Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Suni Lee, gymnast for the Uniteded States, is seen on the sidelines during warmups before the game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions at U.S. Bank Stadium. Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
By Sam Neumann on

Suni Lee traded in her Olympic leotard for a camera on Christmas Day.

The gymnast worked as a guest photographer for the Vikings-Lions game at U.S. Bank Stadium, capturing the action on the sidelines for Netflix’s broadcast. Lee announced the gig in a video posted by the NFL before kickoff, holding a camera while addressing Vikings fans.

“Hey, guys, it’s Suni. I’m at the game today,” Lee said. “Merry Christmas. I’m going to be a photographer for the day, so I’m really excited. Let’s have a good game. Skol!”

Lee is from St. Paul, making the Vikings assignment a homecoming of sorts. She’s shown up at U.S. Bank Stadium multiple times this season, most notably in October when she led the crowd in the Skol chant during Minnesota’s Week 7 matchup with the Eagles. That appearance came just days after she walked the runway at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.

Working as a photographer gave Lee field access to Snoop Dogg’s halftime show, which featured country singer Lainey Wilson, K-pop group Huntrix, and opera singers Andrea and Matteo Bocelli. After the performance, Lee reconnected with Snoop, whom she’d met at the Paris Olympics when he worked as an NBC special correspondent.

Lee joins a growing list of celebrities who’ve picked up cameras for NFL games. The league runs a Celebrity Photographer Series that puts high-profile guests on the sidelines with credentials. Method Man worked as a photographer for the Jets-Browns game in November. Marshawn Lynch photographed a Seahawks preseason game in August, though he brought a little too much ‘Beast Mode’ to the gig.

Kevin Durant shot Super Bowl 50 in 2016 as a credentialed photographer for The Players’ Tribune. Ken Griffey Jr. has also worked as an NFL photographer, showing off his skills behind the camera, just like he did earlier this year when he captured Rory McIlroy completing the Grand Slam at The Masters.

Lee has been exploring life beyond gymnastics since the Paris Olympics, where she won bronze medals in the all-around and on uneven bars, in addition to her gold and silver from Tokyo. She relocated to New York after the Games, walked the runway at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in October, and appeared in the 2025 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

But Christmas Day brought her back to Minnesota.

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann