Tag: White House

Philadelphia EaglesÕ head coach Nick Sirianni, left, and offensive tackle Lane Johnson stand next to President Donald Trump as he honors the Super Bowl LIX champion Philadelphia Eagles at The White House in Washington D.C., on April 28, 2025.

Several notable Eagles skip White House visit; Trump honors ‘incredible’ team

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Unlike the last time they won the Super Bowl, the Philadelphia Eagles visited the White House to celebrate their championship.

But, still, less than half the team showed up.

Philadelphia earned the invitation to the White House by beating the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX, 40-22.

It was optional for Eagles players and staffers to attend. According to All City PHLY, 32 Eagles attended Monday’s ceremony with President Donald Trump. Among the notable players missing, according to media reports, were quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts — who it was confirmed by White House officials had a “scheduling conflict” — wide receivers AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith, linebacker Zach Baun, defensive ends Brandon Graham and Josh Sweat and defensive tackle Jalen Carter.

Running back Saquon Barkley was there and golfed with Trump the previous day. He tried to fend off criticism on social media, posting “lol some people are really upset cause I played golfed and flew to the White House with the PRESIDENT. Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand. Just golfed with Obama not too long ago … and look forward to finishing my round with Trump! Now ya get out of my mentions with all this politics and have (an) amazing day.”

Head coach Nick Sirianni and right tackle Lane Johnson led Trump to the stage with Dom DiSandro, the team’s senior adviser to the general manager/chief security officer/director of gameday coaching operations, speaking first, followed by safety Reed Blankenship, Johnson, Sirianni and owner Jeffrey Lurie.

Trump praised Hurts, saying he’s a “terrific guy and terrific player” and noted the “Eagles have turned out to be an incredible team, an incredible group.”

The Eagles were just the second NFL team to visit the White House with Trump as president, the other being New England in 2017. Philadelphia won the Super Bowl the next season but after the vast majority of players indicated they wouldn’t attend, Trump rescinded the invitation to the team.

“Today, the Eagles were honored to participate in the long-standing tradition of visiting the White House to celebrate our victory in Super Bowl LIX,” Lurie said in a statement. “We are grateful for the hospitality we were extended and appreciate the opportunity to celebrate this special team alongside hundreds of fans that joined us on the South Lawn.”

The team also visited Arlington National Cemetery.

“Our time in our nation’s capital served as a great reminder of the core values that brought our team so close together — sacrifice, selflessness and discipline,” Lurie said.

–Field Level Media

Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day leads his team onto the field for the game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the CFP National Championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Ohio State to visit White House on April 14

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day told reporters Monday that his team will visit the White House on April 14 to be honored for their national college football championship.

“It’s an honor to be invited. We were formally invited and it’s customary,” Day said. “I remember growing up and watching the national championship teams go to the White House. I always looked at that, like, ‘Man, what an honor that would be.’ So, it’s part of the celebration of our team … Looking forward to getting that all planned out.”

The Buckeyes will be the second team to celebrate a championship at the White House since President Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second term. The Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers were the first, back on Feb. 3. The Philadelphia Eagles plan to visit the White House on April 28 in recognition of their Super Bowl LIX title.

The Buckeyes won four straight games in the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff to capture the title. They defeated Notre Dame 34-23 in the championship game after first defeating Tennessee, top-seeded Oregon and Texas.

It was the program’s first national title since 2014.

Vice President JD Vance graduated from Ohio State and was a senator from the state before joining Trump’s ticket.

–Field Level Media

Feb 9, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; President Donald Trump (center) salutes alongside daughter Ivanka Trump (right) and New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson during the national anthem before Super Bowl LIX between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs at Ceasars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Eagles to celebrate Super Bowl win at White House

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Eagles are welcome in the White House, and Philadelphia accepted an invitation to celebrate its Super Bowl LIX win on April 28.

Two days after the completion of the 2025 NFL Draft, the Eagles are scheduled to attend a ceremony at the White House honoring the 2024 champions for their win over the Kansas City Chiefs in New Orleans last month.

“I know there was a lot of fake news about an invitation that wasn’t sent or was sent, we want to correct the record: we sent an invitation, they enthusiastically accepted, and you will see them here on April 28,” White House press secretary Karoline Levitt said Tuesday.

The Eagles did not attend the White House after winning Super Bowl LII in 2018. President Donald Trump, then serving his first term, called off the event after learning several prominent players planned not to attend. Only four players from the 2018 Super Bowl champion were on the roster for the 2024 season and latest Lombardi Trophy.

The 2024 Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers visited the White House in February.

–Field Level Media

Feb 9, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; President Donald Trump talks with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell before Super Bowl LIX between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs at Ceasars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Report: Eagles ‘look forward’ to White House visit

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Philadelphia Eagles gladly would accept the invitation to the White House traditionally extended to Super Bowl champions, multiple outlets reported.

That refutes rumors that reached a crescendo Monday that Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie would decline to visit with President Donald Trump.

Front Office Sports, citing an NFL source, said the Eagles “look forward” to an invitation, which the White House confirmed to Politico had not been issued as of Monday.

Trump was at Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9 when the Eagles defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 in New Orleans. He left early in the second half but was the first sitting president to attend the championship game.

The Eagles are the first team to win a championship in Trump’s second term, but he did host the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Feb. 3, nearly eight months after they won the title.

In Trump’s first term, which began in January 2017, some teams didn’t get an invitation or players declined to attend, saying they were against Trump policies and positions. That included his stand against players who chose to kneel for the national anthem.

After winning the 2018 Super Bowl, most Eagles players and coaches said they would boycott a visit to Washington, D.C. Instead, Trump pulled the invitation and gave the stage to the U.S. Marine Band and Army Chorus for a musical tribute to the nation.

–Field Level Media

Apr 27, 2023; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes greets fans during the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft at Union Station. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Chiefs visit White House, present Joe Biden with jersey

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Kansas City Chiefs visited President Joe Biden at the White House on Monday to celebrate their Super Bowl victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes led the Chiefs’ delegation in Washington, D.C., just short of four full months after guiding the Chiefs to a 38-35 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII in Glendale, Ariz.

Biden was presented with a Chiefs’ No. 46 jersey in an outdoor gathering. A notable moment came when Biden was presented with his jersey, and tight end Travis Kelce veered away to approach the microphone.

“So I have been waiting for this moment,” Kelce began to say as Mahomes made like a Secret Service agent, quickly cutting off his favorite target and ushering him back with the team.

Mahomes also led the Chiefs a Super Bowl victory in February 2020 but the team did not visit the White House because of COVID-19 restrictions. The franchise won the Super Bowl after the 1969 season, before White House visits were common for sports champions.

During the visit, Biden recognized Norma Hunt, wife of Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt, who passed away Sunday at 85.

–Field Level Media

Jan 20, 2021; Washington, DC, USA; View of The White House from Lafayette Park before the parade at the 2021 Presidential Inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the U.S. Capitol. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Habraken-USA TODAY

Champion Chiefs schedule visit to White House

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Kansas City Chiefs are set for their first-ever White House visit as Super Bowl champions, with the team setting a June 5 date for its meeting with President Joe Biden.

The Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 on Feb. 12 in Glendale, Ariz., for their third Super Bowl title.

However, the team didn’t go to Washington following its title in 2019-20 season due to the pandemic. And back when the Chiefs won Super Bowl IV in January 1970, sports champions meeting the president wasn’t a regular occurrence.

The first NFL championship team to visit the White House was the 1979-80 Pittsburgh Steelers, according to multiple media reports.

The Los Angeles Rams, who won the Super Bowl in February 2022, didn’t go to the White House. The only NFL champs to meet with Biden were the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, whose July 2021 ceremony was the first for an NFL club since 2017.

On Tuesday, the College Football Playoff champion Georgia program announced that it would not be going to the White House as it couldn’t find a workable date. A day earlier, the two reigning NCAA basketball champions, the LSU women and UConn men, confirmed that they will head to the White House on May 26.

–Field Level Media

Jan 9, 2023; Inglewood, CA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Nolan Smith (4) celebrates after defeating the TCU Horned Frogs during the CFP national championship game at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia won’t visit White House; suggested date ‘not feasible’

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The national champion Georgia football team declined an invitation to visit President Joe Biden at the White House.

In a statement Tuesday, an unnamed athletics department spokesman said the White House offered to host the team for a visit on June 12.

“Unfortunately, the date suggested is not feasible given the student-athlete calendar and time of year,” the statement said. “However, we are appreciative of the invitation and look forward to other opportunities for Georgia teams moving forward.”

Georgia won the national title for the 2021 season as well, but the Bulldogs weren’t invited to Washington that year, with the White House citing COVID-19 restrictions.

When February 2023 rolled around, Georgia defensive lineman Warren Brinson took to Twitter to point out that his team still hadn’t received an invitation, which garnered attention and prompted Georgia congressional leaders from both parties to send the Biden White House a letter asking him to welcome the team.

That week, a White House official released a statement saying, “The President looks forward to welcoming the Georgia Bulldogs to the White House.”

The Bulldogs went a perfect 15-0 in 2022, a season that culminated in them trouncing No. 3 seed TCU 65-7 in the championship game.

On Monday, the White House announced it had scheduled a White House welcome for the UConn men’s basketball team and the LSU women’s basketball team on May 26 to celebrate their national championships.

–Field Level Media

Jul 20, 2021; Washington, DC, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady speaks at the podium as President Joe Biden (left) and Buccaneers owner Bryan Glazer (middle) react during a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House to honor the team for their Super Bowl LV Championship. Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports

Tom Brady in attendance as champion Bucs visit White House

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The White House welcomed the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a visit with President Joe Biden on Tuesday.

It marked the first visit by an NFL team to the White House since 2017. Then-President Donald Trump revoked the Philadelphia Eagles’ invitation in 2018, the New England Patriots chose not to attend in 2019 and the Kansas City Chiefs never made it to Washington, D.C., in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It also represented seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady’s first visit to the White House since 2005. He skipped the Patriots’ trips in 2015 and 2017, the former while Barack Obama was in office and the latter with Trump.

Brady, who has described Trump as a “good friend” but has tried to avoid revealing his political alignment, joked with President Biden during Tuesday’s visit about Biden defeating Trump in the 2020 election.

“Not a lot of people think that we could’ve won. In fact, I think about 40 percent of the people still don’t think we won,” Brady said, a reference to some Republicans’ efforts to investigate voter fraud and even overturn the election result.

“I understand that,” Biden interjected.

The Buccaneers won their second Super Bowl in franchise history the same season they added Brady, 43, who entered free agency after 20 seasons with New England. Brady will be 44 when he leads the Bucs into the 2021 season.

–Field Level Media

Feb 7, 2021; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians is handed the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Reports: Bucs to visit White House on Tuesday

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will celebrate their Super Bowl title won in February at the White House on Tuesday, multiple media outlets reported.

Neither the Buccaneers nor the White House confirmed the celebration will take place at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., however.

Should it come to fruition, it would mark the first time since 2017 that a defending Super Bowl champion visited the White House.

Then-President Donald Trump rescinded the invitation to the 2018 Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, claiming the team didn’t show the proper respect for the country during the playing of the national anthem in the previous season.

The title-holding New England Patriots in 2019 and Kansas City Chiefs the following year did not attend the traditional celebratory ceremony. The Chiefs’ plan to visit was abandoned because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers visited President Joe Biden at the White House earlier this month to celebrate their 2020 World Series championship.

The Buccaneers posted a 31-9 victory over the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV. Seven-time champion Tom Brady was named Super Bowl MVP.

–Field Level Media