July 18, 2026, 5:45 a.m. ET
- The Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival is all about … football. But it also draws non-NFL stars.
- Celebrity sightings are a fun offshoot of the annual enshrinement festival.
- An array of celebs have attended past Hall of Fame festivals, including Mr. T., Diana Ross, Warren Buffett, Machine Gun Kelly, Jon Bon Jovi, Justin Timberlake, Ja Rule and others.
CANTON − Celebrities sometimes outshine the football greats themselves at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival.
Michael Jordan, Justin Timberlake, Jon Bon Jovi and Machine Gun Kelly are among the big names who have been spotted over the years. Diana Ross and Ja Rule made appearances a few years ago.
Turning back the clock, other celebs during Canton’s big week have included ’80s pop culture icon Mr. T and “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” star Linda Hamilton.
Such sightings are simply a cherry on top of the sports sundae that is the Enshrinement Festival. But where celebs will show up you just never know. They don’t typically announce their arrival. Autograph sessions aren’t scheduled. Oftentimes, they duck in and out of private parties and avoid the general public.
“Like Justin Timberlake,” said Paula George, who has volunteered for the festival for about 30 years. Timberlake performed at a party in 2017 Glenmoor Country Club.
“They flew them in on their private jet, and they whisked him to the party, and he may have stayed somewhere overnight, and then they whisked them out. I think a lot of (the celebrities) probably aren’t here for an extended period.”
Regardless, be on the lookout for famous folks and potential selfie opportunities. Or up your chances for an A-list encounter by scoring an invite to a bougie party.
‘This is going to be big.’
Enshrinement ceremonies may be the best chance of spying a non-football celeb. That’s where sporting immortal Jordan showed up in 2024 in support of enshrinee Dwight Freeney.
Last year, sports talk superstar Pat McAfee broadcast his ESPN show from outside the Pro Football Hall of Fame during Fan Fest. That was scheduled. Surprises included Cleveland native and music star Machine Gun Kelly showing up on set.
This year’s Concert for Legends headliner is an A-lister.
Lainey Wilson, who takes the stage Aug. 9 to conclude the festival’s major events, is fresh off winning a heap of CMA awards last year. She’s also playing football stadiums in Detroit and Cincinnati prior to the Stark County spectacle.
“This is going to be big,” said George, vice chairman of the festival’s Concert for Legends Committee. “Lainey Wilson is hot right now. When you hear country music, you hear about Lainey Wilson.”
Joe Manganiello and Don Stroud
Sighting famous people is among the perks of being a festival volunteer, George admitted.
She recalls seeing actor Joe Manganiello, best known for his role in the HBO series “True Blood.”
“It’s amazing,” said George, 64. “I don’t work the enshrinement (ceremony). I did once, but (celebrities) sneak in and out and they’re just sitting in the audience. A lot of people don’t even realize they’re there. It’s always fun to see who you run into.”
George has seen stars visit Canton since her youth.
“My dad was a police officer here in the early ’80s before security was so tight,” she said. “I could tag along with him on the sidelines of the football game or at the Canton Civic Center. I remember running into some celebrities like Don Stroud (who co-starred with Clint Eastwood in ‘Coogan’s Bluff’ in 1968 and ‘Joe Kidd’ in 1972.”
Starstruck in Canton
Jim Porter, president and CEO of the Hall of Fame, recalled scoping out famous people in the Grand Parade decades before he was in charge of the hall.
“Back in the day, Mr. T was in the Grand Parade,” he said. Porter also remembers actor and glamorous cultural icon Zsa Zsa Gabor making an appearance years ago. So did soap opera star Susan Lucci.
In 2022, Diana Ross performed at a VIP party for enshrinee Cliff Branch during the festival. Boys II Men also were in town the same year.
Billionaires also come to town
Celebrity status goes beyond sports, music and film, however.
Financial guru and billionaire Warren Buffett attended the Gold Jacket Dinner in 2017, where he joined Paul Anka to sing Anka’s song “May Way” to enshrinees with lyrics improvised for the occasion. Also in attendance was rock star Jon Bon Jovi.
Also in 2017, Timberlake performed for two hours at a posh party at Glenmoor Country Club for Dallas Cowboys owner and hall enshrinee Jerry Jones. Bon Jovi was also reportedly in attendance.
Personalized napkins inscribed with “Jerry-isms,” adorned the tables. All of it added up to a bill of $10 million to $16 million, according to CBS Sports.
Two years later, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos attended the enshrinement ceremony with his then-girlfriend and future wife, Lauren Sánchez, who was in Canton to support enshrinee Tony Gonzalez, according to media reports.
In 2021, star rapper Ja Rule performed at a private party at a housing allotment in the North Canton area. Fireworks shot out of a stage outdoors as Ja Rule performed, according to an attendee. Other stars on-site included Hall of Famer Michael Irvin.
Michael Jordan ‘didn’t act like this bigger than life figure.’
Hall of Fame exec Porter said he met Jordan before he visited Canton for the 2024 enshrinement.
Porter encountered the megastar when Jordan’s close friend Freeney found out he was being enshrined into the hall. The “Knock on the Door” took place at Jordan’s private golf course in Florida.
“He didn’t act like this bigger than life figure,” Porter said of Jordan. “He was very welcoming. He was very gracious.”
Porter and others at the hall weren’t surprised when Jordan showed up at Freeney’s enshrinement ceremony later that year.
Tom Brady and Taylor Swift
Ginormous celebs are on the horizon for Canton.
Tom Brady is expected to be enshrined in 2028. The seven-time Super Bowl champion maintains a high profile as a television commentator for Fox Sports and minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders. Brady’s ceremony will be a major news event.
Anticipation of future enshrinements doesn’t end with TB 12. Retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce will be up for enshrinement in 2029.
Kelce was a star on the field, but he’s also the brother of Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, who is getting married this summer to global pop icon Taylor Swift.
The Kelce brothers are from the Cleveland area. They also host the popular “New Heights” podcast.
George, the festival volunteer, laughed and said she expects Jason Kelce to be more visible than most celebs during enshrinement time.
“Some of the older (Hall of Fame enshrinees), they don’t mind walking around downtown,” she said. “It’s not something Tom Brady is going to do when he’s here. I can picture Jason Kelce bonging beer with people when he’s here.”
Outshining both Kelces would be Swift, whose presence at Jason Kelce’s enshrinement might trigger news chopper flyovers. Social media would be abuzz with Swift sightings — where she sat, what she wore, what she ate, what she drank … all of it.
“You’re going to get celebrities since Jason will be elected before Travis,” George said. “Can you imagine, oh my. You’d think Taylor Swift would be there. It will be her brother-in-law (getting enshrined).
“How crazy would that be?”
Reach Ed at ebalint@gannett.com. Follow on Instagram at ed_balint and TikTok@edwardbalint.
