Ed Kelce and Donna Kelce may no longer be married, but they maintain a close connection. The couple met in the late 1970s and had son Jason Kelce in 1987, followed by Travis Kelce two years later. After 25 years of marriage, the former couple called it quits, later admitting they stayed together for their sons.
“I knew my mom and dad’s situation was different than other parents,” Travis said in the family’s 2023 documentary, Kelce. “I would go have sleepovers at other houses and the other parents are staying in the room, and my parents didn’t stay in the same room. I started making those connections when I was in middle school and I realized that they were probably gonna split. But they stayed together for me and Jason’s benefit I believe.”
Despite their divorce, Ed and Donna continue to attend all of their boys’ NFL games, even switching off if necessary. (Travis is a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, while Jason plays center for the Philadelphia Eagles.
On an episode of Jason and Travis’ podcast “New Heights,” Ed and Donna disclosed that they met on her way to another date. Donna was on her way to meet the date when she came upon Ed at a bar. The two struck up an instant connection. “I was supposed to go with a guy that night. We were supposed to go to a play, and I never made it. Your dad and I talked forever,” Donna explained. “It was meant to be. It’s just the way it was.”
Donna and Ed married in the late 1970s and welcomed their boys, Jason and Travis, in 1987 and 1989. Both parents are extremely supportive of their boys’ football careers and strive to attend as many games as possible. Donna and Ed ended their 25-year marriage after both of their boys graduated from college.
“I don’t hate him. We’re friends to this day. We get along great,” Donna said on an episode of “New Heights.” “We were like a tag team with you two. We got to do all sorts of fun things. When one of you had to go out of town, the other person would help with the other child. It was perfect.”
Donna and Ed later revealed in the 2023 documentary, Kelce, that they chose to stay together for as long as they did because of their sons.
“If we had split as we probably both would have preferred, that would have been a nightmare with the logistics, getting kids where they had to be and providing all the support,” Ed explained in the film, while Donna added that “trying to keep it all together when you’re being a parent is tough.”