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Tom Ricketts can drink for free on the North Side the rest of his life for his part in breaking the most famous championship drought in major American sports. The Cubs chairman is now expanding his sporting horizons beyond baseball, partnering with Sterling Bay to bring a United Soccer League team to Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Ricketts will be the team's majority owner, while Sterling Bay will retain an ownership stake and build a 20,000-seat stadium with a retractable roof at Lincoln Yards. Sterling Bay proposed building the stadium as part of its efforts to land Amazon or another large corporate tenant to anchor the 70-acre development along the North Branch Industrial Corridor. The retractable roof will allow for year-round use as a sports or concert venue.
The USL franchise is expected to begin play in 2021.
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