The fight to keep the Chicago Bears in the Windy City continues.

Landmark Development, the developer advising mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration on how to upgrade Soldier Field, released a six-minute virtual tour of a revamped stadium.

On top of a new glass dome to protect the inside of the venue from weather, the $2.2 billion renovation proposal includes club lounges, food halls, an entertainment district, and a transit hub.

• Seating at the updated stadium would expand to 70,000, with more private suites.
• The transit hub would include access to CTA, Metro, and Amtrak rail lines, as well as a new “CHI-Line” downtown circulator system for rideshares.
• Soldier Field would also include a veteran’s memorial.

“Chicago deserves an extraordinary vision to take this iconic public asset into the next hundred years and beyond,” said Bob Dunn, president of Landmark Development.

There will be even more buzz surrounding the Bears in the coming months after the team secured the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft on Sunday. The draft is scheduled to be held in Kansas City for the first time on April 27-29.

With no financial plan presented, it’s unclear how much the stadium would cost taxpayers.

Another Hail Mary

Sportscorp Limited president Marc Gain said the proposal is likely too late.

Last year, the Bears entered an agreement to purchase a 326-acre property for $197.2 million in Arlington Heights, where the team wants to build a $5 billion stadium.

After the team closes on the purchase, it will also need to submit plans and studies on traffic, transportation, parking, economic feasibility, and economic impact.

New York has set another new record in its first year of legal sports betting. 

The Empire State — the largest mobile sports betting market in the U.S. — reported $1.62 billion in accepted bets in December, bringing its total betting handle to $16.2 billion for 2022. 

• New York launched legal mobile sports betting in January 2022.
• In its first month, the state reported an official total handle of $1.6 billion.
• The figure set the single-month record for any state. 
• December 2022 marked the 10th month New York had exceeded a $1 billion handle. 

The records have resulted in strong revenue for New York and its licensed sportsbooks, which include DraftKings, Flutter Entertainment’s FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, and others. 

Sportsbooks in New York generated $1.4 billion in gross revenue in 2022, while the state reported $693 million in state tax revenue, to be allocated toward public education. 

The record state tax revenue is the byproduct of New York’s high tax rate for licensed sportsbooks. Each sports betting operator is required to pay a 51% tax rate to the state for 10 years — the average tax rate in the U.S. is 19%, per Morgan Stanley.

New Competition 

On Jan. 1, Ohio launched legal sports betting — joining 35 other states since the U.S. Supreme Court authorized state-regulated betting in 2018.

Last week, the Ohio Casino Control Commission announced that it intends to take action against BetMGM, Caesars, and DraftKings for violating Ohio law concerning advertising.

Qatar Sports Investments could be adding another soccer team to its growing list.

The owner of Ligue 1’s Paris Saint-Germain is looking to buy a minority stake in a Premier League club this year, according to CBS Sports — and QSI chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi has already met with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy for exploratory discussions.

• Tottenham denied having any meetings regarding the club’s equity.
• But CBS Sports said it has seen “indisputable evidence” that Levy did meet with QSI, specifically to speak about a minority investment.

CBS Sports reported that multiple clubs are still being assessed. 

QSI has reportedly not held any discussions with Liverpool — which Fenway Sports Group, the Premier League club’s owner, announced in November is open to a sale. It was previously reported that the Qatari Royal Family is not interested in the club.

Revenue Roster

QSI has owned Paris Saint-Germain for more than a decade, but has only recently begun diversifying its portfolio.

It’s looking to offload a 15% stake in PSG at a valuation of more than $4.1 billion.

In October, QSI entered an agreement to purchase a nearly 22% stake in Portugal’s SC Braga for roughly $18.4 million — the state-backed fund’s second soccer venture. 

South America is also reportedly a priority region for QSI this year.