All The Ways Taylor Swift Changed The NFL

In 2023, it seemed like the National Football League should have just changed its name to the National Taylor League. That year, Taylor Swift took over the football world — and not just by selling out the stadiums for her Eras Tour.

It started when Swift's romance with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce became all the buzz. Ever since Kelce first revealed on the "New Heights" podcast that he was interested in the Grammy-winning musician, Swifties haven't stopped talking about their romance. Swift added fuel to the fire after she attended two of Kelce's games, and it only escalated that year. 

Even after those first games ended, Swift was all the rage. Anywhere you looked, it was all about the musician and what she was doing with the football star. This only continued when she attended Kelce's game again, this time with an entire posse that included Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, and many more famous faces, per NBC News. Once again, Swift dominated social media, television, radio, newspapers, you name it... she was the headline of it all! After those appearances, Swift truly changed the NFL (well before her eventual engagement to Kelce in 2025.) Here's how.

In 2023, Kansas City Chiefs tickets were as hard to come by as an Eras Tour ticket after Taylor Swift's appearance at two Chiefs games caused quite an uproar in ticket sales.

After the "All Too Well" singer attended the September 2023 Chiefs vs. Bears game, ticket sales increased for the Kansas football team. A StubHub representative spoke to CBS, revealing they saw a threefold increase in ticket sales for Chiefs home games just 24 hours after Swift attended the football game. Not just that, but searches for Chiefs game tickets also increased. Swifties were gearing up for games, hoping to catch a glimpse of the pop star even if she's not performing.

Fans even expected Swift to appear at the October 1 Chiefs vs. New York Jets game. Because of this, StubHub saw a 175% increase in Chiefs-Jets tickets within three days after she attended the football game in September, per CBS. And it wasn't just StubHub — SeatGeek also saw a 26% increase in ticket prices in the days that followed Swift's appearance. Tickets jumped from an average of $168 to $245! Swifties even looked ahead at purchasing tickets for the October 8 Chiefs game vs. the Minnesota Vikings, which saw a traffic increase of 121% (although Swift ultimately did not attend). Still, the uptick in sales and searches for NFL games was all thanks to Swift!

Is it the Super Bowl? Nope, just a casual preseason NFL game with Taylor Swift in the stands, but based on viewership, you'd probably think otherwise. In 2023, Swift slowly took over the NFL world as her fans flocked to their television screens to watch the superstar on the sidelines of the Kansas City Chiefs games.

The "Love Story" singer's appearance at some games increased viewership exponentially. According to Fox Sports (via USA Today), when Swift attended the September Chiefs vs. Chicago Bears game, the number of viewers reached a high of 24.3 million! To put her effect into perspective, a typical preseason game gets around 16.7 million viewers, per Statista. Swift nearly increased average viewership by 10 million! The momentum only continued the following week when Swift attended her second Chiefs game.

On October 1, Swifties from all over the U.S. grabbed their remotes and sat down for the Chiefs game as if it were an Eras Tour concert. Swift attended the game with an entourage of famous Hollywood friends and viewers were eager to see the musician cheering from the sidelines. Viewership increased to a whopping 27 million! According to CNN, that number made the game the most-watched NFL game since the 2023 Super Bowl, peaking at 29.4 million viewers. From ticket sales to television viewership, Swift's impact across the NFL board was incredible, to say the least.

In 2023, it was time to grab your friendship bracelets and Travis Kelce jerseys because Swifties were going Taylor-gating. That's right, fans of the pop star gave tailgating a whole new meaning. It all started when Swift embarked on her Eras Tour. Many fans were left empty-handed, as they were unable to snatch tickets. Swifties didn't let that ruin their fun, though, as many drove to the stadiums anyway and began "Taylor-gating" at the venues, per Today. Hundreds of Swifties gathered outside and sang and danced along to the "All Too Well" singer's performances. After the Eras Tour came to an end in North America, fans used Swift's appearances at the Kansas City Chiefs games to Taylor-gate.

Ahead of the Chiefs vs. New York Jets game, Swifties flooded the tailgating atmosphere, per The New York Times. The NFL welcomed a new audience as fans made T-shirts nodding to Swift's then-speculated romance with Travis Kelce, Taylor-gating outside until it was time to go in. One Swiftie, who made a shirt with the question, "Where's Taylor?" told the outlet, "We had about 50 people come up to us and ask to take photos. I've never had more fun at a Jets game in my life." From the Eras Tour to NFL games, Swifties were ready to Taylor-gate anywhere and everywhere for the "Bejeweled" singer.

The NFL experienced the Taylor Swift effect in 2023. As we know, viewership for football games, particularly Kansas City Chiefs games, increased since the musician made an appearance. The increase in viewership is due to the fact that she brought a new audience to the NFL. According to Fox Sports (via USA Today), the September Chiefs vs. Chicago Bears game attracted a new crowd, becoming the highest-rated football game watched that weekend among women in three different age groups. Females age 12-17, 18-34, and 18-49 tuned in to watch the "Karma" singer cheer on Travis Kelce from the sidelines.

The NFL hoped these new Swiftie viewers are here to stay, per the New York Post. Ian Trombetta, the NFL's senior vice president of social, influencer, and content marketing, revealed that the games were a perfect blend of "pop culture and sports colliding," and the NFL couldn't have been more ecstatic. Trombetta shared, "Hopefully those — especially the young women — that have now gained an interest in not only Travis Kelce but the NFL more broadly, can stay with us throughout the year and years to come." Although some may say this new audience was just a phase, there's no doubt that Swift and her fans are a force to be reckoned with.

The Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce saga was every NFL marketer's dream in 2023. The league saw Swift and her fans as an opportunity to gain new followers, particularly through social media.

After Swift cheered on Kelce at the September game, the NFL's TikTok page changed its bio to "9/24/23 Taylor was here," according to X. The league also changed its header on X, formerly known as Twitter, to a photo of Swift at the game. The bio read, "NFL (Taylor's Version.)" This NFL's social media frenzy surrounding Swift continued the following week. After Swift attended the Chiefs vs. Jets game in October, the NFL changed its header and bio on X once more. New photos of Swift at the game replaced the older images, and its bio read, "We had the best day with you today," a reference to Swift's song "The Best Day."

But did it become too much? Some football fans seemed to think so. Still, the NFL has reassured that it "frequently change[s]" its social media based on games, per Today. They shared, "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."