“‘“All I can tell you is that the NFL is laughing all the way to the bank.’”
That’s Donna Kelce, mother of Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, commenting about the reaction to her son’s rumored relationship with pop superstar Taylor Swift. Donna made the remarks during a recent appearance on the “Got It From My Momma” podcast, which is hosted by Jennifer Vickery Smith.
As just about everyone knows, Swift has been seen at the last two Chiefs games to cheer on Travis. And the singer has stood next to the NFL’s now most-famous mom, whose son Jason also plays in the league as a center for the Philadelphia Eagles.
As a seeming result of all the attention being paid to the ties between Travis and Swift, demand for tickets to Chiefs games has surged. And as MarketWatch reported, sales of Travis’s merchandise have gone up by 400%, with his jersey becoming one of the top five highest-selling NFL jerseys.
Donna, ever the proud mother, sees it as a positive for the league. “Good for them. They’re getting the ramifications of everything,” she said during the podcast.
Donna added that the NFL has expressed gratitude over the recent publicity generated: “They’ve told me personally that the Kelce family has done more good PR for football than they could have paid a million dollars to a PR firm.”
And the NFL’s #1 mom has made connections beyond just Swift. Donna also attends Eagles games to see Jason play — and last weekend she was spotted in the Philadelphia stands sitting next to Kevin Miles, the actor who plays Jake in the State Farm commercials.
Donna said during the podcast that people are responding positively to the Kelce family because “we’re relatable, we’re just normal, we’re genuine, we’re authentic and we don’t put any airs on or try to be somebody that we’re not.”
And what about all those young female Swift fans who are now watching football? Donna said she thinks it’s a great thing, noting she had an exchange with a father who was thrilled that his daughter was suddenly enjoying the game with him.
Donna predicted that as those ever-dedicated Swifties get into all things gridiron, “they’ll probably know more about football than half the people that watch football. They just eat all that stuff up.”
As for her favorite Swift song, Donna said she’s a fan of “Shake It Off.”
Speaking of shaking things off, Donna admitted she’s a bit bewildered at being in the spotlight herself. “I’m speechless…I’m just a sports mom like anybody else. There’s millions of ‘em out there,” she said.
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