Washington, D.C.’s football team has undergone a ton of changes over the past several weeks — including a heralded group of new owners led by Josh Harris — but the designation of “Commanders’ super fan” is staying the same.
Melba Jacobson, a 99-year-old native of Silver Spring, Maryland, celebrated more than 80 years as a fan of the Washington football team and her birthday with the Commanders on Tuesday. The team sang “Happy Birthday” to the longtime fan before gifting her the signed jersey of aptly named defensive end Chase Young.
“Ninety-nine: best number on the field,” Young said of his jersey number before asking Jacobson to “make a wish!”
In Jacobson’s decades as a fan of Washington, she’s seen the team go through two name changes, the team’s NFL championship win, its first Super Bowl appearance, every Super Bowl victory and every owner since the team moved to the D.C. area in 1937. Jacobson’s birthdays currently outnumber Commanders team members and her years as a fan fall just shy of its 91-person roster.
Check out some photos from the event below.
