Travis Kelce was a well-known name for football fans, but once he started his apparent relationship with Taylor Swift, he became a household name for Swifties.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter on X, formerly Twitter, Kelce gained 860,000 followers on Instagram, more than he did in the past three Super Bowls he’s played.
NPR also reported that Kelce’s jersey had a 400% spike in sales since Swift’s first appearance Setp. 24 at the Kansas City Chiefs-Chicago Bears game.
Swift fans went wild seeing her at the game in a luxury suite with Kelce’s mom, Donna, and the rumored couple were seen leaving the stadium together.
The “Shake It Off” singer appeared in the stands again Sunday, with a celebrity entourage that included Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Sophie Turner and Hugh Jackman, once again drawing the eyes of football and Swift fans to the NFL.
Neither Kelce nor Swift have confirmed the dating rumors, but Kelce did speak about her appearance at the September game on his podcast with brother Jason Kelce, “New Heights.”
“Shoutout to Taylor for pulling up. That was pretty ballsy,” he said. “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 a great light. And, on top of that, the day went perfect – for Chiefs fans, of course. It was just impressive.”
However, he noted that going forward he will keep things more private.
“So, yeah, I think it’s … what’s real is that, you know, it is my personal life. I want to respect both of our lives. She’s not in the media as much as I am doing this show every single week and having fun during the NFL season and on other guys’ shows like the ‘McAfee Show’ and any other show that I go on from here on out.”
Some fans are already speculating about the possibility of football-themed lyrics on Swift’s next album, but Kelce is not the first star to be made famous — or infamous — by having a connection with Swift. Here’s a look at Swift’s past romances, and the songs believed to be about them.
Matt Healy
Google Trends showed an enormous spike in searches for Healy and his band, which does have a dedicated fan base of its own, but the rumored relationship put Healy in the spotlight as Swift was in the middle of her sold-out Eras tour.
Neither party ever confirmed the relationship. Representatives for Swift did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment at the time, and Healy’s team said they had “nothing to add.”
Swift and Healy had been friends since 2014 and were occasionally photographed together at events.
Just as quickly as they were rumored to have gotten together, they broke apart.
In June, People reported they had split, with a source telling the outlet, “She had fun with him, but it was always casual. They are no longer romantically involved.”
Swift hasn’t released new music since the breakup, but time will tell if Healy will appear to be referenced in any of her lyrics.
Joe Alwyn
Swift and Alwyn were able to remain low profile during the pandemic, when he also dabbled in songwriting on her album, “Folklore.”
Working under the pseudonym William Bowery, he helped pen “Exile” and “Betty,” and contributed to multiple works on the follow-up album, “Evermore.”
“It was completely off the cuff, an accident,” Alwyn told Vulture about writing the first verse of “Exile.”
Many Swift fans speculate many songs on her albums “Reputation,” “Lover,” “Folklore” and “Evermore” are about Alwyn, with references to his blue eyes and British background.
Calvin Harris
John Mayer
“I know she’s the biggest thing in the world, and I’m not trying to sink anybody’s ship, but I think it’s abusing your talent to rub your hands together and go, ‘Wait till he gets a load of this!’ That’s bulls—,” he added.
In 2023, Swift played “Dear John” in public for the first time since her “Speak Now” tour ended in 2012.
She discouraged fans from bullying anyone, telling the crowd at the show, “I’m 33 years old. I don’t care about anything that happened to me when I was 19 except the songs I wrote and the memories we made together.
“I’m not putting this album out so that you can go and should feel the need to defend me on the internet against someone you think I might have written a song about 14 billion years ago” she added, referring to “Speak Now” being re-released in July.
Jake Gyllenhaal
Fans also noted lyrics that show a disparity in attitudes in the relationship.
“The idea you had of me, who was she? / A never-needy, ever-lovely jewel whose shine reflects on you / Not weepin’ in a party bathroom/Some actress askin’ me what happened, you / That’s what happened, you,” Swift sings.
Swift has never confirmed that the lyrics on both versions are about Gyllenhaal, but the actor addressed the speculation in a 2022 Esquire profile.
“It has nothing to do with me,” he said. “It’s about her relationship with her fans. It is her expression. Artists tap into personal experiences for inspiration, and I don’t begrudge anyone that.
“At some point, I think it’s important when supporters get unruly that we feel a responsibility to have them be civil and not allow for cyberbullying in one’s name,” he added, addressing the issue of fans bullying him online.
Joe Jonas
Harry Styles
Not all breakup songs about Swift’s exes paint them in a negative light.
Swift and Harry Styles were rumored to have dated from November 2012 to January 2013 while he was still a member of the band One Direction.
Several songs from Swift are supposedly about Styles, including her hit “Style” and “Out of the Woods” from her “1989” album, and more recently the song “Question…?” from “Midnights” all of which have more positive lyrics about relationships.
Taylor Lautner
Swift and “Twilight” star Taylor Lautner dated in 2009 and appeared in the movie “Valentine’s Day” together while their respective stars were on the rise, but the relationship was short-lived.
Lautner later confirmed her song “Back to December” from her album “Speak Now” is about their relationship, and Swift told Yahoo! Music in 2010, “Up until now, I haven’t really felt like I really needed to apologize to someone. It’s just necessary.”
This year, Swift re-released “Speak Now,” and Lautner joked on “Today” about feeling “safe” from any new tracks about their relationship, compared to her infamous song about John Mayer.
Lautner even stopped by her Eras Tour stop in Kansas City and appeared in the music video for “I Can See You,” a previously unreleased track added to the re-release of “Speak Now.”
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