So, you might have heard the buzz about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce possibly dating for the past couple of months. At first, it seemed a little far-fetched. She is a global superstar who is currently rocking the stage on her Eras tour and he is a star athlete with the Kansas City Chiefs football team. The two have never really crossed paths before. But things recently took an interesting turn when Taylor Swift was spotted sitting next to Mama Kelce, supporting Travis at a game. The footage quickly sent social media into a frenzy, sparkling various memes. So, let’s put our detective hats on and find out what’s going on with Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift, aka #tayvis, and whether they’re officially boyfriend and girlfriend.
Now, for those of you who aren’t from America or have never watched an NFL game in your whole life, you might be asking, “Who on earth is Travis Kelce? What is a football tight end? (It’s not what it sounds like, trust us.)” You’re not alone. There’s even a hilarious TikTok trend going around where American Swifties are teasing their significant others, claiming that Taylor Swift is the one who put Kelce “on the map.” And you know what? It’s not exactly untrue.
But first, to make your life easier, let us give you a quick intro to Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift’s rumoured new boyfriend.
Who is Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift’s new boyfriend?
Here’s a quick summary, just to get you up to speed.
- Travis Kelce is an American professional football player.
- He’s a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). In American football, a tight end is an offensive position that’s able to both block and receive passes.
- Kelce is considered one of the best tight ends of all time. He’s known for his exceptional athleticism and pass-catching ability.
- Kelce has been a key player for the Kansas City Chiefs, helping them win Super Bowl LIV and Super Bowl LVII.
- Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl LVII against the Philadelphia Eagles. (FYI, Taylor is a supporter of the Eagles).
- He’s a multiple-time Pro Bowler and has earned several All-Pro honours.
- Off the field, Travis Kelce has also gained attention for his charismatic personality and appearances in various media and entertainment events.
- Travis Kelce once starred in his own reality dating series, Catching Kelce. Maya Benberry won the show but they parted ways six months later.
- His current net worth is around USD 30 million.
- Kelce’s brother, Jason Kelce, is also a professional football player and plays as a centre for the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL.
- The Kelce brothers co-host the podcast New Heights where they offer an inside look into their life.
The timeline of Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce’s rumoured, rom-com worthy romance
July 8: Kelce attends the Eras Tour
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The Chiefs star player attended the Eras Tour concert at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium on July 8. As it turns out, he loves friendship bracelets!
July 26: It all started with a ‘friendship bracelet’
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Kelce, like any committed Swiftie, got creative when he attended Taylor’s show. He decided to make friendship bracelets in the hopes of impressing the songstress. During an episode of his New Heights podcast, Kelce revealed his failed plan. “I was disappointed that she doesn’t talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings,” “If you’re up on Taylor Swift concerts, there are friendship bracelets, and I received a bunch of them being there, but I wanted to give Taylor Swift one with my number on it”.
August 2: Travis Kelce is suddenly playing coy
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Travis Kelce addressed the rumours in an interview with NFL+ host Andrew Siciliano, but he played it a bit coy. He corroborated the part about making an Eras Tour friendship bracelet as his bid to charm Taylor. However, he didn’t spill the beans if he had heard back from her. He said, “I said what I said. And I meant what I said when I said it. And you know what, it is what it is”.
“I know what you writers wanna hear, and you wanna hear more about that and I’m not gonna give you anything!”
September 8: Rumours about Taylor and Travis spending time together
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Deuxmoi revealed on the podcast that they had a source who spilt some intriguing gossip regarding Taylor: She was apparently seeing an actor — but they did not reveal the identity of this mystery man. But that isn’t all. The source also dropped another tidbit on the same subject. Taylor apparently made a reservation at one of her usual hangouts with none other than Travis Kelce.
September 14: Jason Kelce comments on the whole Taylor-Travis rumours
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Tony Gonzalez, a retired NFL player, caught Travis’ brother, Jason, off guard with a startling question after the Philadelphia Eagles’ Thursday night game. When he asked him about the rumours he said “I cannot comment… Ever since Catching Kelce, everybody’s been infatuated with Travis’s love life. I don’t really know what’s going on there, but I know Travis is having fun and we’ll see what happens with whoever he ends up with”.
September 17: NFL commentary joins in on the fun
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When one of your friends has a new crush in town, nothing beats a good teasing session. And that’s exactly what American sports commentator Rich Eisen did. During his coverage, he casually mentioned numerous Taylor Swift songs while discussing Travis Kelce. Rich even posted a video of their fun exchange, tagging Kelce and stating, “Look what you made me do” (which, by the way, is another Taylor Swift song title). Kelce joined in the fun, remarking on Eisen’s medley on Instagram with “Well played Rich… Well played 👏🏻😂”.
MAHOMES TO KELCE IS BACK 🔥
📺: #KCvsJAX on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/FhXtx7w3wW pic.twitter.com/SGjRJfmtZH— NFL (@NFL) September 17, 2023
But the Swift references didn’t end there. During the Chiefs-Jaguars game on Sunday (September 17), NFL commentator Ian Eagle threw in a few more Swift lyric references as he called a play from Kelce. “Kelce finds a blank space for the score!” he joked, referring to Taylor Swift’s chart-topper “Blank Space” from 1989. It seems the whole NFL loves Swift very much.
September 20: The interviewer asks Jason about his brother’s love life again
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Jason was asked about the potential love affair between his brother and Taylor Swift during an interview on DeCamara & Ritchie on Audacy’s SportsRadio 94 WIP, once again. He answered, “It’s hard to answer because I don’t really know a lot about Travis’s love life”. Later he added, “I try to keep his business kind of his business, stay out of that world.”
He continued, “Having said that, man, I think they’re doing great and I think it’s all 100% true, and I hope this thing goes a mile — no, I’m joking, I don’t know what’s happening”. Now, believe what you will.
September 21: Travis confirmed the ball is in “her court”
We GOTTA ask about you and Taylor Swift..
“I told her that I’ve seen her rock a stage in Arrowhead and she might have to come see me rock the stage at Arrowhead..
We’ll see what happens in the near future”
🗣🗣LET’S GOOOOO @tkelce #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/dYEyxvYfLw
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 21, 2023
Finally, Travis reacted to the ongoing rumours at the Pat McAfee show. He even commented on how his brother was having so much fun talking about his love life on live TV. He said, “Obviously been having a whole lot of fun since that, and he’s still having fun, and then not even a week later telling everyone it’s 100% true. I mean the guy is absolutely ridiculous, can’t stay out of the fricken headlines…please everybody stop asking my brother about my dating.. love life.”
But that’s not the most interesting part. Kelce confirmed that he invited Swift to his game on Sunday. He said, “I threw the ball in her court,” he said. “I told her, ‘I’ve seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage in Arrowhead.’ We’ll see what happens in the near future”.
September 24: The game day — “Call It What You Want”
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Both Swifties and football fans’ jaws were left on the floor when Taylor Swift showed up for the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Chicago Bears game sitting next to Mama Kelce Donna in Travis Kelce’s suite in Arrowhead Stadium! Throughout the game, she seemed to have a great time, engaging in conversations with Donna and drawing smiles from Travis. He looked at her, mouthing the words, “Yeep, She’s really there”.
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Other players’ responses to seeing TayTay in the audience added a lovely touch to the scene. And when Travis scored a touchdown, her reaction was priceless, clearly reflecting who she was rooting for.
September 24: Wingman of the Year — Patrick Mahomes
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After the game, when a reporter playfully asked Patrick Mahomes if he felt the pressure to secure a touchdown for Travis Kelce, he responded with a chuckle, “I heard she’s in the house…I felt a little bit of pressure”. During his post-game speech, Mahomes went out of his way to praise his teammate, saying, “He does his own thing and just makes up a route… I think he wanted to get in the endzone as much as all the Swifties wanted him to.”
September 24: NFL changed their name in a nod to Travis Kelce’s potential new girlfriend
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After Swift attended the game on 24th Sep, the NFL made a playful gesture by changing their official Twitter account name to “NFL (Taylor’s Version).” And that’s not all – they even updated their background picture.
They also changed their TikTok bio to “Taylor was here”. It seems like the NFL is all in, rooting for their boy.
September 24: The after-party
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce made quite the exit after the game, leaving together in a purple convertible dubbed their “Getaway Car.” Patrick Mahomes also said that he had the chance to meet Taylor at the after-party.
Rumour has it that Travis Kelce rented out an entire restaurant for Taylor Swift and his colleagues, and some reports even suggest that Taylor picked up the tab for everyone at a Kansas City restaurant, assuring some quiet time with her new beau — sounds like excellent boyfriend and girlfriend material, we reckon.
To add to the fire, TMZ recently published photos from the post-game party in which Taylor had her hand wrapped around Kelce’s head, sending Swifties into a frenzy.
September 27: Travis talked about Taylor coming to the game on his podcast
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Travis’s brother Jason brought up the topic by asking, “How does it feel that Taylor Swift has put you on the map”? To answer this he gave a shoutout to Taylor and added, “That was pretty ballsy, yeah. I just thought it was awesome how everybody in the suite had nothing but great things to say about her, the friends and family — she looked amazing. Everybody was talking about her in great light and on top of that, the day went perfect for Chiefs fans, of course.”
Later in the podcast, it seems Travis shared his desire to keep things more private moving forward. He acknowledged that Taylor may not be as inclined toward media attention as he is. Well, understanding and respecting each other’s wishes are always a plus in any relationship.
September 28: Taylor was at Kelce’s house before the game
Just before Sunday’s game, Taylor Swift was seen leaving Travis Kelce’s USD 1 million Kansas City residence with his family and friends. Taylor was spotted on the sidewalk near Travis’s house, socialising with the Kelce crew before they all boarded a party bus to the game, DailyMail.com reported. Before heading to the game, she spent about an hour at his house, getting to know the Kelce family and friends.
September 30: The group dinner
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Taylor attended a dinner party at Italian restaurant Emilio’s Ballato, which featured some known faces. Brittney Mahomes (Patrick Mahomes’ wife), and Amanda Santa, who is dating Travis Kelce’s manager Aaron Eanes, were among her guests. Taylor’s close pals, including Miranda Hogue, Ashley Avignone, and support vocalist Melanie Nyema, were also there. In addition, celebrities such as Blake Lively, Sophie Turner, Olivia DeJonge, and Ellie Johnson were seen in Taylor’s car. FYI, Sophie is also rumoured to be staying in Swift’s NYC apartment amid her divorce drama with Joe Jonas.
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Travis Kelce, meanwhile, made dinner plans with friends in New York City. On that specific evening, they were both enjoying themselves with their friends in the same city.
October 1: Chiefs vs. Jets
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Taylor Swift appears to have attended the game to support Travis Kelce, and she wasn’t there alone. She was joined by a star-studded entourage that included Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Sabrina Carpenter, Hugh Jackman, Sophie Turner, and others. They accompanied Travis’ mother, Donna Kelce, in the stands to cheer on the Kansas City Chiefs and Travis during the game.
October 1: The NFL is at it again
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The NFL appears to be going all out to embrace the Taylor Swift-Travis Kelce relationship. Using the song “Welcome to New York” in the promo for the Chiefs vs. Jets game is a unique and entertaining way to share the excitement over the rumoured couple. It’s safe to assume they’re competing for the title of “Swiftie of the Year” while having a good time!
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Following Taylor Swift’s appearance at the game, the NFL changed their TikTok and Instagram bios once more, this time to “We had the best day with you today” and proudly declared that the “Chiefs are now 2-0 as Swifties”.
How did Taylor Swift’s showing up affect Travis Kelce’s career and the NFL?
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Dear Readers, the Taylor Swift effect is real. Swifties are unstoppable and American football has become their new favourite sport. She showed up at one game and the numbers have already skyrocketed into a different arena. To sum it up, here are the stats of the NFL (Taylor’s Version):
- A 400% spike in Travis Kelce jersey sales,
- The Kelce brothers’ podcast New Heights rose to No. 1 on Apple
- The Chiefs sold more tickets in a day than at the start of the season
- Travis Kelce has 600K new Instagram followers — which is more than twice the amount after he won the Super Bowl this year
- For his pregame outfit at Arrowhead Stadium, Travis Kelce opted to wear the 1989 Bedroom set comprising a matching denim jacket and pants designed by up-and-coming US designer KidSuper. The jacket is completely sold out. Evidently, Kelce had deliberately picked an ensemble that referenced Swift’s upcoming 1989 (Taylor’s Version) album
- 24.3 million people watched the Chiefs vs. Bears game
- The game saw a 63% jump in female viewership
Now, imagine what would happen next if Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce make it official as girlfriend and boyfriend.
What’s the verdict now?
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If the rumours regarding Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are real, they have surely won the approval of Swifties and NFL fans alike. Their banter and prospective love story have captured hearts, and it sounds like something straight out of a rom-com novel or TV show.
According to Entertainment Tonight, Swift appreciates Travis for actively pursuing her and being supportive of her career. This appears to be a stark contrast to her past relationship with Joe Alwyn, where rumours claim he was uncomfortable with the spotlight and high-profile events, which didn’t sync with her personality.
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The entire world appears to be ecstatic for the rumoured couple. Forest Blakk, a country artist, even dedicated one of his songs as their game’s theme song. Russell Dickenson, another country performer, invited both of them to his September 30th event in Kansas City.
Even Heinz Ketchup has jumped on the bandwagon, offering a limited edition “Ketchup and Seemingly Ranch” sauce, inspired by Taylor and Travis’s interesting relationship. This is an encounter of two of the biggest fanbases, and everyone wants a taste.
There is, however, some drama on the side. Maya Benberry, one of Travis Kelce’s ex-girlfriends, called him a “cheater” in an interview with the Daily Mail and advised Taylor Swift to stay away from him. A source close to Kelce disputed the allegations, describing them as a ploy to gain temporary celebrity.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Who is Taylor Swift’s boyfriend?
Taylor Swift’s rumoured new boyfriend is Travis Kelce. She was previously dating Matty Healy of The 1975, and prior to that, British actor Joe Alwyn.
How did Taylor Swift meet Travis Kelce?
There’s no confirmation when or where they first met but they were first spotted together when Taylor came to support Kelce on his game at Kansas City Arrowhead stadium.
Are Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift dating?
The rumours say they are dating but they are still probably in the talking stage, getting to know each other.
Who is worth more, Taylor Swift or Travis Kelce?
Tarvis Kelce’s net worth is around USD 30 million and Taylor Swift’s net worth in 2023 is estimated to be approximately USD 740 million, which is nearly 25 times of Kelce’s. And that number only looks set to grow, as her net worth is projected to reach a billion at the end of the Eras Tour.
Who is Travis Kelce’s girlfriend?
Taylor Swift is rumoured to be Travis Kelce’s new girlfriend. He previously dated influencer Kayla Nicole (2017-2022), and Maya Benberry (2016), who was the winner of his dating reality TV show Catching Kelce.
How old is Travis Kelce?
Travis Kelce is 33 years old.
Does Travis Kelce have kids?
No, he does not. While Travis Kelce has had several girlfriends over the years, he has never been married nor had children.
(Main and Featured image: David Eulitt/Getty Images )
This story first appeared on Prestige Online Malaysia
