On Thursday night, some true blue Chicagoans may be facing a TV viewing dilemma when Da Bears and the DNC go head-to-head in prime time.
It’s a choice between watching the historic acceptance speech by Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black woman to be nominated for president, during the final night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, or the meaningless final Bears preseason game in Kansas City, where most starters will be in street clothes.
While a battle for the clicker may play out across Chicago, at Timothy O’Toole’s Pub in Streeterville, it’s no contest.
“It’s Bears,” said Jason Rauch, 51, general manager of the 32-year-old sports bar with 71 high-definition TVs and a history of offering Sunday communion for Bears fans.
The DNC has been a huge made-for-TV event, with major cable news and broadcast networks carrying nightly events from the convention floor at the United Center live. On Monday, the DNC averaged 20 million prime-time viewers, according to Nielsen.
Rousing speeches by former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama drew even bigger numbers Tuesday night during their Chicago homecoming, with an average of 20.8 million prime-time viewers across a dozen networks, according to Nielsen. The DNC audience peaked at nearly 22 million viewers during the former president’s speech.
But at O’Toole’s, the bar’s array of TVs have been tuned into baseball games, ESPN and a host of far-flung sporting events this week, as the DNC played out before a national audience 3 miles away on the Near West Side.
“There hasn’t been much demand for watching the DNC,” Rauch said.
For Chicago, hosting its first DNC in nearly three decades is nonetheless kind of a big deal. Some 15,000 journalists and 5,000 delegates have descended on the city to cover the Harris nomination as she prepares to challenge former President Donald Trump in November for the highest office in the land.
That has also meant road closures and disruption that Rauch said has turned the streets of Streeterville into a “ghost town” this week, tamping down business to a few straggling DNC delegates and hard-core regulars.
Thursday night, Bears fans may still find their way to the Streeterville bar, or the TV of their choice, to watch the game, said Marc Ganis, a Chicago-based sports marketing consultant.
“Those people who want to watch the Bears are going to watch the Bears,” Ganis said.
Ganis said if the Bears game were up against the Trump-Harris debate, which is scheduled for Sept. 10, that might be a different story. Despite the big national DNC ratings, Ganis does not believe the Harris “coronation” is must-see TV for a lot of Bears fans.
A bigger factor may simply be the meaninglessness of the final preseason game.
“The biggest problem with this game in terms of TV viewership and interest is that Caleb Williams and Patrick Mahomes are likely not to play,” Ganis said. “That’s much more impactful than Kamala Harris giving a speech, interrupted at the right moments for great applause.”
Bears coach Matt Eberflus announced Tuesday that rookie QB Williams and the majority of the starters will sit out the game.
In 2021, the NFL cut the number of preseason games from four to three and increased the regular season from 16 to 17 games. Ganis said there is some momentum for trimming the preseason to two games and increasing the regular season to 18 games.
This year, the Bears played an extra preseason game, beating the Houston Texans 21-17 in the annual Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, on Aug. 1.
If the final preseason game is essentially meaningless to anyone but players on the bubble, gamblers and the most devoted fans, the fourth quarter of the final preseason game is the definition of garbage time, Ganis said.
That may open the door to some judicious channel-flipping, with Bears fans getting their fix during the first half and tuning in for Harris’ acceptance speech, which is likely to take place in the 9 o’clock hour Thursday.
Bears fans aside, for those planning to watch some or all of the DNC finale, O’Toole’s may not be the venue of choice.
Watching “Da Bears” is such a tradition at O’Toole’s that during the 2019 season it opened up a backroom pop-up bar called “Swerski’s” matching the decor, vibe and menu depicted in the recurring “SNL” “Superfans” sketch.
The bar even provides a regular Sunday morning shuttle bus for fans to get lubed up before heading to Soldier Field for home games. After the game, they are deposited back into the bustling bar.
Not surprisingly, on Thursday, the sports bar will devote the vast majority of its 71 TVs to the Bears-Kansas City game, which starts at 7 p.m. on Fox 32 and the NFL Network. The DNC finale will be carried live on more than a dozen networks from 8-10 p.m.
Rauch said he may tune a few sets to the DNC, only by request.
“We are a Bears bar,” Rauch said. “People come here to watch football.”
rchannick@chicagotribune.com