Travis Kelce threw some shade at his brother’s former fan base about their outrage over the recently released 2026 NFL schedule.
The Philadelphia Eagles are set to host the Houston Texans on Christmas Eve this season, which isn’t sitting well with everybody in the City of Brotherly Love.
“The Christmas Eve game, everybody is upset about it in Philly,” Travis’ brother, Jason Kelce, said on their “New Heights” podcast on Wednesday, May 20.
Travis, 36, scoffed and responded, “Why are they upset about a Christmas Eve game?”
“Because it’s Christmas Eve!” said Jason, who spent all 13 of his NFL seasons with the Eagles before retiring in March 2024. “You’re supposed to be with family. People don’t want to spend time thinking about the football on Christmas Eve. I get it, I do.”
After having some fun at the expense of the Eagles fan base, Travis pushed back on the narrative that most Eagles fans aren’t itching to wrap their gifts while watching their favorite team play.
“I don’t know why I’m hard-pressed to believe that that’s not the majority,” Travis said. “I feel like Birds fans and Philadelphians are going to get excited for a game like that. Maybe I’m catching that wrong.”
Jason argued that the game kicking off at 8:15 pm E.T. might serve as a complication for some holiday traditions.
“I think Christmas Eve for some reason, at night, feels like that is primetime when you’re with the family, you’re getting everything ready, the presents are getting ready to be put under the tree by Santa,” he said.
Still, Travis wasn’t buying it. “You’re at the house watching the game!” he replied. “You’re going to be at home getting ready for Christmas the next day watching the Birds play football. I feel like that’s a bonding, family experience.”
Jason further argued that being upset about the Christmas Eve game was a byproduct of fans “getting frustrated with the league in general.”
“There’s more streaming platforms that are costing fans money to watch the games,” he said. “It’s harder to watch every game of your team than it’s been in a long time, or ever. There’s more international games.”
Eagles fans who would rather be sipping eggnog away from their TV screens on Christmas Eve had a vocal mouthpiece in beloved Philadelphia sports radio host Jon Ritchie.
“Santa’s in the air and we’re kicking off!” Ritchie said on the 94WIP Morning Show on Friday, May 15. “The NFL is wrong to put 8:15 [p.m.] Christmas Eve on the schedule. That’s insane. That is wrong. In Philadelphia, just you wait. I don’t want to talk too much about the inner workings of Christmas Eve, but just imagine. I’m talking about getting ready for the kids. It’s not fair. It’s impossible.”
