Babies may not need a ticket to fly on an airplane or ride on the New York City subway, but they do need a ticket to attend Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas on Feb 11.
"If your child has a heartbeat, you have to pay for them," Donna Kelce, mother of Super Bowl champions Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce, tells TODAY.com. "It doesn’t matter if they’re just were born. If you have a child, even if you’re holding them the whole time, you have to pay the full price."
She's not wrong. The NFL's Super Bowl LVIII ticket terms state in bold print, "All persons entering the Stadium, regardless of age, must have a Ticket for the Event."
Then-Broncos punter Britton Colquitt found that out the hard way in 2016. His third child was born on Jan. 19, 2016, just days before the Broncos were scheduled to compete in Super Bowl 50. He was faced with a choice: he could pay $1,800 per ticket for his three children under 4, or his kids could potentially miss seeing their dad win the Super Bowl. He ended up buying tickets for all three kids, but in the end, the ticket-taker didn't even ask for the baby's ticket and all three of the children were asleep 40 minutes before kickoff.
Donna's son Jason Kelce and his wife, Kylie Kelce, had a similar situation last year when Jason and the Philadelphia Eagles played against Travis and the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
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At the time, Jason and Kylie had two young daughters (their third was born just after Super Bowl Sunday) and, like Colquitt, they had to decide if having the girls in the stands to watch their dad and uncle play football was worth a few thousand dollars each. Donna notes that the girls did attend the Super Bowl last year, "much to Kylie and Jason's chagrin."
In fact, you can view the couple's discussion about whether to bring the girls to the game in the Prime Video documentary titled, "Kelce."
"We are going to pay almost $4,000 for a f------ kid who's not going to sit in a seat," Kylie says, gesturing to her oldest daughter Wyatt. "To watch her dad play in a game. That's bananas."
Jason and Kylie, who both grew up in middle-class households, had a hard time getting over their sticker shock.
When younger daughter Elliotte turns the corner with her baby doll in a play shopping cart, Jason asks her, “Hey, do you want to go to the Super Bowl? Yes or no?”
After a pause, Elliotte says, “Nuh-uh.” But then she adds, “My baby’s going to the Super Bowl, too.” Watch out, Elliotte! The NFL might require your baby doll to buy her own ticket, too.
"It’s a little pricey, you know, for parents to bring their children," Donna explains to TODAY.com, while promoting her partnership with Barefoot, the official wine sponsor of the NFL.
"You want them to know that you were there when your father was in the Super Bowl, so that you can tell them that later on in life," she concludes.
Will Wyatt, 4, Elliotte, 2, and Bennett, almost 1, be in the stadium to cheer on Uncle Trav in his second straight Super Bowl? Are memories worth more than $4,000? And if the kids do attend, will Jason keep his shirt on this time? We'll have to tune in to find out!
This article first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
