Travis Kelce Revealed Which Family Members Won’t Be Supporting Him at the Super Bowl: ‘I Mean… ‘

Ed Kelce

Ed Kelce is Travis Kelce’s father. The patriarch use to work as a sales rep selling products to steel manufacturers, according to the Los Angeles Times, and has since retired. Like Donna, Ed Kelce was brought up in Cleveland, Ohio. He had a major impact on his sons’ love of football, as he’s always been a huge fan of the sport and even wanted to play football in college, according to People.

However, Ed’s dreams of college football were cut short when he decided to try joining the army, following in the footsteps of his military family. “Everybody in my family prior to me was in the service,” Ed said during an episode of his sons’ podcast, “New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce.” “We’re also talking about family [that] lived through World War II, so that’s what everybody did because that was the background.”

Unfortunately, Ed’s application was rejected by the Army due to a pre-existing knee injury. He eventually went on to enlist in the Coast Guard, but this endeavor was also short-lived: during bootcamp, he learned that he had Crohn’s disease. “I enlisted in the Coast Guard and the Crohn’s reared up,” Ed shared. “I’d never had that before, and I was sick. I went through most of the basic training with some severe gastrointestinal issues.” He went on to add, “They don’t need sick people in the service, they need people who are ready to perform.”

Though he didn’t live out hisdream, Ed went on to have a successful career in the steel industry instead. He even brought his sons along with him from time to time to give them an idea of what he did for work. “I’d take them there—hard hat, safety glasses, boots, the whole nine yards,” he told the Los Angeles Times in a February 2023 interview. “I’d tell them, ‘You can have a job like your mother’s, or you can have a job like mine.’” Clearly, both of them took after their dad’s persistent spirit and decided to chart their own path in the NFL.

Though he and Donna separated, Ed talked about why they decided to continue raising their sons under the same roof. “If we had split as we probably both would have preferred, that would have been a nightmare with the logistics, getting kids where they had to be and providing all the support.”

Papa Kelce gave Travis and Taylor the seal of approval and teased out what their plans would be after Super Bowl LIX. Talking with Australia’s Today, Ed said that the couple is in a “good period” in their relationship. “Without the NFL season, without the Eras Tour, [it will be] just them alone really connecting more,” Ed explained.

Donna Kelce

Donna Kelce is Travis Kelce’s mother. She was raised in Cleveland, Ohio and is currently retired. According to her LinkedIn, she earned a Bachelor of Science in communications from Ohio University and started her career as an equity writer at Bank One in 1981, while simultaneously attending classes at Baldwin Wallace University to earn her Master of Business Administration in 1983. She moved up in her career, eventually becoming the vice president at Key Community Development Corporation in 2003. Later, she spent 12 years as the senior vice president at Truist before retiring in 2021.

She supported her boys from a young age and enrolled them in sports like hockey. But it wasn’t until they were in middle school when she encouraged them to play football. “Nobody ever says, ‘I was the best peewee football player ever.’ And it’s not very well organized. So there’s always suspect to parents and injuries and things like that,” she told the New York Post in a January 2023 interview. “They’re not really trained coaches, so I made them wait until they were in middle school to play football. They played seventh and eighth grade.”

Speaking with StyleCaster, Donna praised all the other people in the Kelce’s lives that helped raise her kids. “There were a lot of people that were that helped raise those two,” she tells StyleCaster via Zoom. “I don’t think two people can do it on their own. A lot of coaches, a lot of teachers, and a lot of other parents were very, very much involved in the raising of my two sons. And it’s just been a sheer joy because I still keep in contact with the majority of them.”

She then revealed her pre-game ritual the night before the Super Bowl. “I just send them a text and wish them good luck, hoping that they’re going to leave it all out on the field and hope that they come home with a win. I think that’s enough,” she says. “I tried to tie it in with whoever they’re playing. I’ll send them a picture of them on a horse if they’re playing against the Broncos or whatever.”

Jason Kelce

Jason Kelce is Travis’ older brother. Born on November 5, 1987, in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Jason attended Cleveland Heights High School, where he played both football and basketball. He was a standout player and his skills on the football field earned him a scholarship to the University of Cincinnati. He became a key player for the Cincinnati Bearcats, helping the UC offense average 27.3 points and 375.3 yards of total offense per game. His brother, Travis, joined the team in 2008. In 2009, Kelce earned second-team All-Big East honors after starting 13 games at left guard as the Bearcats went undefeated in the regular season (12–0) and were again Big East Champions.

“Jason and I have actually been playing football together since we were little kids and he was always better than me — at everything,” Travis quipped of his older brother in the Kelce documentary. “In high school, he was an honor student and I got kicked off the team because I failed French. And then, when we were in college, I actually got kicked off the team because I tested positive for marijuana.”

Kelce was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft, 191st overall. Since then he has had one Super Bowl ring under his belt and first-team All-Pro six times and received seven Pro Bowl selections. He also co-hosts the New Heights podcast with his brother.

Jason Kelce announced his retirement on March 3, 2024. “I announce that I am retiring from the NFL after 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles,” an emotional Kelce said. “Thank you, Philadelphia, from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for letting me represent this city and allowing me into your homes every Sunday.”

Though his brother is in the Super Bowl, he’ll always back up the Birds. I’ll always root for my brother,” he shared on an episode of New Heights. “That’s the reality of it, alright? Even though I’m decked out in Eagles gear, I’m always going to root for Travis.” It’s a large departure from the previous year. During Super Bowl LVIII, he was decked out in Chiefs merch.

“No matter what, on game day, I’m going to be happy for one of those sides. And I’m going to be sad for the other side,” he continued. “I still feel like I am a Philadelphia Eagle and that I’m a part of all of these people that root and cheer on our team. I would be lying if I said I don’t want the Eagles to win. But I also want Travis Kelce to win.”

Kylie Kelce

Kylie Kelce is Travis’ sister-in-law. Jason married her in 2018 after meeting on the dating app Tinder. They share three daughters: Wyatt Elizabeth, Elliotte Ray, and Bennett Llewellyn. “I have two girls, and some people end up getting CTE, some guys live long healthy lives, I have no idea what’s gonna happen,” Jason said in his documentary about potentially retiriing. “The way I’ve rationalized it to myself is, nobody’s guaranteed tomorrow, nobody’s guaranteed years in advance.”

He continued, “If I get CTE and can’t interact with my grandkids, I would still say playing 12 years in the NFL, making my family prosperous, and being an influential member of the city of Philadelphia is a good trade-off.”

On her podcast Not Gonna Lie, she said that her daughters will proudly support their uncle in the Super Bowl. “I will say we have made moves to get the girls ‘Go Uncle Trav’ shirts because they love their uncle, and of course they love cheering him on,” Kylie said during the episode. “And to be fair, they love cheering on the Birds (Philadelphia Eagles) too, but he is our family and I wanna make sure that the girls feel included,” she added.