Northwestern will be moving away from Wrigley Field. The contest on Saturday against No. 18 Michigan will be the second-to-last time the school will host a football game at the iconic venue.
In a statement to Front Office Sports, Northwestern says New Ryan Field is expected to be ready for the start of the 2026 college football season.
“Upon completion of New Ryan Field, Northwestern University plans to host home football games at the new stadium moving forward,” the statement said. The $862 million stadium by the school’s Evanston campus is one of the most expensive projects in the school's history.
The timeline means the Wildcats will be saying goodbye to the home of the Chicago Cubs. Northwestern faces Minnesota the following weekend, bringing a close to a century-old chapter with Wrigley. It doesn't mean there couldn't be a possibility for special games there, but not on a regular basis.
New Ryan Field will be the primary home for Northwestern from here on out. The Wildcats first played at the ballpark in 1923. They've been at Dyche Stadium for the majority of the time with Wrigley Field as a backup site. The NFL Chicago Bears called the stadium home from 1921 until 1970.
There's a bit of history at Wrigley. It's the only venue to host a one-off game with both teams scoring in just one end zone because the east side of the field was deemed too close to the right field wall. This happened with Northwestern's game against Illinois.
For now, the Wildcats will try to make the final two games at Wrigley memorable and it starts with Michigan on Saturday (Noon ET, FOX).
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