Here’s a heat check for the Chicago Cubs’ popularity: Even companies that have never before sponsored sports teams now want a piece of the action.

CBRE, the largest commercial real estate broker in Chicago by total value of its sales transactions, signed on this season as an official sponsor of the Cubs in a move it hopes will raise its profile.

The Los Angeles-based publicly traded company is anything but a typical corporate partner of a major pro sports team. Until this year, it had never been a sponsor of a Chicago pro team … Read More