Mike Ditka died Oct. 9 at age 86, and the Chicago Bears played their first two games without him on the road, at Green Bay and Atlanta. Thursday night against the New England Patriots is Soldier Field’s first chance to say goodbye, and the team has built a tribute that reaches every seat in the building.
Every fan who walks in will receive a fake mustache, and the first 10,000 will also get a Bears knit headband modeled on the sweater vests Ditka wore on the sideline.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame will set up a display in the stadium’s south courtyard, a Ditka stencil will go on the grass, the spirit squad will carry Ditka-themed flags and the team will include him in a video tribute. A moment of silence before the national anthem is expected to air live on the Prime Video broadcast.
Bears players will also keep wearing the football-shaped patch with No. 89 inside that they first put over their hearts in Atlanta, after wearing helmet decals at Lambeau Field two days after his death.
“He was unapologetically himself, which I think people responded to,” Bears long snapper Scott Daly said the day Ditka died.
Fans had already reached for the same image before the Bears put it in their hands. At Lambeau Field on Oct. 11, several came dressed as Ditka in 1980s Bears sweaters, mustaches and sunglasses, some holding cigars, and the Green Bay crowd applauded at the end of its own moment of silence.
The #Bears will give out fake mustaches to all fans Thursday night ahead of their game vs. the #Patriots as part of their plan to honor former player and coach Mike Ditka, who died earlier this month, per @SunTimes.
Tonight is Chicago’s first home game since Ditka’s passing. https://t.co/Ri2t8uQpax
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) October 22, 2026
Why New England is the fitting opponent for Thursday’s tribute
Ditka coached the Bears from 1982 to 1992, and his 1985 team went 15-1 before beating New England 46-10 in Super Bowl XX. It remains the only Super Bowl title in franchise history, and the team Ditka beat for it is the one standing on the other sideline for Chicago’s first home game without him.
“As far as I’m concerned, Coach Ditka is the gold standard in terms of this place. He’s a legend around here as a player, as a coach. His impact is still being felt to this day. As the head coach of the Bears I feel humbled to be in that same chair he was once in,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson said at Halas Hall hours after the news broke.
Both teams are 4-2, with New England on a three-game winning streak, and the game was on track to be the most expensive ticket of the NFL season so far. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. ET on Prime Video.
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