Unless you have been living under a rock, you have surely heard that Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift are romantically involved with one another. All you need to do is turn on a Chiefs game with Swift in attendance and you certainly will hear plenty about it.
Although some football fans have grown tired of hearing about the topic, one intriguing element of the romance is Swift's impact on Chiefs games. For the most part, Kansas City seems to fare better when she is in attendance.
Today, we will dive into the data and see exactly how Swift is impacting games.
The Increasing Popularity of the Kansas City Chiefs
Teams typically grow their fan bases by winning. Sure, the Chiefs have added new fans over the years amid their Patrick Mahomes and Kelce-led budding dynasty.
Kansas City has seen even more growth ever since rumors of Kelce and Swift dating became public, however.
In fact, Taylor Swift's first appearance at a Chiefs game reportedly drew 24.3 million viewers, making the game the most popular program on television during that week, according to Brad Adgate of Forbes.
The game usually wouldn't have drawn that many fans without question. Yes, the Chiefs have a large fan base but a mid-Sunday Chiefs-Chicago Bears game wouldn't have received much attention.
Taylor Swift's presence led to no shortage of new viewers though.
Kansas City's Performance When Taylor Swift Attends Games
The Chiefs find ways to win when Swift attends games. Overall, the Chiefs are 7-2. They are a good team and would probably sport a great record regardless of Swift and Kelce's relationship.
Still, it is interesting to see Swift's impact on the team's games.
Swift's first game she attended came in the aforementioned Bears-Chiefs affair in September. The Chiefs won the game 41-10, an all-around impressive performance by Kansas City.
The New York Jets made things interesting on October 1st when Taylor Swift attended the game with fellow celebrities such as Blake Lively.
The Chiefs were able to emerge victorious in the end, winning by a final score of 23-20. The Jets deserved credit for keeping the game competitive against one of the NFL's best rosters.
Kansas City later won their October 22nd game against the Los Angeles Chargers. They earned a 31-17 win with Taylor Swift in attendance.
The Chiefs are likely hoping that Swift continues to attend games. Perhaps she will make an appearance if KC reaches the Super Bowl. Although, she is currently on tour which will make it difficult to attend games.
Betting Winnings for Chiefs Games with Swift in Attendance
Kelce previously hinted that sportsbooks change his over-under for certain stats in games based on Swift's attendance. Thomas Gable of the Borgata in Atlantic City recently admitted that Swift's presence at Chiefs games could influence how people choose to bet. Gable also said she doesn't necessarily impact betting lines and over-unders for games though, via Martin Rogers of FOX Sports.
"Sorry," Gable said. "But even if we knew ahead of time whether she was going to be there, it is not going to affect the opening numbers on the game or on Kelce's props. Those things are based on a lot of data, not based on someone who is not on the field."
Kelce's props are one thing, but what about the Chiefs' overall betting lines?
The Chiefs were listed as around 11.5-point favorites against the Bears before Swift's attendance, per RotoWire. Chicago projected to be a decent upset pick in that game, but then Swift made her appearance and Kansas City cruised to a lopsided 41-10 victory.
This means anyone who took Kansas City's moneyline or spread would have made a good profit.
The Jets actually covered the spread in their matchup. Still, Kansas City hit the moneyline. Kansas City was able to cover both the spread and moneyline versus the Chargers though.
For the most part, betting on the Chiefs when Taylor Swift has been in attendance has paid off. Kelce has also performed well for the most part when Swift is on hand to watch.
