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Swifties have a legendary gift for finding hidden clues in every word that comes out of Taylor Swift‘s mouth. And, sometimes their intense, code-breaking treasure hunts take them down truly unexpected paths, such as a tweet from a fan on Wednesday (Jan. 3) resurfacing a 2009 Glamour magazine interview with Swift in which she appeared to manifest some aspects of her current love match.
The chat with the then 19-year-old singer included a question about whether she would have to date someone at a “similar level of success” in the wake of the release of her 2008 sophomore album, Fearless, which sold more than 2.1 million copies in two months. Less than a year after her break-up with the Jonas Brothers’ Joe Jonas, Swift said that any relationship she enters into is always going to have to be “long-distance, even if I date the boy who lives next door to me in Nashville. I’ll be flying to see him and flying him places to see me.”
Of course that teenage love speculation came 14 years before Swift would fly across the country several times in late 2023 to watch current beau Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce play, with Kelce returning the favor by jetting to Argentina to see Swift on her Eras Tour. “It feels like it would involve more scheduling, and I already deal with a lot of scheduling in my life,” Swift added at the time of the logistics needed to move a pop star (and, not for nothing, an NFL top-liner) around the country without getting hounded by the press.
“Of course, if I met somebody who was worth it, I would probably stop thinking that way!” the singer told the magazine.
It was the next question-and-answer that really got Swifties activated, though. When the interviewer wondered if Swift — who subsequently was linked to “You Belong With Me” video co-star Lucas Till, Valentine’s Day co-star Taylor Lautner, John Mayer, Jake Gyllenhaal, Harry Styles, Calvin Harris, Tom Hiddleston and Joe Alwyn — felt like she needed to date someone at a “similar level” of success, the now-34-year-old singer gave a response that fans thought kind of manifested the Kelce love match.
“I think it’s more a question of confidence. I wouldn’t want to be with a pushover who would let me make all the plans and have all the control,” Swift said. “It’s really natural for me to go into planning mode, but I’d rather be with someone who has his own voice and passion and ambition.” Swift — recently named TIME magazine’s 2023 Person of the Year, as well as the newest member of the billionaire star club thanks to her Eras Tour grosses — appears to have found such a striver in two-time Super Bowl champ Kelce, who also hosts a popular podcasts and has a number of high-profile endorsement deals.
Though Swift kept a low-profile during her six-year relationship with Boy Erased actor Alwyn, in her TIME interview the singer said she’s not shy about talking up her connection with Kelce, while also trying to keep some things private. “When you say a relationship is public, that means I’m going to see him do what he loves, we’re showing up for each other, other people are there and we don’t care,” she told the mag in the December cover story. “The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you’re seeing someone. And we’re just proud of each other.”
Check out the fan tweet that helped spark the speculation below.
found this magazine with taylor on the cover from 2009 and this is what she said about being in a relationship back then omg some of it still applies pic.twitter.com/fqGaVxHEP7— isa (taylor’s version) 🇩🇴 (@isagonellc) January 3, 2024
Super Bowl weekend 2024 needs something just like this! The Chainsmokers and Kygo are set to headline Sports Illustrated‘s SI The Party on Feb. 10 at the Wynn Las Vegas’ XS Nightclub. “Sports Illustrated hosts an amazing event for Big Game weekend every year. I remember playing their Super Bowl event with them a few […]
New Year’s Eve was a fairy tale for Travis Kelce. The Kansas City Chiefs tight end opened up briefly about how nice the last day of 2023 was for him in the Wednesday (Jan. 3) episode of New Heights, the podcast he cohosts with brother Jason Kelce. While discussing the Chiefs’ big New Year’s Eve […]
Patrick Mahomes is opening up about what it was like for the Kansas City Chiefs to witness their teammate begin a romance with one of the most famous women on the planet earlier this year, when none other than Taylor Swift started showing up to their games to cheer on boyfriend Travis Kelce. And though […]
Travis Kelce’s friendship bracelet story — in which he used the item in an attempt to slip his number to Taylor Swift — has been heard around the world. And now, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end is making them in NFL and Nickelodeon’s joint game day promo. NFL and Nickelodeon shared a joint promo […]
Travis Kelce was feeling the love for Taylor Swift at Gillette Stadium on Sunday (Dec. 17). On the latest episode of his New Heights podcast, the 34-year-old tight end opened up about the pop star’s triumphant return to the Massachusetts venue, this time as a fan instead of a headlining musician.
“They showed Taylor at the game — you don’t see an entire home team fanbase go insane for somebody wearing the opposite team’s colors,” Travis told his brother and podcast co-host, Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, on the Wednesday (Dec. 20) episode. “Just shows you how amazing that girl is. They went absolutely insane when they showed Taylor on that screen.”
Swift, of course, was there to cheer on Travis and the Kansas City Chiefs as they faced off against the New England Patriots, ultimately winning 27-17. This time, she brought along her dad, Scott Swift, and friends Alana Haim and Ashley Avignone.
As Travis mentioned, the “Anti-Hero” singer — sporting a Chiefs sweatshirt and beanie — appeared on the jumbotrons before the game started. And while almost everyone erupted with excitement over the superstar’s attendance, videos from the afternoon prove that a few people in the crowd responded with boos.
“There might’ve been a few Brads and Chads that were booing, but for the most part, everybody was f–king screaming their tail off for her,” Travis said on New Heights, using the phrase used by Swift in her TIME Person of the Year interview earlier this month. (“I’m just there to support Travis,” she said in the cover story. “I have no awareness of if I’m being shown too much and pissing off a few dads, Brads and Chads.”)
“I was trying to keep it cool,” Travis added. “I was like, ‘Don’t show your cards, don’t show your cards …’ Taylor, she’s on record saying that stadium’s one of the funnest that she’s played at. For them to show her is just showing her some love. Shout out to the Patriots for doing that.”
Watch the latest New Heights episode above.
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Bowl season is officially upon as with the New Orleans Bowl back for its 23rd edition on Saturday (Dec. 16). Louisiana and Jacksonville State will take to the field at Caesar’s Superdome in New Orleans, LA, marking the transition to post-college season. The game will begin at 2:15 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN+. Other games taking place within the same day include the Myrtle Beach Bowl and the Cricket Celebration Bowl — so be sure to clear your schedule for the entire day.
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Tickets to the big event are still on sale from $25+ if you’re able to score some last-minute travel deals to view it in person. You can grab tickets through resale retailers such as TicketSmarter, Ticketmaster, StubHub, VividSeats and Seat Geek (get $10 off your first purchase through Seat Geek of orders $250+ with code BILLBOARD10).
For those who can’t make it to the game in person this year, you can still livestream the game without cable through a few streaming options.
Keep reading to learn how.
How to Watch the New Orleans Bowl: Louisiana vs. Jacksonville State
The game will begin at 2:15 p.m. ET on Saturday (Dec. 16) on ESPN and ESPN+. If you have cable, you’ll be able to watch the game for free anywhere there’s ESPN. Don’t have cable? You may still be able to watch the New Orleans Bowl live through a HD antenna like one of these here from Amazon.
Live cable streamers including FuboTV, SlingTV, DirecTV Stream and Hulu + Live TV all offer free trials for either five, seven or 30 days, which means you can watch the game and more for no cost.
Cable cutters can take advantage of ESPN+, the official streaming platform for ESPN. The streaming platform doesn’t have a free trial, but it’s one of the more affordable platforms out there with plans starting at $10.99/month or you can save over 15% off with an annual plan for $109.99/year. Click here or the button below to start your membership.
Besides the New Orleans Bowl, a membership with ESPN+ will provide you with access to the platform’s entire library of content. This includes exclusive live events, sports series, TV shows and originals from big names in sports like The Captain, America’s Caddie, Man in the Arena With Tom Brady, More Than an Athlete With Michael Strahan, Our Time: Baylor Basketball, Al Davis vs. The NFL, Vick, Be Like Water, Breakaway, the entire 30 for 30 series and other original content such as UFC fights and more.
If you want to triple you content library offerings while saving money, you can bundle ESPN+ with Hulu and Disney+. Looking for live TV options, too? You can also bundle the platform with Hulu + Live TV for even more content offerings.
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
Myrtle Beach Bowl is back for another exciting match-up! This will mark the fourth edition of the NCAA bowl game (first launching in 2020) and will feature Georgia Southern vs. Ohio. The game will kick off on Saturday (Dec. 16) at 11 a.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN+.
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The 2023 Myrtle Beach Bowl will take place live at the Brooks Stadium on Coastal Carolina University’s campus in Conway, SC. For those of you able to score some travel deals to watch the game in person, you can still find tickets to the postseason college game through the Bowl’s sponsor TicketSmarter from $39+. If they’re sold out, you may still be able to score tickets through Ticketmaster, GameTime, StubHub, Vivid Seats and Seat Geek (score $10 off your first Seat Geek purchase of $250+ with the code BILLBOARD10).
If you can’t make it to watch the game live this year, you can livestream it through ESPN or ESPN+. Keep reading to learn the streaming options available below.
How to Watch Myrtle Beach Bowl: Georgia Southern vs. Ohio
The 2023 Myrtle Beach Bowl will see Georgia Southern vs. Ohio face off at 11 a.m. ET on Saturday (Dec. 16). Cable users can tune in to ESPN to watch the game live — just check with your cable provider’s channel guide to find the exact channel. If you don’t have cable, you might be able to watch the game through an HD antenna like this one here from Amazon.
You can also watch the game through ESPN+ as well as more sporting content. While the streaming platform doesn’t offer a free trial, it is one of the more affordable options on the market with plans starting at $10.99/month or you can save over 15% off with an annual plan for $109.99/year. Click here or the button below to get ESPN+.
A membership won’t just give you access to the Georgia South vs. Ohio game, you’ll also be able to watch all the content within ESPN+ such as live games in other sports, exclusive on-demand videos, content from what was formerly known as ESPN Insider. Plus, ESPN+ has original shows to stream on-demand like game recaps and analyses hosted by Peyton Manning, a shorter version of NFL Primetime and full replays of historic NFL games.
If you want to save money and expand your content offerings, you can bundle ESPN+ with Hulu and Disney+ to triple the amount of programs you can watch. Plus, if you bundle with Hulu + Live TV, you’ll get access to the ESPN channel, Hulu library and more. Hulu and Hulu + Live TV also both come with 30 day free trials.
Another way to save money is to take advantage of free trials and promos through live TV streamers including FuboTV, SlingTV and DirecTV Stream, which all come with up to seven day free trials and the ESPN channel.
Travis Kelce isn’t the only one whose jersey sales have soared amid his romance with Taylor Swift — his brother Jason, who plays center for the Philadelphia Eagles, has recently seen a bump too … in the United Kingdom, where soccer is largely popular.
Jason shed light on both his and Travis’ jerseys being the top two selling jerseys in the U.K. on the Wednesday (Dec. 13) installment of their joint New Heights podcast.
“We are the No. 1 and No. 2 top jersey in the United Kingdom,” Jason told his younger brother. “Trav, you got the No. 1 jersey — good to know we’re still No. 1 at something these days — followed by me at No. 2. This is crazy — it’s Travis, then me, then Pat Mahomes and Jalen Hurts.”
Travis agreed, saying that their latest jersey boost “doesn’t make any sense. Either way, I’ll take it.” When Jason inquired if there were a lot of Swifties residing in the U.K., the Kansas City Chiefs tight end replied, “Gotta be, only reasonable solution because of all of this.”
While Travis’ jersey boost comes amid his romance with Swift, Jason joked that his heightened jersey sales likely comes from people mixing him and his brother up. “They’re all Kylie Kelce fans, so they’re supporting [Jason’s wife] Kylie [Kelce],” he joked, before giving her and Swift credit. “Shoutout to Kylie, shoutout to Taylor. Thank you, guys.”
This isn’t the first time Travis has experienced a large boost in his jersey sales. When Swift attended Kansas City Chiefs’ Sept. 24 game, it was reported that his jersey saw a 400% increase in sales.
“Yesterday, Travis Kelce was one of the top five selling NFL players and saw a nearly 400% spike in sales throughout the Fanatics network of sites, including NFLShop.com,” a spokesperson for the NFL’s official e-commerce partner, Fanatics, said in a statement obtained by CNN.
Watch the Kelce brothers’ latest episode of New Heights in the video above.
Music and sports are some of the world’s biggest industries. The two have long had a symbiotic relationship, especially in the United States, where everything is bigger and, well, louder – and doubly so where American football is concerned. What would Sunday Night Football be, for instance, without its famous theme song? What would players […]