Meet three men who have watched every Super Bowl since 1967. Their love for the game keeps them coming back year after year.
For Donald Crisman, Tom Henschel, and Gregory Eaton, Super Bowl Sunday is more than just a football game—it’s a lifelong tradition.
These three friends, known as the “Never Miss a Super Bowl Club,” have been to every championship game since the first one in 1967. Their dedication has never wavered.
“My family knows—if you have a wedding or funeral or something, Gregory won’t be there and they know that,” laughed Eaton, 84, from Lansing, Michigan. “So don’t plan it around the Super Bowl. And my mother and my father would get upset at me. I’d say, ‘That’s it. That’s me.'”
The three friends reunited in New Orleans before Sunday’s big game, reminiscing about old times and debating the upcoming match.
Also Read: Proposed Trade Could Land Red Sox a Right-Handed Slugger in Nolan Arenado
Eaton, a Detroit Lions fan, is cheering for the Kansas City Chiefs, hoping they will make history with three straight wins. Henschel, 82, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Crisman, 88, from Kennebunk, Maine, are supporting the Philadelphia Eagles.
“Kansas City, here I come,” Eaton sang, making his friends smile. “I want them to break the record because no team’s won three in a row,” he explained. “And I like records to be broken and set.”
Henschel said being part of their small club feels like a blessing. Meanwhile, Crisman, who arrived with his original Super Bowl I hat and other memorabilia, summed up his feelings simply: “I consider myself lucky to be still living.”
They have seen how the Super Bowl has changed—from cheap tickets and empty seats at the first game to the massive worldwide event it is today. But their excitement remains the same.
“I always say, if your team is in the game, it’s like New Year’s and Fourth of July put together – that’s how much fun it is going to the Super Bowl,” Henschel said with a smile.
Among all the places they have visited for the Super Bowl, one city is special to them.
“New Orleans opened it up for people of color because they weren’t going to get to the Super Bowl… So I’ve always liked New Orleans for that,” Eaton said.
“It’s my favorite city to watch the Super Bowl. I mean, the people here, the weather’s usually good, and it’s just because we used to come down to Mardi Gras. And, you know, we had to stay in the Black hotels and doing that. And in the United States of America, we shouldn’t have been that way. Well, New Orleans helped to change it.”
Through changing stadiums, new champions, and many decades, their friendship has stayed strong.
And what keeps them coming back year after year?
“Half of it is these clowns,” Crisman said, pointing at his laughing friends.
“I get to see them, which is meaningful to me, very meaningful. I’m so happy that we’re doing it again.”
Also Read: Tyreek Hill Apologizes to Tua Tagovailoa, Commits to Dolphins Future