If three-martini lunches and unlimited expense accounts are your thing, then the 21 Club in Manhattan is your kind of place. But for one day at least, football took over from Fendi as the topic of conversation.

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning was the star attraction last week at the 21. He was there to promote the launch of the National Football Foundation’s “Gridiron Club of New York,” designed to pump up interest in college football in a town where the NFL is king. Some 100 guests including former mayor Rudy Giuliani were there to press the flesh.

Manning’s father, Archie, is the chairman of the NFF and has been on the board for nearly 20 years. The group was founded in 1947 by the powerhouse trio of General Douglas MacArthur, Army coach Earl “Red” Blaik and legendary sports writer Grantland Rice. Imagine talking football over caviar and blini with those distinguished gentlemen.