It opened in 1924. It was designed by Holabird & Root. It seats 61,500. Its current tenant is Chicago Bears (NFL), since 1971. Former tenants include Notre Dame Fighting Irish (College Football, 1929), Chicago Rockets (AAFC, 1946–1949) and Chicago Cardinals (NFL, 1959). In all, 4 teams from 3 leagues have called it home. By capacity it ranks 30th of 30 current NFL venues, counting only venues with a known capacity. On our ranked lists it ranks 26th oldest of 354 stadiums and arenas still in use and 9th for most tenants among 67 venues with 3 or more teams. It has also been known as Municipal Grant Park Stadium (1924–1925).
Appears in
- 26th oldest of 354 stadiums and arenas still in use
- 9th for most tenants among 67 venues with 3 or more teams
- 24th oldest of 267 football stadiums still in use
- 5th for most tenants among 22 football stadiums with 3 or more teams
- 2nd longest single tenancy (55 years) of the 101 longest on record in NFL stadiums
Venue Information
Location
Architect
Operator
Location derived from the venue's coordinates using data © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence (ODbL).
Elevation of the venue's coordinates from USGS and NASA SRTM elevation data, via Open Topo Data.
Architect and operator credits from Wikidata.
Capacity by layout
| Layout | Seats | Source |
|---|---|---|
| General | 61,500 | |
| Football | 61,500 | Wikidata |
Seating capacity depends on how the building is laid out for each event. Figures are the best sourced claim per layout.
Teams
| Team | League | Years |
|---|---|---|
|
Chicago Bears While based here: 56 seasons · 420-448-1 regular season · 17 postseason trips · 2026 in progress
NFL · 1971–present
|
NFL | 1971–present |
|
Chicago Cardinals While based here: 1 season · 2-10 regular season · no postseason trips
NFL · 1959
All 11 home venues of the Chicago Cardinals
|
NFL | 1959 |
|
Chicago Rockets While based here: 4 seasons · 11-40-3 regular season · no postseason trips
AAFC · 1946–1949
|
AAFC | 1946–1949 |
|
Notre Dame Fighting Irish While based here: 1 season · 9-0 regular season · no postseason trips
College Football · 1929
Independent 1929 · Major College
|
College Football | 1929 |
Records are each team's full-season results while it was based here, home and away games alike, from final scores. They are not records of games played at this venue.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the capacity of Soldier Field?
The capacity of Soldier Field is 61,500.
When was Soldier Field built?
Soldier Field opened in 1924.
Who designed Soldier Field?
Soldier Field was designed by Holabird & Root.
Who operates Soldier Field?
Soldier Field is operated by SMG.
Who plays at Soldier Field?
Soldier Field is the home venue of Chicago Bears.
Where did the Chicago Bears play before Soldier Field?
Before moving to Soldier Field in 1971, the Chicago Bears played at Wrigley Field from 1921 to 1970.
Where did the Chicago Cardinals play before Soldier Field?
Before moving to Soldier Field in 1959, the Chicago Cardinals played at Comiskey Park from 1940 to 1958.
Where did the Chicago Cardinals play after Soldier Field?
After leaving Soldier Field in 1959, the Chicago Cardinals moved to Busch Stadium in 1960. They played there until 1965.
Where did the Notre Dame Fighting Irish play before Soldier Field?
Before moving to Soldier Field in 1929, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish played at Cartier Athletic Field from 1900 to 1928.
Where did the Notre Dame Fighting Irish play after Soldier Field?
After leaving Soldier Field in 1929, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish moved to Notre Dame Stadium in 1930.
Sources
Where the facts on this page were read from. How VenueStats compiles them.
- Open Topo Data (Public domain): Elevation.
- OpenStreetMap Nominatim (ODbL): Location.
- VenueStats compilation: Opening and closing years, name history and teams (compiled by VenueStats from Sports Reference and Wikipedia).
- Wikidata (CC0): Capacity, football layout, Coordinates (Wikidata places the building within 7 m of this point), Architect and operator.
- Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA): Photograph.
Historical Names
Soldier Field
1926 - Present
CurrentMunicipal Grant Park Stadium
1924 - 1925
Location
Nearby Venues
| Venue | Years | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Coliseum | 1899–1971 | 0.4 mi |
| Wintrust Arena | 2017– | 0.7 mi |
| 23rd Street Grounds | 1872–1877 | 0.9 mi |
| Lake Front Park | 1871–1884 | 1.4 mi |
| Credit Union 1 Arena | 1982– | 2.2 mi |
| South Side Park II | 1890–1940 | 2.3 mi |
Straight-line distance between the venues' coordinates.
References
Teams on Wikipedia
Every source for the facts on this page is listed under Sources.