Claire Kittle is all about lunching with her fellow ladies.
Kittle, who is married to NFL star George Kittle, hosted Tight End University’s Ladies Luncheon, presented by Leigh Taylor PR+ on June 24 in Nashville. The event, which was held at Coa Rooftop Bar in the Canopy Hotel, featured special treats and included activations from Sneex, Stoney Clover Lane, UAL, The Spark Collection, Zenni Optical and Cutwater.
“This is our fifth year and every year it has just grown in every way,” Claire told PEOPLE. “More guys are coming and then bringing their wives and their girlfriends, so that number has just naturally grown every single year. It’s important to me to highlight the women, too, and kind of spoil them, because obviously the men are in the light all the time.”
TEU was co-founded by tight ends Kittle, Travis Kelce and Greg Olsen in 2021. Kelce currently plays for the Kansas City Chiefs, while Kittle is a tight end with the San Francisco 49ers. Olsen, for his part, was a tight end with the Carolina Panthers until he retired in 2021.
“Tight End University was created to bring the Tight End community together for an immersive three-day program,” the website’s description reads. “Over the course of the summit, attendees are able to bond, collaborate with, and learn amongst their peers while participating in a variety of activities including film study, on-field drills, recovery, rehabilitation, and more.”
For Claire, TEU is a chance to see “all of our friends and familiar faces,” and in “a room full of 90 tight ends, you’re gonna know somebody. So that’s really special.”
In addition to the football activities, TEU also raised more than $900,000 for charitable causes in 2024.
With the skyrocketing interest in the lives of the wives and girlfriends of athletes as well as the increase in the popularity of female sports, Claire says she loves that women are “getting their flowers. People are paying attention. It’s all amazing.”
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And, as she continues her work with TEU, Claire says the plan is to continue growing and evolving the organization.
“I can just tell you — it’s not confirmed — but next year is going to be huge,” she says.