How Taylor Swift changed the NFL—and how the NFL changed Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift's relationship with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce quickly became one of the biggest crossover stories in sports and entertainment, reshaping both the NFL's audience and Swift's public profile.

By the numbers:

When Swift first attended a Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium alongside Kelce's mother, Donna, the impact was immediate. 

According to sportswear and fan merchandise company Fanatics, Kelce became one of the top five-selling NFL players that day, seeing "a nearly 400% spike in sales throughout the Fanatics network of sites, including NFLShop.com," a spokesperson previously told The Associated Press via email.

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Swift's influence extended far beyond jersey sales. Already the world's biggest pop star, she had become the first artist with songs occupying each of the top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 a year earlier, while overwhelming demand for her Eras Tour had triggered a Ticketmaster debacle. 

Her Instagram following of more than 270 million dwarfed the NFL's 28.4 million followers, while Kelce's own account climbed to nearly 4 million as interest in the relationship exploded.

Consumer surveys reflected that broader appeal. LendingTree found that 13% of American consumers said Swift increased their interest in watching football or the Super Bowl. 

The effect was strongest among younger fans, with about 24% of Generation Z respondents and one in five Millennials saying she made them more interested in the sport. 

RELATED: Timeline: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship through the years

When asked which team they would support in the Super Bowl, 18% said they would back the Chiefs because of Swift and her relationship with Kelce.

What they're saying:

The NFL embraced the attention. The league briefly added Swift lyrics to its Instagram bio and pointed out that the Chiefs were 2-0 with her in attendance. Ian Trombetta, the NFL's senior vice president of social, influencer and content marketing, said the league wanted to "make sure we remain in a celebratory sort of posture and position, and one that we don't want to over-commercialize, in a way."

Still, he acknowledged that the phenomenon had exceeded anything the league anticipated.

"There's always chatter around different celebrities and so on that are attending different games, but this took a life of its own, and I think a big part of it has to do with just the high level of interest in Taylor and what's going on with her personal life, as well as Travis," Trombetta said.

Big picture view:

Swift's presence also introduced football to new audiences. Former New England Patriots receiver Julian Edelman said the effect was visible in his own family.

"Honestly, it's been an awesome thing because my daughter does talk about football," Edelman previously told Fox News Channel's Fox & Friends. "You know, playing for the New England Patriots, it's terrible to hear your daughter say Chiefs all the time.

"It gives us a conversation point. She loves learning about it."

As Swift helped expand the NFL's reach, the league's constant attention also altered her own public experience. Television broadcasts repeatedly cut to her luxury suite during Chiefs games, particularly during a Sunday night matchup against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium.

On the New Heights podcast, Kelce's brother Jason noted that NBC cameras showed Swift no fewer than 17 times during the broadcast.

"Damn, that's crazy," Travis Kelce replied. "That's like once a drive."

Kelce later agreed that television coverage had been "overdoing it" with the amount of attention focused on Swift.

The unprecedented crossover between the world's biggest pop star and America's biggest sports league became a mutually beneficial phenomenon. Swift brought millions of new eyes to the NFL, boosting merchandise sales, television interest and social media engagement, while the NFL transformed her Sunday appearances into must-watch television—sometimes to the point where even Kelce thought the cameras were lingering a little too long.

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