KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A couple of friendly wagers are close to being paid in full after the Kansas City Chiefs brought home the Lombardi trophy.

The Kansas City Zoo and the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art made bets with their counterparts in Philadelphia ahead of the Super Bowl. The Nelson-Atkins called it Museum Bowl 2023.

The Chiefs’ Super Bowl win didn’t just mean a lot to the players and fans. The Nelson-Atkins Museum scored big, too. They had a wager with a museum in Philadelphia, and art was on the line.

“We had fireworks and everything else going off in Kansas City, but as an American art curator, it was like fireworks right there in the living room,” Senior Curator of American Art Stephanie Fox Knappe said.

The Chiefs beat the Eagles and won the Nelson-Atkins a piece of art called “Sailing.” It’s from 1875, and Knappe said it’s a wonderful painting of athleticism. 

“It depicts a sailboat at the center of the canvas, and there are two men in the boat,” Knappe said, “And just like the Super Bowl was kind of this feat of physical activity and prowess, these men are kind of struggling against the waves.”

As we know, the Kansas City Chiefs prevailed through the wave and came out Super Bowl champions.

“A win for Kansas City, a win for the Chiefs, a definite win for the museum and all of our visitors,” Knappe said.

They expect the painting to get here from Philadelphia in the next few months.

Had the game ended differently, the Nelson-Atkins would have packed one of its own treasures, a painting titled, “Venus Rising From the Sea,” to send to Philadelphia.

The Kansas City Zoo also scored because of the Chiefs’ win. The losing team agreed to sport the winner’s gear on their front entrance statue, so the elephant figures at the Philadelphia Zoo are Chiefs fans.  

The Philadelphia Zoo also donated to the Orangutan SAFE Program, which will help critically endangered species.