As champions in the USA's major sports leagues, it includes visiting the White House and being received by the President, where a ceremony is also held.
This year's champions in American football became the Philadelphia Eagles, and on Tuesday night, Swedish time, it was time for the NFL team to head to Washington.
Almost the entire team was present and met Donald Trump. However, several star players were absent – not least quarterback Jalen Hurts.
The reason for the absence was said to be "scheduling conflicts", according to a White House official, reports AP.
Last week, the quarterback was asked at a gala if he would attend the visit to the White House, but he turned on his heel and left without giving an answer.
Trump cancelled
The President of the USA still praised Hurts, saying he is "a fantastic guy and fantastic player".
Philadelphia was also supposed to visit the White House in 2018 when they won the Super Bowl, but the visit was cancelled by Donald Trump because large parts of the team did not want to come.
This was after Trump's negative comments about the players who knelt during the national anthem before the matches, in protest against police violence against blacks.
It's not just Philadelphia's stars who have rejected visits to the President at the White House.
Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry said after the team's NBA title in 2017 that he did not want to visit Donald Trump, which led to the President ultimately withdrawing the invitation to the entire team. When the San Francisco club won the title again the following year, no invitation came from Trump at all.
Swedish football coach Pia Sundhage chose to go home to Sweden after the OS gold in 2008 and the VM silver in 2011 with the USA women's national team. Thus, she rejected both George W Bush and Barack Obama.
Criticism against Sörenstam
Even presidential visits that do take place can create headlines. This was experienced by Swedish golf legend Annika Sörenstam when she, days after Trump supporters' storming of the Capitol in Washington in 2021, visited the White House to receive the President's freedom medal. Something that received strong criticism.
I'm not one who looks back on things and regrets them. But I would have received the medal in March 2020 instead, she said to American NBC.
