A Timeline of Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce’s Relationship
Here’s everything that has gone down between the Grammy-winning pop star and the Kansas City Chiefs tight end.
Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on September 24, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri.David Eulitt/Getty Images; Jason Hanna/Getty Images
Travis Kelce must have taken some notes from Taylor Swift‘s Midnights track “Mastermind,” because after just two months of shooting his shot with the multi-Grammy-winning superstar, the “Anti-Hero” singer was first spotted cheering on the Kansas City Chiefs tight end at his football game in September. Talk about manifestation!
Fans are loving the unexpected pairing, and Swifties have even started a hilarious trend on TikTok of telling their male partners that Swift put Kelce “on the map.”
While the coupling between Swift and Kelce might seem random to the casual entertainment consumer, Billboard has you covered. Below, we’ve compiled a full timeline of the duo’s relationship, from the football player trying to give a friendship bracelet to Swift during her Eras Tour stop in Kansas City in July 2023, Swift revealing when she and the NFL star started dating, to the singer attending his football game with his mother and more.
One of those times created an epic pop-culture storm, with Swift descending on New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium alongside famous friends Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman on Oct. 1, 2023, to watch Kelce’s Chiefs take on the New York Jets from a star-studded suite. Things looked a lot chiller on days later on Oct. 12 during the Chiefs’ Thursday Night Football match-up against the Denver Broncos, with Swift whispering in Travis’ mom Donna Kelce’s ear in the family suite.
Find a full, updating timeline of the couple’s romance below:
July 8, 2023: Kelce Attends the Eras Tour
The football star was spotted Swift’s Eras Tour stop at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium in July, marking the first public linking between the two.
July 26, 2023: Kelce Shoots His Shot & Fails
During an episode of his New Heights podcast, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end recounted his foiled plan to begin wooing the “Karma” singer. Inspired by the lyric “So make the friendship bracelets / Take the moment and taste it” from Midnight’s “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” fans have been trading homemade jewelry at each Eras Tour stop, and Kelce tried to get in on the trend.
“I was disappointed that she doesn’t talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings,” Kelce said, “so I was a little butt-hurt I didn’t get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her.”
He went on to explain that the bracelet he wanted to give her had his phone number on it. Evidently, Kelce’s plan was not successful. “She doesn’t meet anybody, or at least she didn’t want to meet me, so I took it personal,” he quipped.
Sept. 14, 2023: Travis Is Coy About Taylor
During an interview with NFL+ host Andrew Siciliano, Travis somewhat addressed the rumors. He confirmed his story about trying to shoot his shot at Swift via an Eras Tour friendship bracelet, but that’s as far as he’d reveal. “I said what I said. And I meant what I said when I said it. And you know what, it is what it is,” he said before shutting down further conversation about the pair’s relationship status. “I’m not gonna talk about my personal life.”
The tight end then teased listeners, saying, “I know what you writers wanna hear, and you wanna hear more about that and I’m not gonna give you anything!” When Siciliano asked if Swift had reached out to him, Kelce responded, “And that’s gonna wrap it up here,” thus ending the interview.
Travis’ brother, Philadelphia Eagles player Jason Kelce, was also asked about the pairing during an interview. “I’ve seen these rumors, I cannot comment,” he said of romance speculation
Sept. 17, 2023: Travis Laughs Off NFL Commentary
During the game between the Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday (Sept. 17), NFL announcer Ian Eagle slipped in a few Swift lyric references as he called a play from Kelce. “Kelce finds a blank space for the score!” he said, a callback to Swift’s 2014 Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper “Blank Space.”
NFL Network’s Rich Eisen loaded in plenty of Swift references in his pre-game coverage, as he teased, “You saw it on Thursday night, when Travis Kelce wasn’t in there, it left a ‘blank space,’ but I think he returns today and proves to be the ‘anti-hero.’ Never goes out of ‘style.’”
It was all in good fun, as Kelce himself later commented on Eisen’s medley via Instagram, writing, “Well played Rich…. Well played 👏🏻😂.” See the post here.
Sept. 21, 2023: The Ball Is in Taylor’s Court
The Kansas City Chiefs tight end joined The Pat McAfee Show, where he revealed that he invited Swift to watch him play. “I threw the ball in her court,” he said. “I told her, ‘I’ve seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage in Arrowhead.’ We’ll see what happens in the near future.”
He also expressed his surprise at how much publicity their potential relationship has gotten. “It’s hilarious how much traction this has actually got,” the 33-year-old said. “I think it’s, right now, it’s like that old game in school called ‘Telephone,’ where everybody is just whispering in each other’s ear, just hearing some random stuff.”
Sept. 24, 2023: The Big Game
Swift shocked football fans and Swifties alike when she spent the day cheering on the Kansas City Chiefs’ tight end from Kelce’s suite alongside his mom, Donna, as the team played the Chicago Bears (and won).
The two also left the stadium together, as seen in a clip sports reporter Jarrett Payton shared on X. In the video, the NFL star nods in greeting to the anchor and asks, “How you doin’” as Tay flashes Payton a smile and says, “Hey!”
Kelce and Swift were then spotted riding off together in his convertible, according to photos acquired by TMZ.
Sept. 26, 2023: Kelce Says Swift Looked ‘Amazing’ at the Game
Jason and Travis reflected on the game in their New Heights podcast. “Shoutout to Taylor for pulling up!” Travis said. “That was pretty ballsy. That was pretty ballsy, yeah. I just thought it was awesome how everybody in the suite had nothing but great things to say about her, the friends and family — she looked amazing. Everybody was talking about her in great light and on top of that, the day went perfect for Chiefs fans, of course.”
“To see the slow-motion chest bumps, to see the high-fives with Mom, to see how Chiefs Kingdom was all excited that she was there,” he added. “It was definitely a game I’ll remember, that’s for d–n sure. Then we just slid off in the getaway car at the end. Took my Chevelle to the game.”
Sept. 29, 2023: “Welcome to New York”
NBC used Swift’s “Welcome to New York” in a TV commercial promoting the Chiefs’ upcoming game against the New York Jets.
Oct. 1, 2023: Taylor’s Second Football Date
The Kansas City Chiefs were set to play the New York Jets, which meant Kelce was in Swift’s area this time — she has a New York City residence. This time around, it was no surprise that the pop icon showed up at MetLife Stadium to support Kelce and his team. She arrived with a group of famous friends, including Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds.
“Welcome to New York, it’s been waiting for you,” the official NFL account tweeted to Swift on X before the game began, sharing clips of her greeting others at the stadium and enjoying the game.
