The NFL has released a statement, saying that the focus on the romance between pop superstar Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is something that “they've leaned into in real time,” in light of the backlash they've received from some football fans, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Taylor Swift's attendance at the past two Chiefs games has led to a frenzy on social media, sparking trends like pranking one's male football fan partner with the words “Taylor Swift put Travis Kelce on the map,” and watching as they defend the tight end by highlighting his achievements.
The NFL has been leaning into this quite heavily. In the first game Swift attended where the Chiefs won against the Chicago Bears, the NFL changed its TikTok bio to say “Taylor was here,” and their X (formerly Twitter) to NFL (Taylor's version), mimicking Swift's re-recorded albums.
In the most recent Chiefs game where they won against the New York Jets, the NFL changed their Instagram bio to, “chiefs are 2-0 as swifties.”
Football fans became upset even after the Swift references were removed the day after the games, claiming that the NFL seemed to be focusing on just one team's victory.
The NFL responded to the criticisms by saying in the statement, “The vast majority of our content has remained focused on the game, our players and variety of other initiatives, including our Toy Story Funday Football alt-cast, the international games and more.”
The league's statement also comes after Travis Kelce, on the New Heights podcast he hosts with his brother, Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, said that the NFL is “overdoing it” in regards to its coverage of Swift.
The league added that the Swift and Kelce news is a “pop cultural moment.” The NFL sees this as “an intersection of sport and entertainment, and we've seen an incredible amount of positivity around the sport.”
The NFL has been on the receiving end of the power that Swift and her Swifties can muster. To the games, they've driven up views, ratings, and ticket sales and jersey sales. The most notable of these is a 400% increase in the sale of Travis Kelce's jerseys after Taylor Swift's first attendance at his game just over a week ago.