It has been one year since Taylor Swift captured headlines by showing up at the Kansas City Chiefs game against the Chicago Bears on September 24, 2023, igniting a flurry of speculation about her connection with tight end Travis Kelce.
Initially, Swift’s presence at Arrowhead Stadium raised eyebrows, as her romantic involvement with the 34-year-old athlete had not yet been confirmed. At that moment, Kelce revealed he had attempted to hand Swift his phone number during one of her concerts on July 8, expressing disappointment over the lack of interaction before and after her performances.
The couple made surprise appearances on Saturday Night Live, confirming their relationship status, and were seen leaving a restaurant together
As speculation grew, Kelce remained intentionally vague about their relationship. His brother, Jason, added to the mystery on September 14 by stating he “cannot comment” on the rumors surrounding his brother’s dating life, saying, “I don’t really know what’s going on there.”
In the days leading up to Swift’s first game, Kelce spoke about the swirling rumors during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. He mentioned that he had reached out to Swift, inviting her to watch him play at Arrowhead Stadium, a venue where she had performed during her Eras Tour.
Much to the surprise of fans who assumed she would decline, Swift made a stunning entrance at the game, where she cheered enthusiastically as Kelce scored a touchdown from the family suite, accompanied by his mother, Donna.
As Swift continued to attend Chiefs games, the couple maintained a level of ambiguity about their relationship. Kelce commented on his podcast on September 27, expressing appreciation for Swift’s boldness in attending, saying, “Shout out to Taylor for pulling up. That was pretty ballsy.”
On October 1, Swift showed up again to support the Chiefs, bringing a group of celebrity friends, including Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carpenter, Sophie Turner, and Antoni Porowski, to the game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium.
The NFL capitalized on the excitement surrounding their relationship, featuring Swift’s song “Welcome to New York” in a promotional campaign for the Jets game, further fueling fan enthusiasm.
Swift’s commitment to supporting Kelce intensified after she attended the premiere of her Eras Tour film in Los Angeles. The day following the premiere, she flew to Kansas City to watch him compete for the third consecutive week.
On October 14, the couple made surprise appearances on Saturday Night Live during their trip to New York City, making their relationship status even clearer. After the show, they were seen leaving the Waverly Inn restaurant hand in hand.
Throughout the season, Swift’s presence at Chiefs games became a regular occurrence, with her attending a total of 13 games, culminating in their Super Bowl LVIII win. Kelce reciprocated her support by attending one of her concerts in Buenos Aires during the Chiefs’ bye week on November 11, where he was spotted with her father, Scott.
During that concert, Swift altered the lyrics of her final song “Karma” to include a nod to Kelce, singing, “Karma is the guy on the Chiefs coming straight home to me,” which brought a broad smile to his face.
In December, Swift discussed her relationship with Kelce for the first time during her interview as Time’s 2023 Person of the Year, noting that it “all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell.”
Clarifying their timeline, Swift shared that by the time she was seen at one of Kelce’s games in September, they were already an established couple. “I think some people think they saw our first date at that game? We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date,” she stated.
Earlier this month, during her acceptance speech at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, Swift publicly acknowledged Kelce for the first time, thanking him for his unwavering support of her music.
“Something that I’ll always remember is that after I would call ‘Cut,’ I would hear someone cheering from across the studio, and that person was my boyfriend Travis,” she shared while accepting her video of the year award.
“Everything this man touches brings joy, excitement, and a touch of magic, so I want to thank him for contributing to our shoot, because I’ll cherish those moments,” she added affectionately.
So far this season, Swift attended the Chiefs’ first two home games at Arrowhead Stadium but opted against traveling to Atlanta for their week three matchup. She has supported Kelce at 15 games since their relationship began, with many more appearances likely on the horizon.
