What’s the story behind that naked Jason Kelce tattoo? We talked to the artist — and the Giants fan who proudly wears it.
Lauren Matarese-Philpott lost a bet to her husband. Now, she has a permanent reminder of his favorite team on her forearm. It isn’t her first.
It’s easy to make a bet on your favorite sports team. It’s not as easy to go through with it — especially when it involves getting a naked Jason Kelce pinup tattooed onto your body. But 42-year-old Lauren Matarese-Philpott wasn’t backing out.
“I will never back down from a bet,” Matarese-Philpott said. “That’s just not who I am.”
That’s been Matarese-Philpott’s way of life, dating back to 2014, when she first met her husband, Danny Philpott. The two met after he crashed her blind date, and have been inseparable since.
“He always used to say to me the only chink in the chain is that I’m a Giants fan,” she said.
Growing up in Somerset County, N.J., Matarese-Philpott found an almost “forbidden love” with South Philly native Philpott, a diehard Eagles fan. But instead of allowing the rivalry to take over their relationship, the two decided to embrace the competition and start a new tradition.
During the 2014 season, Matarese-Philpott placed her first bet against Philpott. If the Eagles won, she would wear his green long-sleeved Eagles shirt. After a Giants loss, she committed to her punishment before he posted the photos all over Facebook.
“It started with stupid little things like that,” Matarese-Philpott said. “Then, fast-forward to 2018, I had to sing the Eagles’ fight song. Shocker, the Giants lose. Then, after that, it started to be a monetary thing. And then around 2022, probably 2023, it started with the tattoos.”
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Her Kelce pinup tattoo, featuring a well-placed bald eagle, was just another product of a lost bet. Although the tattoo recently went viral on social media, it’s been on her right forearm for about two years now — and it’s pretty hard to miss.
“The best reaction I got was when I was at Wawa,” Matarese-Philpott said. “I was waiting for something, and somebody was looking at my tattoo. You can see she was trying to figure it out, and she’s like, ‘Holy [expletive], is that Jason Kelce?’ I said, ‘Yup, I lost a bet.’ And then you have to go into the whole story.”
During the 2022 season, she attended the Eagles-Giants game on Jan. 8 at Lincoln Financial Field. The rules were simple: if the Giants lost, she would get the Kelce tattoo, but if the Giants won, Danny would have to get a tattoo of Eli Manning on his butt.
It’s safe to say we know who won that bet. As soon as the game ended, she contacted her tattoo artist, Joe Moreira.
“I thought he was going to say I was crazy, but he was all down for it,” Matarese-Philpott said. “I don’t even think we walked to the car yet, and I messaged him really quick, like, ‘Hey, I lost a bet. I need an Eagles’ tattoo.’”
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Although Matarese-Philpott entered the shop with the idea of a traditional Kelce tattoo, Moreira — who currently is a tattoo artist at Pale Horse Tattoo Studio — put his creative spin on the design.
“She just told me, ‘Here’s the spot, I want a Jason Kelce traditional. Go crazy with it,’” Moreira said. “And that’s really all I needed to do for the tattoo. I think he did a photo shoot where he wore an Eagles’ codpiece, and that was the inspiration for that, if I’m not mistaken.”
The 28-year-old tattoo artist held onto the photo for two years before showing off his work.
“It’s one of my favorite tattoos that I’ve done so far, and I think I just kind of happened to post it at a right time,” he said. “And it feels better for my career now that I’m in a shop in Philly getting this exposure.”
The tattoo, which took about two hours, is just one of about 60 tattoos that cover Matarese-Philpott’s body, and, surprisingly, it’s not her first Eagles one. About two weeks before getting her Kelce ink, she got Gardner Minshew’s mustache tattooed above her knee because of another Giants’ loss.
“I should probably stop making these bets,” Matarese-Philpott said. “But then again, when it comes to tattoos, I’m all about gathering art. When I find an artist like Joe, I like their work, and it’s sort of like I’m a billboard for them. And I will never back out of a bet.”
Although she has a little bit of Minshew Magic forever etched onto her skin, a nearly naked Kelce ended up going viral — capturing the attention of thousands, including Kylie Kelce and Jason himself.
While Kylie was left speechless, the former Eagles center posted the photo on social media, with a caption that read, “I’m not sure if I should be offended or flattered.”
Matarese-Philpott has her own response to the future Hall of Famer.
“We’ve been waiting for two years just for him to see it,” Matarese-Philpott said. “But what do you mean you’re not sure if you should be flattered? I’m a Giants fan and have you on my body for the rest of my life. Of course, he doesn’t know that.
“But I thought it was really cool that he finally got to see it and he can see that even people that aren’t Eagles fans can love and appreciate him. At the end of the day, he’s an amazing person. He’s an amazing father and just an all-around good guy.”
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