The Swiftian army continues to prove its strength. Where Taylor Swift goes, her die-hard fanbase follows. Over the past few weeks, Swift has been frequenting Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City to watch a couple of Chiefs football games. Though no stadium could hold the full expanse of the Swifties, they all followed her symbolically by tuning into the games, buying NFL merch, and boosting a certain tight end‘s following.
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The NFL is an institution in its own right. Like the Swifties, professional football fans have a certain fervor. Combine the commitment levels of both groups and you have an unstoppable force. Thanks to Swift’s recent appearances at the Chiefs games, the creation of that unstoppable force is on the horizon.
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The broadcast of the Chiefs vs. NY Jets game was their highest since the Super Bowl in February. NBC has credited Swift for the bump. According to a recent report, the broadcast saw a 53% uptick in viewership by girls between the ages of 12 and 17. Likewise, there was a 24% uptick in viewership from women 18-24 and a 34% uptick in women over 35, reports Deadline. Those viewers were no doubt waiting to catch a glimpse of Swift on the jumbotron.
It doesn’t hurt that the network is leaning into the Swift hype. Prior to one Chiefs game, Carson Daly humorously explained the rules of football to the Swifties tuning in using the pop star’s lyrics. Elsewhere were promos for the game using “Welcome to New York” and other Swift tunes.
Moreover, Swift has boosted sales of Travis Kelce’s jersey by 400%, according to CNN. It seems a mighty number of Swifties are looking to support Swift’s potential relationship and/or are looking for an up-to-date outfit for her remaining Eras Tour shows. Kelce also gained over 860,000 followers on Instagram. While Kelce was already a household name amongst NFL fans, he has now expanded his reach to even the most vehement anti-sports households.
Swift has effectively changed the course of the NFL for the year, but Swift’s impact on the league goes back even further than Kelce.
In 2019, Swift used the NFL draft to announce her Lover single, “ME!” Even then, Swift had a number of people who likely would’ve never tuned into anything NFL-related watching the draft for a morsel of any Swift-related information.
Her latest album, Midnights, was teased during a Thursday Night Football game in October of 2022. A trailer for the project premiered during the third quarter of a New Orleans Saints vs. Arizona Cardinals game.
Though Swift’s potential connection to Kelce has bolstered her standing with the NFL, she has been partnering with the league and its broadcast partners for years.
Though we don’t like to generalize, it’s not a stretch of the imagination to think male football fans are one of the last groups of people to hold out hopping on the Swift bandwagon. Though her attendance at the Chiefs games is likely not this strategic, her getting in front of the football fans is just one more step in total world domination for Swift.
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