In December 2023, Taylor Swift, a 34-year-old American singer/songwriter, began a relationship with Travis Kelce, starting tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. This relationship gained fast publicity due to Swift’s popularity (which is growing due to her recent “Eras Tour”). As the 2023-2024 season unfolded, Swift began attending Chiefs games; her presence at these games caused an uproar among NFL fans.

Many fans have complained that the NFL has begun focusing more on Swift than the game, when, according to The New York Times, “The reality is Ms. Swift typically being onscreen for less than 25 seconds throughout broadcasts that run longer than three hours, with her name rarely being mentioned” (Hoffman 5). Despite the complaints the league has received, it is evident that Swift’s attendance at games has increased the NFL’s audience dramatically. 

NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell, claims that “Having the ‘Taylor Swift Effect’ is also a positive” (Dotson 7). Despite the upset fans, the NFL is not cutting Swift’s screen time due to the profits, an estimated $331.5 million, her appearances bring for the Chiefs and the NFL. This increase in income shows that the NFL will not be cutting down on Swift’s screen time at games. 

After Sunday’s Super Bowl, many fans are still upset about how much Swift was shown. Out of the four-hour and twenty-minute broadcast, Swift was shown 12 times for a total of only 54 seconds. Super Bowl LVIII was a record-breaking broadcast with over 200 million viewers across all networks, which is the largest (unduplicated) audience in history and up 10% from last year. Many people think the increase in viewership is due to Swift’s appearance. According to a survey, 20% of viewers rooted for the Chiefs because of Swift. After the Chief’s 25-22 victory over the 49ers, there was plenty of media coverage on Swift and Kelce, highlighting their reactions to the big win. 

I asked Sarah Meisner, a Sophomore at Pentucket, her thoughts on this topic, and she said, “I think that Taylor Swift is trying her best to be supportive and the fact that the cameras keep panning to her is not her fault” and “I don’t think we’re blaming the right people here.” I agree with Meisner because Swift does not control how often she is shown. With the revenue she brings to the NFL, she is bound to be shown at games more often. Overall, this is an issue that is out of Swift’s control. So is Taylor Swift attending Chiefs games a problem, or are the complaints of NFL fans an overreaction?

https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/06/sport/taylor-swift-roger-goodell-nfl-spt-intl/index.html 

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/25/style/taylor-swift-nfl-broadcasts.html