The NFL is defending its coverage of the relationship between Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce and pop star Taylor Swift. After receiving some backlash from some fans (and even Kelce himself) the league is calling it a “pop cultural moment.”
Swift has been shown frequently during the Chiefs’ most recent two games against the Chicago Bears and New York Jets. The NFL even changed their X (formerly Twitter) bio to read, “NFL (Taylor’s Version),” while their Instagram account read, “Chiefs are 2-0 as Swifties.”
“We frequently change our bios and profile imagery based on what’s happening in and around our games, as well as culturally,” the NFL wrote in a statement Wednesday. “The Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce news has been a pop cultural moment we’ve leaned into in real time, as it’s an intersection of sport and entertainment, and we’ve seen an incredible amount of positivity around the sport.”
Swift’s rumored attendance for last Sunday night’s game against the Jets produced an average of 27 million television viewers, the most watched Sunday night game since the Super Bowl last February.
During the broadcast of the game, there were ads for Swift’s upcoming concert film “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” which will be released on Oct. 13. The broadcast panned to Swift in her luxury box seats and made several references to her song lyrics.
“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 NFL also said in their statement.
Kelce even stated that the NFL is “overdoing it a little bit” during this week’s installment of his “New Heights” podcast with his brother, Jason Kelce.
“I think it’s fun when they show who’s at the game,” Travis said. “I think it brings a little bit more to the atmosphere, brings a little bit more to what you’re watching. But at the same time, they’re overdoing it a little bit.”
