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Louise Thomas
Editor
Resurfaced comments from Travis Kelce have shown how he actually feels about his girlfriend, Taylor Swift, recently skipping his football games.
While promoting his reality show, Catching Kelce, in 2016, the tight end shared what kind of relationship he wished to have with his future partner amid his busy career. At one point, he confessed that when it comes to his games, Kelce doesn’t expect his girlfriend to go to every single one.
“If you’re dating a professional athlete, I do not believe, at least for me, that you have to go to all of the games,” he explained at the time, during an interview with WhoSay about tips for being a “WAG” – which stands for wives and girlfriend of professional athletes.
Kelce acknowledged that being an NFL player requires a rigorous schedule. “I mean, there’s eight home games,” he continued. “Eight away games, plus playoffs. I don’t even expect my parents and friends to make every single game.”
The Kansas City Chiefs star still shared what he expected his girlfriend to do when attending the games, adding: “I need her to cheer when we are doing awesome. Just to make sure that that look is being presented to everyone.”
As for whether his partner has to wear his team’s colors at games, Kelce didn’t have a preference, saying that “it’s all fun and games.” Instead, his main focus was that his girlfriend is happy with what she’s wearing.
“I’d rather have my girl look absolutely gorgeous in something she’s comfortable in,” he said.
Back in 2016, Kelce was dating Maya Benberry. He sparked a relationship with model Kayla Nicole the following year, though the pair split in 2022.
The NFL star’s thoughts about his partner attending his games unsurprisingly resurfaced amid his relationship with Swift, who he’s been dating since last year. On Sunday, September 29, Swift was notably absent for the Chiefs’ away game against the Los Angeles Chargers. After winning the game, the Chiefs are now 4-0 in the NFL season.
The “Fortnight” singer also skipped the Chiefs game against the Atlanta Falcons, which took place in Georgia on September 22. She didn’t miss out on the start of football season, however, as she was at Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs’ two home games – one against the Baltimore Ravens on September 5 and another against the Cincinnati Bengals on September 15.
Although it’s unclear why Swift missed the two games, it could be due to her busy work schedule. According to a source who spoke to Page Six, she skipped the event because she’s been busy rehearsing for the final leg of her Eras Tour, which resumes in Miami, Florida, on October 18.
In addition, she reportedly has a few safety concerns when attending games that aren’t at Arrowhead Stadium. “If she is going to a place that isn’t Arrowhead, there are security concerns,” the source claimed. “She has worked with Arrowhead so many times, they feel at ease and comfortable. Going to all kinds of different stadiums, you need to send a team in advance,” the source explained.
The Chiefs’ next game will be against the New Orleans Saints on October 7 at Arrowhead Stadium, but it’s unclear if Swift will be in attendance.
Her absence from the games also comes as Kelce faces criticism for his poor performance on the field at the start of the season. On September 23, ex-ESPN analyst Todd McShay accused Kelce of “partying too much” during his time off with his girlfriend.
“Every show I watch, every pregame show, halftime show, postgame show, weekday show, every broadcast I watch for the last few weeks, it’s like, are we not allowed to say that he’s out of shape? He’s been partying all offseason. He’s been jet-setting around with the most famous person probably in the entire world,” McShay claimed.
However, Kelce’s friends and family have been quick to defend him from the scrutiny. “The respect factor [teams] have for Travis is unreal. It’s well deserved,” Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said during the conference. “We’re calling a lot of plays for Travis, and it’s like two or three people going to him.”
Throughout his first three games of the 2024 NFL season, Kelce only caught eight passes for a total of 69 yards, without scoring a single touchdown. However, he had a bit of a comeback on September 29, when he finished the game against the Chargers with seven catches for 89 yards.
