By Gabriella Borter and Joseph Ax
Mega pop star Taylor Swift arrived at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday ahead of the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the New York Jets, as rumors of her relationship with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce send the National Football League's ticket sales and television viewership soaring.
The singer was shown on NBC going through a security checkpoint at the stadium alongside Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman and Blake Lively, about half an hour before the scheduled kickoff at 8:20 p.m. ET (0020 Monday GMT).
Swift's appearance, in addition to fueling further rumors about her romance with the Chiefs' star tight end, is sure to deliver another marketing blessing to the NFL.
Jets ticket sales for their game against the Chiefs soared after Swift's appearance at the Chiefs' last game, with sales in a single day more than doubling the previous record for this season, according to StubHub, a ticket resale platform. Sunday's game was the second-highest selling game of the NFL season after the season opener, Stubhub said.
Swift, 33, has sold out football stadiums across the United States over the last several months as she embarked on the domestic leg of her international, recordbreaking Eras Tour. She sent her cultlike fanbase of "Swifties" into a frenzy last week when she made a surprise appearance in Kelce's suite at the Chiefs' home game in Kansas City.
Videos of her chatting with Kelce's mom, jumping up and down at Kelce's touchdown and departing with Kelce post-game in his purple convertible instantly went viral across social media and became fodder for the NFL's promotional material.
Ahead of Sunday's game, Sunday Night Football on NBC posted a promotional video on X with Swift's song "Welcome to New York" playing in the background and the caption, "Taylor Made for Sunday Night."
The cheapest nosebleed seat tickets for Sunday's game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, were going for $81 on Sunday afternoon, while resale tickets at the lower level cost close to $9,000.
When Swift showed up at the Chiefs' game on Sept. 24, viewership among women ages 18-49 - Swift's prime fan demographic - spike 63% week-over-week.
(Reporting by Gabriella Borter in Washington and Joseph Ax in New York; Additional reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Stephen Coates)
