Super Bowl 2024: Taylor Swift cheers on her boyfriend Travis Kelce in an NFL clash

Taylor Swift made her long-awaited appearance at the 58th Super Bowl in Las Vegas, dancing and cheering in the stands with her family and some famous friends.

The singer, 33, has been dating Travis Kelce, 34, the star tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, one of the two teams facing off in Sunday night’s game.

Their relationship, a meeting between two American superstars, has dominated headlines since Swift’s first NFL appearance in September, and the pop star’s enormous fandom has brought an even larger audience to the beloved American sport.

Going into overtime, Kelce’s Chiefs were tied with the San Francisco 49ers, but Swift still seemed in high spirits, laughing with her friends and even sipping a drink while on the jumbotron, in view of 65,000 football fans. in the stadium and the millions watching at home.

Some had speculated that this trip might be too long for Swift, who gave a concert in Tokyo on Saturday.

But the 17-hour time difference between Tokyo and the west coast of the United States helped her, and late Saturday afternoon her plane had been spotted in Los Angeles.

On Sunday afternoon, a few minutes before kickoff, Swift was photographed walking through the tunnels of Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, accompanied by her parents, rapper Ice Spice and actress Blake Lively.

Dressed in the Chiefs’ red and black colors, she was soon photographed in the stadium’s luxurious suites, greeting Kelce’s older brother, Jason Kelce, another NFL star.

Jason Kelce, who won the Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017, stole the spotlight from Swift at a game last month, when cameras caught him shirtless, drinking beers and climbing the stands.

On his and Travis’s New Heights podcast, Travis said that Swift had “absolutely loved” Jason and his antics.

Swift has been a regular at Travis Kelce’s games since she started dating him and Sunday’s game, already date TV for millions in the U.S., served as the season finale of their much-watched public romance .

Together, the two extremely famous individuals have become a cultural juggernaut, inspiring memes, gripping tabloid coverage, and themed products.

And to some, their relationship apparently seemed too good to be true, with right-wing critics weaving conspiracy theories around Swift and Kelce tracks.

In one, dismissed by the NFL as “nonsense,” critics claim their relationship is part of a plot to rig the championship game in an effort to help US President Joe Biden, a Democrat, get elected.

But even outside of the conspiracy world, some longtime football fans have complained about the sudden arrival of Swift, who has dominated the NFL conversation for months. Still, his presence has been a clear help to the league.

Earlier on Sunday, Swift was photographed speaking with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who called her a “dynamo.”

“Everything she touches, there are people who follow her,” he said at his annual press conference. “We consider ourselves lucky and we celebrate.”

A recent poll from Seton Hall University in New Jersey found that about 21% of Americans — and 41% of 18- to 34-year-olds — who are watching this year’s Super Bowl said Swift’s presence influenced in your decision or that of someone in your group. home to see it.

“This game’s viewership is on a seemingly inexorable march toward more viewers, and this year Taylor Swift can play the role of drummer major,” said Daniel Ladik, the survey’s chief methodologist.

Some hope Swift’s presence will also boost the defending champions, who are playing in their fourth Super Bowl in five years.

Speaking about Swift’s latest success at the Grammys, where she became the first person to win the coveted Album of the Year award four times, Kelce said she’s looking to match her trophy.

“She herself is rewriting the history books,” he said. “I told her she would have to hold up my end of the deal and come home with some hardware too.”