ESPN’s new documentary about the Kansas City Chiefs showed Travis Kelce’s teammates’ initial reactions to his relationship with Taylor Swift.
The third episode of “The Kingdom,” a the six-part documentary about the Super Bowl-winning NFL team, looked back at Swift’s first appearance at a game in September 2023 during the matchup between the Chiefs and Chicago Bears at Arrowhead Stadium.
Her surprise attendance came after weeks of speculation that the couple were dating. The rumors were further fueled by comments made by Travis’ older brother, Jason Kelce, months after Chief’s tight end tried to give Swift his number via a friendship bracelet at a stop on her “Eras Tour.”
Swift’s attendance at the game sparked a media flurry, as well as excitement within the entire Chiefs organization, including Travis Kelce’s teammates.
Chris Jones, defensive tackle for the Chiefs, said, “You know the locker room was like, ‘Taylor Swift’s here. Taylor Swift’s here. For real? With Travis? Oh my god.’”
“We’re like, ‘Oh my god, Travis pulled Taylor Swift,’” Jones added.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes had a bit more of a heads up than the rest of the team and the world, sharing during the documentary, “He told me during the week. I was one of those like, ‘I got to see it, you know? I got to see it until I believe it.’”
In game footage included in the series, Mahomes was filmed talking to Travis Kelce on the sidelines about Swift in the box, telling the tight end, “That’s the first person I noticed. I didn’t see anybody else.”
“You definitely felt the buzz and you could see people in the stadium gravitating toward where she was at there,” Mahomes said during the documentary. “But at the same time, we had business to handle.”
In a post-game interview, Mahomes addressed questions about his teammate’s relationship status, sharing at the time that he had not met the singer. He added, “If she ends up being with Travis, then I’ll probably get to meet her at some point.”
Taylor Swift is having the last laugh! Ahead of her highly anticipated debut on boyfriend Travis Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast, the pop star poked fun at being a guest on a sports-centered show.
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid also gave his two cents on the romance between Travis Kelce and Swift, sharing at a press conference that he had already met Swift before and that he “set them up.”
“By that time, I knew they were going out. I knew her before him,” he explained. “Her dad was a big Eagles fan. She was doing a concert in Philadelphia, so we did the meet and greet thing. She told Travis, ‘You know, I know your coach.’ And he went, ‘Oh no.’”
As for the widespread reaction to Swift’s attendance at the game, Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie put it best — “The Swifties are a real thing. Everybody can feel it.”
“The fan base is just going insane,” Chiefs safety Justin Reid explained. “The sport has just grown tremendously with her being a part of it. The NFL is loving this, I know it. You couldn’t have painted a better picture than to have this happen.”
The documentary also included a moment with Swift after the Chiefs defeated the Buffalo Bills in the AFC championship game in January 2025. The cameras followed Swift on the field, where she stood with quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ wife, Brittany Mahomes, and Travis Kelce’s mom, Donna Kelce.
Taylor Swift is celebrating Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl win with a kiss. The Grammy winner took to the field after her man’s team the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl on Sunday.
In the scene, Swift shared her gratitude for the support of Brittany Mahomes during the postseason, alongside Donna Kelce.
“You’ve kept me so calm the last couple weeks,” Swift said. “I did not know what to do and I’d just text Brittany and just be like, ‘Tell me it’s going to be OK. Tell me it’s going to be OK.”
The singer stood between both women and put her arms around them, calling them her “two pillars of support.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
