Mom, he’s coming home.
Former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who now lives with his wife and four children in Summit, New Jersey, is returning to his native New Orleans for the 2025 Super Bowl — and he means it literally.
“The best part about going to the Super Bowl this year is that I get to stay with my parents,” Manning, 44, tells PEOPLE about heading to NOLA a week before the big game on Sunday, Feb. 9.
Manning, who grew up in the Garden District with his mom, Olivia, and father, New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning, and his two brothers, Cooper, 50, and Peyton, 48, is excited to feel like a little kid again.
“My mom will make me breakfast every morning,” he says with a laugh about the house where he grew up and where his parents still live.
“So it’s going to be a lot of fun to be there, to see my parents, and both of my brothers are going to be there as well. So it’s almost like a family reunion for the Super Bowl this year.”
Former Mississippi and New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, left, stands with his mother, Olivia Manning, center, and his father, former Mississippi and New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning, during his son’s jersey retirement ceremony during an NCAA college football game against LSU in Oxford , Miss., Saturday, October 23, 2021.
AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis
Manning, who retired from the NFL in 2020 after winning two Super Bowls with the Giants, is currently promoting the upcoming Verizon Fan Fest event, which gives Verizon customers the chance to watch the Super Bowl for free at major stadiums across the country.
They will also be able to enjoy fan experiences like going out on the field, meeting former NFL players and enjoying local music, food and drink in each city.
“I think just the fact that fans can go to the stadiums, even the field and be there with local NFL legends, eat local food, see local artists play is great,” Manning says of the upcoming event. .
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The Verizon Super Bowl Fanfest allows Verizon customers to watch the game at stadiums across the country.
Courtesy of Verizon
He adds, “It’s just a great way to take in the Super Bowl with your family and friends. And it’s free.”
As for his past Super Bowl wins? He says it is a feeling that is impossible to forget.
“Just think how it all happened,” he says of the feeling of victory. “What you had to do, the hard work, the commitment, the dedication, the lucky coincidences, the bounces that went your way.”
He adds that both of his victories in the Super Bowl were not exactly expected.
“Both times, we kind of snuck into the playoffs and then just chased it,” he says of the Giants’ 2008 and 2012 title wins. “So we just got lucky. But it’s just a fantastic experience going into the locker room afterwards, hugging every teammate, hugging every coach.”
He adds, “And the best part about winning a championship, even 15 years later, when I see those guys and those teammates you won the championship with, it’s an automatic hug. And you hold on tight a little bit longer, because you went through something so special together.”
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Source: HIS Education