Washington, D.C. — The White House Rose Garden turned into a makeshift gridiron on April 16, 2025, when Ivanka Trump’s youngest son, Theo Kushner, tossed a football with Philadelphia Eagles star Saquon Barkley during the team’s Super Bowl celebration. The Eagles, fresh off their 40-22 thrashing of the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX, were honored by President Donald Trump, but it was the 11-year-old Theo who snagged the day’s biggest highlight.
Ivanka, standing nearby in a crisp navy blazer, beamed as Theo and Barkley, the NFL’s 2024 Offensive Player of the Year, chucked the pigskin back and forth. The running back, who racked up a record-breaking 2,504 rushing yards this season, crouched low to match Theo’s height, grinning as the kid lobbed a wobbly spiral. At one point, Theo, a diehard New York Giants fan, cheekily challenged Barkley—one of the league’s fastest players—to a footrace across the manicured lawn. Barkley, playing along, jogged at half-speed, letting Theo dart ahead to cheers from Eagles players and staff.
The moment came during a ceremony where President Trump, flanked by Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie and head coach Nick Sirianni, praised the team’s grit. Trump singled out Barkley, noting his jaw-dropping backward leap over a Jacksonville Jaguars defender in the regular season. The event, held under a cloudy spring sky, marked a stark contrast to 2018, when the Eagles skipped a White House visit amid tensions with Trump’s first administration. This time, the team showed up in force, though Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts was absent, citing a scheduling conflict.
Ivanka, who’s kept a lower profile since her father’s return to office, captured the day’s joy in an Instagram post. “Celebrating with champions at the White House today!” she wrote, sharing a video of Theo and Barkley’s impromptu game. She added that Theo’s race challenge came after President Trump “wisely demurred” from taking on the speedy running back himself. Barkley, who’d met Ivanka and her family at a J.P. Morgan tech summit earlier that month, later gifted Theo a signed football—a gesture that softened the sting for the young Giants fan still sore over Barkley’s defection to Philly.
The scene wasn’t without its wrinkles. Barkley, who’d golfed with Trump at his Bedminster club the day before, faced online flak for cozying up to the president. He brushed it off, saying he respects the office, not the politics, and noted he’d recently hit the links with former President Barack Obama too. The Eagles’ visit, a nod to a decades-old tradition for championship teams, drew a crowd of players, coaches, and families, with Barkley’s warmth toward Theo earning nods from teammates.
By the end of the day, the Rose Garden had gone quiet, the Eagles headed back to Philly, and Theo had a story to tell his classmates. Barkley, for his part, left with a new pint-sized fan—and maybe a few extra yards on his highlight reel.