Manning's Allegiances Put to Test by The New York Times Family Subscription

Nov. 07, 2025

You can’t choose your family. But you can choose who makes your New York Times family subscription.

After recently launching the new New York Times Family Subscription offering, which allows up to four members individual access to the full suite of Times products, The New York Times teamed up with football royalty Eli Manning to give him an unenviable task of deciding who would make the cut on his new family subscription. 

Eli Manning said:

“If I’m going to share my New York Times subscription, I just want to know it’s with someone who will truly enjoy it. I take this pretty seriously, and I want to make sure my family plan members do too. Plus, we like to compete.”

 

Families everywhere may see themselves in this Manning family subscription debate as it depicts what makes The New York Times Family Subscription special: It’s not just about access to journalism, but also about the daily rituals and shared experiences that bring families together — over puzzles, recipes and stories that matter. It also touches on how having a family subscription might settle longtime family rumors and keep things competitive at home.

Cooper Manning said:

“I can’t prove it, but I’m pretty sure Eli had been mooching off my New York Times log in for years, so it’s great to see him subscribing for the family. Now we’ll see if he’s any better at picking family members to include in his subscription than he is at the Connections: Sports Edition puzzle.”

 

Rolling out across The Times’s and The Athletic’s social channels, viewers will see a day-in-the-life of the Manning crew as Eli faces the full charm offensive from his father Archie, mother Olivia and eldest brother Cooper Manning including:

• Olivia provides tips to help Eli and Cooper improve at The New York Times Crossword
• Cooper proves he knows the way to Eli’s stomach with his favorite New York Times Cooking Thanksgiving recipe.
• Archie bonds with his youngest son over The Athletic’s new Football Playoff Simulator.

Football fans will see how Eli’s parents continue to support his passion for football and his budding New York Times Games streak.

Olivia Manning said:

“The Family Subscription allows us to bond over our common interests and discuss, for once, something beyond football. I’ve seen Eli’s daily Wordle strategy and he needs me if he’s ever going to get a streak going past two days. But I am his mom, so we all know I’m in his subscription."

 

 Archie Manning said:

“Eli’s always been composed. But choosing who makes his family subscription? That’s a whole new challenge. But, at the end of the day, if he wants to talk football and The Athletic — he knows he needs his father on the plan.”

 

Amy Weisenbach, chief marketing officer said:

“Our family subscription makes it easier than ever to share Times journalism and experiences across generations. The Mannings remind us that family connection extends beyond being in the same room — it’s about taking time to share and connect over a recent news article, commiserating about a tricky Connections board, sharing a fall recipe or gaining insight into your team’s prospects for the playoffs.” 

 

Earlier this year, another sports “family” jumped on The New York Times Family Subscription bandwagon: the New York Liberty’s mascot, Ellie the Elephant and three of her Timeless Torch dancers. The Liberty crew are making the most of their family subscription — reading the Style section, playing Wordle, baking banana bread and Butterscotch Banana Cream Pie, and keeping up with all things music and artists on Popcast.

If you find yourself debating your NYT Games gameplay order with your family or texting your friend yet another Times article, The New York Times Family Subscription might be for you. Learn about The New York Times Family Subscription at nytimes.com/family.