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Chicago Bears hire Penn alum Kevin Warren as president and CEO

Warren makes a return to the NFL following a stint as the first Black commissioner of a Power 5 conference.

Former Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren has made his return to the NFL, as the Chicago Bears announced him as their next president and CEO on Thursday.

Warren joins a Bears franchise looking to improve upon a dismal 3-14 season. Even larger is the franchise’s intent to move out of Soldier Field and begin work on a long-term plan to unveil a new stadium in suburban Arlington Heights, Ill.

Before his time at the Big Ten, Warren was an NFL front office executive in St. Louis, Detroit, and Minnesota. Warren, a Penn alumnus who became the first Black commissioner of any major college conference upon assuming the role in 2019, was instrumental in turning the Big Ten into a bicoastal conference with the additions of USC and UCLA set for 2024.

Warren also brokered a television deal valued at $7 billion over the next seven years, which will span across four networks.