Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump attended the NFL game on Sunday night between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Jets as a guest of an unnamed suite holder at Acrisure Stadium.
Trump arrived about halfway through the first quarter and was welcomed by a small group of supporters wearing Pittsburgh jerseys, holding a banner that said “Trump Nation.”
He later waved from the suite while some fans chanted “USA.” In the third quarter, a female fan dressed in black-and-gold, the Steelers’ colors, ran onto the field with a pro-Trump sign, briefly stopping the game. She was quickly removed from the field by officials.
The former president’s visit capped a busy weekend in important Pennsylvania for his campaign, with the election just over two weeks away. This visit created some mixed loyalties.
Trump is originally from New York and is friends with Jets owner Woody Johnson, who briefly served as the U.S. ambassador to the UK during Trump’s time in office.
The Steelers have been owned by the Rooney family for over 90 years, and the late president/chairman Dan Rooney was the U.S. ambassador to Ireland from July 2009 to December 2012 under President Barack Obama.
On Sunday, the Steelers made it clear they were not taking sides regarding Trump’s presence, with club spokesman Burt Lauten stating that Trump was a guest of a suite holder and not of the team.
Trump received support from a couple of former Steelers. Wide receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le’Veon Bell—both of whom had complicated relationships with the team and were seen as villains during their exits in the spring of 2019—have endorsed Trump.
The former teammates met with Trump poll workers at an event near the stadium on Sunday afternoon and welcomed Trump when his plane landed at Pittsburgh International Airport just before the kickoff.
In contrast, franchise legends and Hall of Famers Joe Greene and Jerome Bettis, along with the family of late Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris, supported Vice President and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.
Trump’s choice to team up with Brown and Bell was an interesting one.
Brown, a standout player during his nine seasons in Pittsburgh from 2010 to 2018, forced a trade to Las Vegas in the spring of 2019 after several public incidents, including famously skipping the team’s 2018 season finale.
Bell missed the entire 2018 season due to a contract dispute before signing with the Jets in 2019. He couldn’t match the success that made him a Pro Bowler in Pittsburgh and has been out of the league for three years, instead focusing on celebrity boxing.
Choosing Brown seemed a bit out of touch with the local feelings, given the former star’s messy exit. Brown rose from a sixth-round draft pick to a regular All-Pro during his nine seasons in Pittsburgh, but his increasingly erratic behavior off the field caused his career to derail.
The Steelers traded Brown to the Oakland Raiders in the spring of 2019. However, Oakland cut Brown before he ever played a game due to several issues with the team, including a heated argument with the general manager.
He quickly signed with the New England Patriots but was released just weeks later amid allegations of sexual misconduct involving people around him. The two sides later reached a settlement out of court.
Brown later appeared with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, winning a Super Bowl. However, he was released the following season after a series of events, including a three-game suspension for violating the league’s COVID-19 protocols and a strange incident where he quit during a game, famously taking off his jersey and pads before leaving the stadium without a shirt.
Brown’s problems made him undesirable for NFL teams, but he has remained close to the sport. In 2023, he briefly became the majority owner of a National Arena League team in Albany, New York, before the team was removed after Brown failed to meet financial responsibilities.
Earlier on Sunday, Trump was asked about being associated with Brown given his controversial past. “I don’t know anything about the allegations,” Trump replied to a reporter’s question.
When informed that it involved sexual assault allegations, Trump responded, “I don’t know anything about it. I know he’s a hell of a football player.”
