2023 has been a crazy year, but one of the most unexpected things that
have happened so far is the sudden situation-ship between Taylor Swift and Travis
Kelce. It’s all people have been talking about, including the NFL itself. The news
has connected some of the most passionate fans on both sides of the spectrum:
football fans and the “Swifties.” After coming to two of the Chief’s games so far,
everyone is saying that Taylor and Travis are officially dating. However, there is
always the possibility that it is all a PR stunt, considering Swift’s enormous fame
and thousands of loyal fans.

So how did it all begin? Ever since March, Taylor Swift has been touring the
world preforming her “Eras Tour,” which has become a contender for the highest
grossing tour of all time. Fans attending bring friendship bracelets to trade with
one another because of the lyric “so make the friendship bracelets” in Taylor’s
song, “You’re On Your Own Kid.” While preforming in Kansas City at the
Arrowhead stadium in July, Travis Kelce showed up with a friendship bracelet with
his number on it. On Travis’ and his brother Jason’s podcast, “New Heights,” Jason
asked Travis, “Your number as in 87, or your phone number?” All Travis
responded with was, “You know which one.”

In “New Heights,” Travis said, “I threw the ball in her court and, you know, I
told her, ‘I’ve seen you rock the stage at Arrowhead, you might have to come see
me rock the stage at Arrowhead and see which one’s a little more lit.’ So we’ll see
what happens in the near future.” Unexpectedly, Taylor accepted his invitation
and showed up to the Chiefs vs Bears game on September 24, shaking the world
and taking over the news for weeks.

Ever since the dating rumors surfaced in every form of media everywhere,
the Taylor Swift Effect has swept over both the economy and social status. The
easiest way to explain the Taylor Swift Effect is to point out that Kelce’s jersey
sales have gone up 400% since the dating rumors. Travis also gained 300,000
followers on Instagram in just one to two days. That is the Taylor Swift Effect.
Because Taylor went to the Chiefs game, thousands of people want to go to the
next Chief’s game and buy jerseys. However, this could be an argument behind
trying to prove that their dating rumors are just a PR stunt to try and promote
Kelce and Swift.

The NFL hasn’t been too subtle on shipping the couple either. In an
interview after the Chiefs vs Bears game, Patrick Mahomes said, “Yeah, I met her.
She’s really cool. Good people.”Taylor has met other players on the team and is in
friendly terms with all of them. On the Chiefs official Instagram, they posted a
picture with Travis Kelce with the caption, “The lights are so bright, but they never
blind us,” a lyric from Taylor Swift’s “Welcome to New York.” The cameramen
were constantly filming Taylor’s reactions to Travis’s plays while she sat in the box
with his family, talking to his mom.

Only time will tell if this situation-ship between Taylor and Travis is serious,
and everyone’s excited to hear the littlest information about them. The dating
rumors have united both swifties and football fans alike together, increased ticket
and jersey sales, and the Chief’s marketing strategies. Using the Swift and Kelce
rumors, it’s safe to say that the economy in the NFL has skyrocketed. So is it a PR
stunt? Is it love? Like Patrick Mahomes said, “…imma let them have their privacy
and keep it moving.”