Next meeting 2017 All-time series CHI: leads 97–72–5 | Meetings total 173 meetings | |
First meeting October 22, 1930Portsmouth 7, Chicago 6 Latest meeting December 11, 2016Detroit 20, Chicago 17 Postseason results Chicago leads 1–0December 18, 1932, CHI 9, POR 0 (for NFL title) | ||
The Bears–Lions rivalry is an National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions. The franchises first met in 1930 when the Lions were known as the Portsmouth Spartans and based in Portsmouth, Ohio. They moved to Detroit for the 1934 season. The Bears and Lions have been division rivals since 1933 and have usually met twice a season since the Lions franchise began.
This rivalry is also the longest-running annual series in the NFL as both teams have met at least once a season since 1930. (Due to the 1982 strike, the Bears–Packers rivalry was not played that season.) However, one of the two meetings between both teams was cancelled during Week 3 of the 1987 season, which does not make this rivalry the longest-running continuous series in the NFL (that feat belongs to the Lions–Packers rivalry, who have met at least twice a season since 1932 without any cancelled meetings).