Travis Kelce heading to another Super Bowl after Jason Kelce’s retirement is bittersweet.
On Monday, Feb. 3, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, 35, spoke to PEOPLE during a press conference held at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans ahead of Sunday’s big game.
When asked if he wished Jason, 37, was in the Crescent City with him this year, Travis replied, “Of course.”
Less than a year ago, the now-former NFL star announced his retirement from the league after spending his entire 13-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles.
This weekend, Travis’ team will play them for the Lombardi Trophy.
“I’ll never forget, obviously it’s being so close to him retiring,” Travis tells PEOPLE. “I wish he would have played another year, but you know, he’s very content where he is in life right now and I’m happy to help.”
Travis says that Jason’s retirement has allowed his brother to focus on other things that are important to him.
“He gets to be around his family girls a little bit more, you know?” he tells PEOPLE.
Jason and his wife Kylie Kelce are mom and dad to three daughters: Wyatt Kelce, 5, Elliotte Kelce, 3, and Bennett Kelce, 1. In November 2024, the couple announced that they are currently expecting daughter No. 4.
In his brother’s 2025 Super Bowl absence, Travis tells PEOPLE, “I’ll go out there and try to represent the family as best I can.”
During a recent episode of their New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce podcast, Jason said he will be rooting for both his former teammates and his younger brother.
“That’s the reality of it. No matter what on game day, I’m gonna be happy for one of those sides, and I’m gonna be sad for the other side,” Jason said, while wearing Eagles gear during the episode.
“And it’s similar to the last time we played. I mean, maybe a little bit less intense because I’m not playing now, but I think it’s gonna be very, very similar. I really do,” he added.
When the siblings faced off in the 2023 Super Bowl as the Chiefs took on the Eagles, fans dubbed the big game “Kelce Bowl.”
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If the Chiefs win over the Eagles this year, the Kansas City team will be the first in NFL history to secure a three-peat of Super Bowl championships.
The Chiefs are set to play the Eagles at the Super Bowl in Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 6:30 p.m.
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