Taylor Swift, one of the biggest artists in the world, has collaborated with many. But a Taylor Swift NFL collab wasn’t on any of our bingo cards. Her dating life has always been a topic of discussion. After the shocking announcement of her breakup from her 6-year relationship with Joe Alwyn, during her US leg of the Eras Tour, the rumors of who her next boyfriend would be returned. One particular story caught the attention of many. On the 50th episode of the 2nd season of New Heights podcast, Travis Kelce, tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, recalled how he tried to contact Taylor with a friendship bracelet when attending the Eras Tour. “I was a little butthurt I didn’t get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her … I wanted to give Taylor Swift one with my (phone) number on it.” About a month later, Taylor was spotted supporting Travis at one of his games. Since then, their relationship has grown. They’ve been seen at multiple dinner dates, guest appeared on SNL, and Taylor has, despite her busy schedule, cheered him on during his games.
Many Swifties have expressed how they feel about the new relationship. Antonia Salgado 26′ said, “I can see how happy she is, which is good.” Their sudden increase in popularity is not confined to just Taylor fans though – it’s clear that the NFL is also a Taylor-Travis shipper.
Her first appearance at Travis’s game, Chiefs vs the Bears, was “the most-watched NFL broadcast of the week on any network with 24.3 million total viewers.” According to Fox 4, Travis Kelce also “saw a nearly 400% increase in jersey sales” after Taylor attended the game. The NFL has been promoting her presence all over social media as well. The official NFL TitkTok account changed their bio to “Taylor was here!” then “NFL (Taylor’s Version),” and finally, “Taylor’s back!”. According to Entertainment Online, the NFL “went all-in on Swift’s appearance, and got Carson Daly and ‘The Voice’ to explain football to Swifties.” “Remarkably Swift was shown a full 17 times during the game” against the Jets, according to Fox Sports. When you check out the NFL’s account today, they have created a whole playlist of Taylor clips called, “Welcome Swifties.” It’s no secret Taylor is great for business, but with all the attention she is getting from the NFL, some are asking the question, are they overdoing it?
There are two sides to this question. On one hand, some fans believe that the NFL is “milking” Taylor’s presence, while others don’t think it’s such a big deal. When asked about it during Episode 57 of his podcast New Heights, Travis expressed his feelings toward the coverage done by the NFL saying, “I think it’s fun when they show who’s at the game. I think it brings a little bit more to the atmosphere…But at the same time, they’re overdoing it a little bit.” According to a poll done by Yahoo Entertainment with football fans, Travis’ sentiment is shared. “54% of respondents agreeing the NFL spent “too much time” focusing on Swift.” Antonia Salgado 26′ agreed, saying, “I think the NFL is overdoing everything a lot.” Carol Camello 25’ also expressed her feelings saying “honestly I think there is a healthy amount of Taylor they should show at each game” while also saying “the NFL should cool it a little… Taylor is there to enjoy the game and support Travis but the NFL is using her presence to attract as many swifties as possible.” On the other hand, Travis also expressed, “I think they’re just trying to have fun with it.” The NFL also came out defending itself saying, “We frequently change our bios…based on what’s happening in and around our games, as well as culturally. The Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce news has been a pop cultural moment we’ve leaned into in real-time, as it’s an intersection of sport and entertainment.” Sofia Zapata 25’, another Graded Swiftie agrees with this point of view saying, “Why is it such a big deal when it’s Taylor? Other sports promote celebrities that go to their games.” She also added, “It’s a smart move by the NFL since it’s bringing more popularity to the sport.” To be fair, the NFL has slightly cut back on the Taylor Cam during games, probably to satisfy all the football fans wanting to just watch the game.
So, when the question is asked, is the NFL overdoing it? It really depends on who you ask. With the new football season already in motion, and fan speculation of Swift’s game attendance to be high, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdFcS35EjQg&t=0s
https://www.tiktok.com/@nfl?lang=en
https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/taylor-swift-travis-kelce-nfl-kansas-city-chiefs-tv-fox/#
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Zga0N7-0j8
https://www.thewrap.com/taylor-swift-super-bowl-2024-analysis/
