Kansas City Chiefs owner says female viewership has 'grown leaps and bounds' thanks to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's 'purely organic' relationship
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- Kansas City Chiefs owner says Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's relationship has boosted viewership.
- Chiefs owner Clark Hunt credited Swift and Kelce with boosting the team's female audience.
- He added that the relationship is "purely organic," brushing off rumors about a publicity stunt.
The owner and chief executive of the Kansas City Chiefs credited Taylor Swift's relationship with Travis Kelce for expanding the team's female viewership — in addition to being simply adorable.
In an interview with CNBC on Friday, Clark Hunt brushed off rumors that the couple is in it for the publicity, calling it a "purely organic" relationship.
"It's been a very interesting, very fun year having the two of them dating, the attention that's been focused on the Chiefs," Hunt told CNBC. "Our female audience has grown leaps and bounds."
The couple began dating last summer after Kelce, a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, attended Swift's Eras Tour in Kansas City in July. On his podcast "New Heights," which he hosts with his brother, Philadelphia Eagles' Jason Kelce, Travis said he hoped to give Swift his number after the concert.
"This all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell," Swift told Time Magazine. "We started hanging out right after that."
Swift has since made the NFL — the most popular sport in the United States — even more popular, sparking increases in ticket sales, network viewership, and jersey sales.
While some sports fans have complained about her presence, Swift said she's going to keep attending games and supporting her beau, even if it is "pissing off a few dads, Brads, and Chads."
The Chiefs are set to play the Miami Dolphins in Kansas City on Saturday in a Wild Card playoff game. Ticket prices have plummeted this week, however, due to below-freezing temperatures.
The game could be one of the coldest ever played in NFL history. When the game starts at 8 p.m. local time, the windchill is expected to put the temperature at -24 degrees Fahrenheit, according to projections from the National Weather Service.