sports

30 Jan 2024

‘Long Live’ Chiefs Nation! Taylor Swift & Keleigh Teller Celebrate Kansas City in New TikTok

The Kansas City Chiefs are heading to the Super Bowl on Sunday (Feb. 11), and tight end Travis Kelce had his own team of supporters when the Chiefs beat the Baltimore Ravens before heading into the championship.

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In a clip shared to TikTok by Keleigh Teller — who is married to Top Gun star Miles Teller — she is seen celebrating in a suite at M&T Bank Stadium alongside Taylor Swift, Travis’ brother and Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce and his wife Kylie Kelce.

“I said remember this moment T,” Teller wrote in the caption of the clip, which was soundtracked by Swift’s power anthem “Long Live (Taylor’s Version)” off Speak Now (Taylor’s Version). “Kylie and I bleed green but we’re out [eagle emoji] so Chiefs Nation.”

See the TikTok video here.

After the game, in a sweet viral moment, Swift and Kelce kissed on the field in celebration of the Chiefs’ triumph, and in a clip shared by the NFL, he says “I love you” to the pop star. In the Monday (Jan. 29) video, a tearful Kelce – wearing an AFC Champions shirt over his shoulder pads – makes his way through a loud crowd to get to Swift. “Tay, I’m going to enjoy with the guys,” he says before kissing the 12-time Grammy winner. “I love you. So much it’s not funny.” 

Kansas City’s latest win means that the reigning Super Bowl champions will once again head to the big game on Feb. 11 in Las Vegas. They will face off against 2024’s NFC Championship victors, the San Francisco 49ers.  

Swift has been there for much of the Chiefs’ outstanding season, becoming a mainstay at Arrowhead Stadium ever since going public with her and Kelce’s relationship in September.

29 Jan 2024

Taylor Swift Fist-Bumps Tony Romo on the Field After Chiefs AFC Championship Win: Watch

It’s nice to have a friend. Minutes after the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Baltimore Ravens at the AFC Championship Game Sunday (Jan. 28), Taylor Swift celebrated boyfriend Travis Kelce’s victory by taking to the field, where she got chummy with none other than ex-Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. 

In a video posted to X from the festivities, the 34-year-old pop star stands in a packed crowd next to Kelce’s parents, Donna and Ed, and behind Romo. Over the excited buzz of fans, she manages to strike up a conversation with the announcer. 

“Well, we’re doing very different things, aren’t we?” Swift tells him, smiling, after he seemingly complimented her. “It’s a different skill set.” 

After that, Romo reaches over to give the 12-time Grammy winner a fist bump, which she enthusiastically reciprocates.  

The sweet exchange comes after Romo went viral for mistakenly referring to Swift as Kelce’s “wife” during a broadcast of the Chiefs’ game against the Buffalo Bills in December. “As you see Kelce’s wife, Taylor Swift, in the audience …,” he said at the time while commenting on a play.  

“I’m sorry, girlfriend,” he corrected himself seconds afterward. 

With the Chiefs proving victorious on Sunday, Kansas City now moves on to the final round of the NFL postseason: the Super Bowl on 11. There, the defending champions will face off against the San Francisco 49ers, who triumphed over the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship over the weekend. 

See Swift and Romo hit it off in the clip below: 

27 Jan 2024

Could Taylor Swift Move the Needle on Already-Massive Super Bowl Ratings?

Here’s a math problem for you: If the Super Bowl, which drew 113 million viewers last year, combines with Taylor Swift, who sold roughly 3.3 million tickets to her Eras Tour last year and over 6 million albums and whose recordings streamed on-demand 16.5 billion times in the U.S., according to Luminate, how many fans will tune in to the big game?

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Not even statisticians know, but the scenario could play out Feb. 11 if Swift’s boyfriend, Travis Kelce, and the Kansas City Chiefs win their playoff game this weekend.

Just about everything Swift goes near experiences a consumption boost, from donuts in Kansas City to hotels in Philadelphia. Her televised omnipresence at Chiefs games led to a 400% sales hike in Fanatics’ Kelce jerseys on a single day and an additional 2 million female viewers for Sunday Night Football in early October, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

So far, the NFL has proceeded cautiously with this new demographic, attempting to welcome Swifties without alienating football diehards with over-coverage. Rick Porter, who covers TV and ratings for THR, expects that strategy to continue for the big game. “They’ll probably try to keep walking that line,” he says, “and not make it the Taylor Swift Bowl.”

Should Kelce and the Chiefs (and Swift) make it to the Super Bowl, Porter predicts the hype-filled run-up week to spotlight their romance, as opposed to more conventional football drama about tight-end positioning, defensive formations or, say, Eminem. “Everything about Super Bowl week is over the top, so I’m sure on media day that everybody will get bombarded with questions about it,” he says. “It’s the line they have to walk between welcoming more people into the tent but not turning off any of the people who were there to watch and talk about the game.”

Could Super Bowl viewership increase? A Taylor Swift Effect, Porter says, could potentially bump the numbers from 115 million to 130 million — “or something ridiculous like that.” He adds, “That would be a pretty big shock, if something jumped that much from something that was already this big.” Still, unprecedented numbers are Swift’s specialty: Eras grossed more than $900 million last year, according to Billboard estimates, and is on its way to earn more than any tour ever.

26 Jan 2024

Travis Kelce Says He & Taylor Swift Don’t Mind Public Perception ‘As Long As We’re Happy’

Travis Kelce is enjoying his time with Taylor Swift, despite what anyone has to say.

During a Kansas City Chiefs press conference on Friday (Jan. 26), the tight end shared that he and his girlfriend Swift have talked about navigating public attention amid their relationship. “As long as we’re happy, we can’t listen to anything that’s outside noise,” Kelce said. “Thats all that matters.”

He added, “I brought this upon myself, and I do enjoy having fun with it all, and the biggest thing is making sure my focus is right here in this building.”

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Swift and Kelce’s real life “Love Story” began back in July, when the football player tried to give a friendship bracelet to Swift during her Eras Tour stop in Kansas City. Since then, the singer has attended countless Chiefs football games and the duo have stepped out together on dates on multiple occasions.

“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,” Swift told TIME in December, marking her first public remarks of the relationship. “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.” 

Watch the full press conference below.

26 Jan 2024

Travis Kelce’s Dad Says He Didn’t Recognize Taylor Swift at First

Travis Kelce‘s dad is recently converted Swiftie — to the extent that he actually didn’t recognize Taylor Swift when he first met her.

“When Travis has a lot of friends coming into town to the game, everyone meets at his house, although he’s not there,” Ed Kelce told Audacy’s 92.3 The Fan this week. “Taylor walks in with a security guy, and I look at her, and I say [to my girlfriend], ‘Oh my god, I know this kid, but I don’t know what her name is.’ Jeez, you know, like a real idiot. And [my girlfriend] says, ‘You don’t know her? This is Taylor Swift, you idiot.’”

He continued, “I don’t know if it’s crazy…Yes, he’s dating Taylor. Yeah, there’s eyes on you every place you go. It’s funny because last year, Donna [Kelce] and I – were shown on TV screens, and we had some articles that were done. So, our [names were] out there. We were so popular, the Commissioner offered to let us sit in the box for the Super Bowl… More people recognize us since he started dating Taylor, though – I’ll be [in] the grocery store, somebody will smile and say, ‘Hey!’ Come over and say [hi], and I have no idea who they are. That has certainly picked up and become more frequent by a long shot than the before Taylor days.”

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Swift and Kelce’s real life “Love Story” began back in July, when the football player tried to give a friendship bracelet to Swift during her Eras Tour stop in Kansas City. Since then, the singer has attended countless Chiefs football games and the duo have stepped out together on dates on multiple occasions.

Listen to the full episode here.

26 Jan 2024

Linebacker Drue Tranquill Reveals How Often the Chiefs ‘Poke Fun’ at Travis Kelce for Taylor Swift Romance

When it comes to Travis Kelce‘s relationship with Taylor Swift, the tight end’s teammates are just along for the ride. In a recent interview, Drue Tranquill of the Kansas City Chiefs shared whether the high-profile romance ever comes up among the other players, revealing that the team loves “poking fun” at No. 87. 

“It’s interesting,” Tranquill said on CBS Sports Radio’s Zach Gelb Show in a Wednesday (Jan. 24) clip. “You don’t really feel it and hear too much of it inside the locker room. But it’ll be moments like at practice when … our DJ turns on a Taylor Swift song and everybody kind of jokes about it.”  

“I think the wives and the girlfriends, I hear about it more when I go home than I do actually in the building,” he continued. “But it’s been fun, man. That’s something to celebrate, something fun and we enjoy poking fun at Travis.”  

Since striking up a romance with Kelce over the summer last year, Swift and her frequent attendance at his games have been a hot topic among Chiefs Kingdom. In December, quarterback Patrick Mahomes said that the “Anti-Hero” singer was a “great woman” adding, “she and Travis match so well.” Shortly before that, Kansas City coach Andy Reid called Swift a “good girl” and said that the team is “glad she’s here.”  

“It seems like maybe they’re in love, man,” added Tranquill. “They’ve got really, really something going, and we enjoy having her at our games. It brings a lot of energy and a lot of fun to our fans. And so that’s good for business, good for and good for the NFL.” 

But does Tranquill envision receiving an invite to what would undoubtedly be one of the most star-studded weddings of all time down the line? “We’ll see, man, we’ll see,” he said, laughing. “I think there’s gonna be a lot of people that wanna go to that.” 

Watch Tranquill on the Zach Gelb Show below: 

25 Jan 2024

X Games Aspen 2024: How to Watch the Sporting Events Live Without Cable

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It’s time to return to the slopes as the X Games Aspen are finally back for the 2024 season. From Friday (Jan. 26) to Sunday (Jan. 28), professional winter athletes will be gearing up for a chance to take home the gold, and there are a couple streaming options for you to watch the games live without cable.

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ESPN and ABC will be airing 13 hours of the X Games Aspen 2024, which means you won’t have to hunt for travel deals in order to watch the sporting events live. Joining this year’s lineup of impressive athletes are two-time defending SuperPipe Snowboard champion and five-time X Games gold medalist Scotty James, as well as 22-time X Games medalist Mark McMorris, who will be looking to defend his gold medal.

Samsung Men’s Ski Slopestyle will see Colby Stevenson attempt to repeat his gold medal performance from last year, and historymaker Reira Iwabuchi is also set to come back after snagging gold last year during Pacifico Women’s Snowboard Big Air while also becoming the first female snowboarder to successfully land a frontside triple under flip in competition. X Games and Olympic gold medalist Eileen Gu will also make her return to the Samsung Women’s Ski Slopestyle event after having to miss the 2023 X Games Aspen due to an injury.

This year, the sporting event is also encouraging you to upgrade your winter skincare routine by making Thayers the first official beauty and skincare partner of the X Games. The budget-friendly line is available at Walmart and includes the popular Hydrating Milky Toner, Soak It Up 80 Hr Liquid Moisturizer and the Hydrating Milky Cleanser. Each one is formulated to withstand the challenges of extreme sports and weather conditions, while providing a simple three-step routine to help keep your skin hydrated and healthy all year round.

Keep reading to learn when and how to watch the games online.

When & How to Watch X Games Aspen 2024

ABC and ESPN will be livestreaming certain events throughout the weekend, which is broken down below.

  • ESPN
    • Friday (Jan. 26), 9:30 p.m. ET to 12:30 a.m. ET: Thayers Men’s Snowboard Knuckle Huck
      Pacifico, Men’s Ski Big Air and Monster Energy Men’s Snowboard SuperPipe
    • Saturday (Jan. 27), 10 p.m. ET to 12:30 a.m. ET: Pacifico Men’s Snowboard Big Air and Thayers Men’s Ski Knuckle Huck
    • Sunday (Jan. 28), 7 p.m. ET to 9:30 p.m. ET: Men’s Ski SuperPipe and Pacifico Women’s Snowboard Big Air
  • ABC
    • Saturday (Jan. 27), 12:30 p.m. ET to 2:30 p.m. ET: Samsung Men’s Ski Slopestyle
    • Sunday (Jan. 28), 1 p.m. ET to 4 p.m. ET: Men’s Snowboard Slopestyle and Samsung Women’s Ski Slopestyle

If you have cable, you can watch all the events aired live for no additional cost (refer to your cable provider’s channel guide for exact channels). Cord-cutters may be able to watch the X Games Aspen 2024 through a HD antenna like the one here from Amazon.

For the ESPN events, you can also catch the games live through the channel’s official streaming platform ESPN+. Current subscribers can watch the 2024 X Games Aspen for free when you log into your account. From there, you’ll want to head over to the live coverage and you’ll be able to instantly access it.

Don’t have a subscription? ESPN+ doesn’t offer a free trial, but sports fans can take advantage of its affordable plan, which is only $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 subscription.

Along with the X Games Aspen 2024, ESPN+ members can watch live games for other sports, UFC fights, NFL drafts, NFL playoffs, NHL games and exclusive on-demand videos, as well as access content from what was formerly known as ESPN Insider. In addition to games, ESPN+ has original shows to stream on demand, including game recaps, NBA finals and analyses hosted by Peyton Manning, a shorter version of NFL Primetime, as well as full replays of historic NFL games.

ESPN+ also offers bundling with Hulu and Disney+, which can save you more money while expanding your content offerings. For live channel options (including ABC) you can bundle with Hulu + Live TV.

Looking for more money-saving options? There are some live TV streamers that offer free trials and promos that can save you some cash while you stream the X Games Aspen 2024 and up to hundreds of more channels from your couch. FuboTV, Vidgo, DirecTV Stream and Sling TV start at around $20-$70 and provide live and on-demand streaming, including ESPN, ABC and other sports channels as well as DVR recording.

25 Jan 2024

Stephen A. Smith Disagrees That Travis Kelce Needs Taylor Swift for a Career Boost – or Vice Versa

Stephen A. Smith is leading the charge of “Tayvis” shippers. In a new interview with Howard Stern, the sports TV personality passionately raved about his admiration for both Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, pushing back against the radio personality’s insinuation that the Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman is depending on the pop star for a career boost. 

In a clip posted to YouTube Wednesday (Jan. 24), Stern quipped to his guest that Kelce “has to marry Taylor Swift” in order to secure a “movie career” and become “bigger than The Rock.” Suffice to say, Smith emphatically disagreed. 

“He is a two-time Super Bowl champion, he’s on the verge of potentially being a three-time Super Bowl champion,” the broadcaster pointed out. “Universally recognized as one of the greatest tight ends in the history of . Good looking dude, got style, got flair, got skills. He’s got a future in this business.” 

“He’s the total package,” he added. “He’s a really, really good dude.” 

Indeed, Kelce and the Chiefs are very much in the running to keep their Super Bowl winning streak going. After triumphing 27-24 over the Buffalo Bills Sunday (Jan. 21) — a game attended by Swift as well as the tight end’s family – Kansas City is set to move forward to the AFC Championship Game this weekend. Should they win against the top-seeded Baltimore Ravens, the Chiefs will then continue on to defend their Lombardi Trophy at the Super Bowl on Feb. 11. 

That’s not to say that Smith underestimates the status of Kelce’s superstar girlfriend, however. “Don’t get me wrong, Taylor Swift is a good-looking woman,” he continued on The Howard Stern Show. “She’s an incredible artist – I went to her concert [at SoFi Stadium] with my daughter. Man, Howard, it was off the chain. I loved it. I couldn’t believe how much I loved it.” 

“She was phenomenal,” Smith gushed. “I saw Taylor Swift receive a nine-minute standing ovation in between songs … I’m telling you right now, no one was sitting down. Howard, the concert was three and a half hours nonstop, there was no intermission. Are you ready for this? I’m 56 years old. I stood up for the three and a half hours. I never sat down.” 

The sports analyst’s conversation with Stern isn’t the first time he’s come to Kelce and Swift’s defense this year. Amid complaints earlier this month from some NFL fans that the “Anti-Hero” singer’s presence at Chiefs games is too distracting, Smith posited on ESPN’s First Take that she’s actually having a “positive impact” on Kelce’s performance. 

“She’s going to support her dude,” he said at the time. “To show up at a football game and the cameras are on her — that ain’t her fault! And excuse me, by the way, she went to the games after the concerts. It’s not like she used the games to bump up the concerts. Oh no! Those kids were going to her concerts whether the NFL was promoting her or not!”   

Watch Smith on Howard Stern above.

24 Jan 2024

Tate McRae to Headline 2024 NHL All-Star Game

Tate McRae is honoring her Canadian roots, as it was announced on Wednesday (Jan. 24) that she’ll be headlining the second intermission performance at the 2024 NHL All-Star Game on Feb. 3.

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The event, which will take over Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada, will also feature the “Greedy” pop star as the celebrity captain for Team McKinnon, led by Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan McKinnon and Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar as assistant captain. Her team will be sporting yellow jerseys. Fellow Canadians Justin Bieber, Will Arnett and Michael Bublé were also announced as celebrity captains, wearing blue, white and red, respectively.

The weekend will kick off with NHL All-Star Thursday on Feb. 1, before NHL All-Star Skills presented by DraftKings Sportsbook will take place on Friday, Feb. 2, and the Honda (U.S.) / Rogers (Canada) NHL All-Star Game wraps up the weekend on Saturday, Feb. 3.

The 2024 NHL All-Star Game — which Bieber, Arnett, Bublé and McRae are taking part in — airs on ABC, ESPN+, Sportsnet, CBC and TVA Sports at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 3.

24 Jan 2024

All the Reasons Why Eminem & Taylor Swift Have Us Dreaming of a Lions vs. Chiefs Super Bowl

From Em hyping the crowd during a “Lose Yourself” Ford Field moment to Taylor’s swag surfin’ with Brittany Mahomes, here’s why a Lions vs. Chiefs Super Bowl would be fun on and off the field.

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift celebrates with fans during the AFC Wild Card Playoffs between the Miami Dolphins and the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Jan. 13, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri.

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

The 2024 Super Bowl is just around the corner, with just four teams left competing to go face-to-face for the championship.

With the Kansas City Chiefs taking on the Baltimore Ravens and the Detroit Lions playing against the San Fransisco 49ers in the NFC Championship games on Sunday (Jan. 28), it’s a tough race towards the Super Bowl, which will take place at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium on February 11.

While the superstar athletes have been bringing it on the field, some musical superstars have been making headlines from the crowd. Taylor Swift has been spending many of her weekends over the past few months supporting her boyfriend, Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, during his games, often seen bringing her famous friends along and having fun while celebrating the Chiefs’ wins in the team’s suite alongside Kelce’s family and teammates’ families.

Over in D-town, Eminem has been a longtime supporter of his hometown team. The rapper is often spotted at games with his daughter Hailie Jade or with his friends, hyping up his fellow attendees and actively cheering on the team.

From Em hyping the crowd during a “Lose Yourself” Ford Field moment and Taylor’s swag surfin’ with Brittany Mahomes, to the viral “seemingly ranch” dip, see below for all the reasons why we at Billboard think a Detroit Lions vs. Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl would be fun on — and off — the field, thanks to two of music’s biggest stars.