Pete Grathoff: Actor Brad Pitt opens up about the highs and lows of being a lifelong Chiefs fan
Published in Football
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — If you’re a KC sports fan who believes in karma, I may have an explanation for why things went so spectacularly wrong for the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX.
It’s actor Brad Pitt’s fault.
It’s because of what Pitt did to a high-profile Eagles fan ahead of Super Bowl LVIII.
The Chiefs had defeated the Eagles a year earlier in the Super Bowl, a fact Pitt brought up at the 2024 Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Pitt was honoring actor/director Bradley Cooper at the festival when football was interjected.
“To date he’s been nominated (for an Academy Award) 12 times ... and I do hope that this is his year because it’s well overdue,” Pitt said. “But if it’s not, it’s OK. Everyone knows it’s just a matter of time. And truly Brad is OK, he’s fine. He’s used to it. He’s a Philadelphia Eagles fan. Go Chiefs! Go Chiefs!”
Cooper said: “That’s (messed) up!”
Pitt has been promoting his latest movie, “F1,” and brought up that troll job of Cooper while on the New Heights podcast.
“I’m not saying that I have the power to affect a game in any way,” Pitt said. “I don’t adhere to that kind of hubris, but I did say last year, after the Eagles went out (in the playoffs and) the Chiefs were on their way to another victory ....
“(But) I think he was happy this year. We didn’t talk for two months.”
The Eagles beat the Chiefs, 40-22, in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans in February, so Cooper had every opportunity to get back at Pitt. But Cooper has remained silent.
“He gracefully let me hurt,” Pitt said.
‘Sense of pride’
Pitt, 61, was born in Oklahoma but raised in Springfield, so he’s been a Chiefs supporter his entire life.
Fans today know of the Chiefs’ dynasty, but it wasn’t always good times for KC fans. Pitt recalled that and why it makes it sweeter today to root for the Chiefs. The Chiefs went 50 years between Super Bowl championships and there were some really bad seasons when Pitt was cheering for the Chiefs.
Pitt seemed to mistake former Chiefs star Dante Hall for Bears legend Devin Hester when talking about his fandom.
“Football we were a little weaker, and it wasn’t ‘til the Devin Hester years where things got exciting for a moment,” Pitt said. “You just feel this sense of pride (now), instead of the sense of, like, all life’s out, always against us. So it’s kind of extraordinary the way we live through our teams, through you guys, and what it means to us.”
Pitt mentioned the old ABC Sports “Wild World of Sports” intro that included the line: “The thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat.”
“I just think of life that way,” Pitt said, “and each weekend’s that way. ... Thank God for our sports.”
Pitt then looked at Travis Kelce and said: “I just want you wearing oven mitts till the season starts.”
Yep, Pitt wants Kelce at his best this upcoming season.
Arrowhead debut?
Because he grew up a short drive from Kansas City, Pitt was asked if he’s attended a Chiefs game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
“No, I never have,” Pitt said. “I never have. But OK, this is the year then.”
Keep an eye out for Pitt this season in KC.
©2025 The Kansas City Star. Visit kansascity.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Comments