Chicago Bears Training Camp Returns To Halas Hall In Lake Forest

LAKE FOREST, IL — The Chicago Bears will hold its training camp at Halas Hall in Lake Forest this summer, team officials announced Tuesday.

For the first time in 18 years, Bears players and staff will not make an annual trip to Bourbonnais to train on the campus of Olivet Nazarene University. But fans will still have the chance to watch the team practice for free at the team's recently expanded Halas Hall training facilities, according to team officials.

"We will host training camp practices at Halas Hall in 2020, while maintaining a public component to many of the sessions to incorporate our loyal and passionate fans," Ted Phillips, president and chief executive officer, as team officials thanked the towns of Bourbonnais, Bradley and Kankakee said in a statement announcing the move.

Additions to Halas Hall unveiled in August more than doubled its square footage and added two additional football fields, according to the team's website.

"Olivet Nazarene University continues to be a valued and committed partner," Phillips continued. "But with the recent investment in our campus expansion and state-of-the-art facilities in Lake Forest, we feel it is important to stay home for training camp."

The Bears last held preseason training in Lake Forest from 1975 to 1983, according to the team website. Camp was moved to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville from 1984 to 2001.

Bourbonnais Mayor Paul Schore told the Chicago Sun-Times he had suspected the team could soon leave before learning of the news Tuesday morning, since most NFL teams choosing to hold training camps at their own facilities.

"It was a good run," Schore told the paper. "It did an awful lot for our university, our county, and for Olivet Nazarene University."