From stadiums to wedding bells: A look back at Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's relationship timeline
It feels like just yesterday that we heard about Travis Kelce trying to give Taylor Swift his number on a friendship bracelet at the "Eras Tour."
Now, two years later, their love story has come full circle as they are officially engaged. This is the love story that everyone has been talking about, and it's easy to see why.
From sweet stadium sideline moments and cozy dinner dates to unforgettable shout-outs, their love story has been nothing short of a fairytale. Let's take a look back at their whirlwind romance.
July 2023: Making the first move
The NFL star publicly expressed his admiration for Taylor in July 2023, when he attended the "Eras Tour" at Arrowhead Stadium, his home field.
He talked about the experience on their podcast, New Heights, with his brother Jason, where he said he was "butt hurt" because he wasn't able to hand her the friendship bracelet he made for her.
"I was disappointed that she doesn’t talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings," Travis said at the time.
“If you’re up on Taylor Swift concerts, there are friendship bracelets,” he added. “And I received a bunch of them being there, but I wanted to give Taylor Taylor one with my number on it.”
“Your number, as in 87, or your phone number?” his brother asked, to which Travis replied, “You know which one."
Sept. 21, 2023: Dating rumors
In his interview on The Pat McAfee Show on Sept. 21, Travis talked about the dating rumors with the pop superstar.
"I'll tell you what, it's hilarious how much traction this has actually gotten,” he began. While he remained tight-lipped about whether they ever hung out, the 33-year-old NFL star confirmed that he has already made a move on the pop star.
“I threw it out there, I threw the ball in her court,” he began. "I told her: ‘I've seen you rock the stage at Arrowhead [Stadium]. You might have to come see me rock the stage at Arrowhead and see which one's a little more lit,'” he continued.
“We’ll see what happens in the near future,” he added.
Sept. 24, 2023: Taylor was first spotted at the Kansas City Chiefs game
A few days later, Taylor attended the Kansas City Chiefs' home game against the Chicago Bears on Sept. 24, where she was seen cheering in the Kelce family box alongside the athlete's mother, Donna.
After the game, the two were seen walking out together. Taylor wore a Kansas City Chiefs jacket tied to her waist, while Travis wore a blue and white denim outfit.
Travis later talked about the special moment in their podcast, saying, "I’m enjoying life and I sure as hell enjoyed this weekend."
"Shout out to Taylor for pulling up. That was pretty ballsy," Travis said at the time as he talked to his brother about how he felt having the singer in his suite during the "exciting game."
"I just thought it was awesome how everybody in the suite had nothing but great things to say about her—the friends and family. She looked amazing and everybody was talking about her in great light," he said.
Later that month, the two had their first PDA photo, where Taylor was seen wrapping her arms around Travis at an after-party.
October 2023: Getting to know each other
Citing a source, PEOPLE Magazine reported in October that the two have not yet defined their relationship and are “still getting to know each other," adding, "It’s nothing too serious."
Another insider said Travis's mom, Donna, "likes" the pop star "and thinks she’s very sweet and down to earth."
Taylort was spotted attending another game of the Chiefs against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium, where she was joined by her friends Sophie Turner, Blake Lively, Robyn Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carpenter, and Antoni Porowski.
Their blossoming romance has quickly made them the talk of the town. That same month, they both made separate surprise appearances on Saturday Night Live, with Taylor introducing Ice Spice, while Travis made a surprise appearance during the sketch about him and Taylor.
Oct. 23, 2023: Taylor kisses Travis in an Instagram photo
Taylor and Travis made rounds again when Chariah Godon—the girlfriend of Travis’ teammate, Mecole Hardman Jr.—uploaded a group photo with the rumored couple.
The group can be seen looking cozy with their partners in the viral snaps. Taylor gives Travis a sweet peck on the cheek as she puts her hand on his chest.
The two were also spotted that same night having a date at Argentine steakhouse Piropos in Missouri. They reportedly arrived at the restaurant in the NFL star's Rolls-Royce, before walking out holding hands.
November 2023: PDA moment at the 'Eras Tour' in Argentina
The two continued to make public appearances together. The NFL star attended the "Eras Tour" in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in November 2023. After the concert, Taylor was seen in fan-captured videos running to Travis to give him a warm embrace and a kiss.
During the show, Taylor also gave a nod to Travis by changing the lyrics of Karma.
“Karma is the guy on the screen coming straight home to me," she sang, “Karma is the guy on the Chiefs coming straight home to me."
In the same month, Travis recalled how the romance between him and Taylor started, saying he had "somebody playing Cupid."
He recalled getting a text message from the singer, who told him "exactly what was going on" and how he "got lucky enough to get her to reach out."
Their first date was on the East Coast. "When I met her in New York, we had already kind of been talking, so I knew we could have a nice dinner and, like, a conversation, and what goes from there will go from there."
Since then, Travis said he has been "learning every day" from Taylor as their new romance catapults him to heights of fame and scrutiny.
"I've never been a man of words," the 34-year-old Kansas City Chiefs player said. "Being around her, seeing how smart Taylor is, has been mind-blowing. I'm learning every day," he added.
December 2023: Taylor talks about their relationship for the first time
In her interview for TIME's 2023 Person of the Year issue, Taylor recounted how she was intrigued after Travis said on his podcast that he wanted to meet her during her July 2023 show.
“This all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell,” she told TIME.
“We started hanging out right after that. So we actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other. By the time I went to that first game, we were a couple. I think some people think that they saw our first date at that game? We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date," she continued.
“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,” she said.
“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," she added.
Dec. 25, 2023: First Christmas
The two spent their first Christmas during the Chiefs' game against the Las Vegas Raiders. Taylor was captured cheering for the Chiefs, wearing a red sweater and a Santa hat with Travis' number "87" embroidered on it. She was accompanied by her mom, dad, and brother in the box.
After the game, they were reportedly spotted leaving the stadium holding hands.
February 2024: PDA moment during Chiefs' win at Super Bowl
Taylor was present with the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl. She was seen stepping out on the field alongside Travis' mom, before giving him a sweet congratulatory kiss.
@nfl always showing up for each other ❤️ #travisTravis #taylorTaylor #micdup #kansascitychiefs #nfl ♬ Killswitch Lullaby - Flawed Mangoes
While hugging, Travis was heard telling the pop superstar, “Thank you for making it halfway across the world. You’re the best, baby.”
The duo was also spotted at an after-party in Las Vegas, where they were seen singing and dancing to Taylor's hit song, Love Story.
April 2024: Travis on The Tortured Poets Department album
When Taylor dropped her 11th album, The Tortured Poets Department, fans were quick to theorize that the tracks, The Alchemy, which had football references, as well as So High School were songs about Travis.
June 2024: Instagram official, Travis joins the Eras Tour stage
The couple went Instagram official in June 2024 when Taylor posted a group photo including Prince William and his kids, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, and Travis.
That same month, Travis joined the Grammy winner on stage for the first time during her Eras Tour show in London. Travis, donning a suit and and top hat, joined her backup dancers for the I Can Do It With A Broken Heart intro.
Sept.11, 2024: Taylor mentions Travis in her acceptance speech at the 2024 MTV VMA
After bagging Video of the Year at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards for her song Fortnight, Taylor made sure to thank her boyfriend.
“The thing is, this video seems very sad when you watch it, but actually it was like, the most fun video to make,” she said.
"Everything this man touches turns to happiness and fun and magic so I want to thank him for adding that to our shoot, because I’ll always remember that," she added.
Dec. 18, 2024: Travis gifts Taylor with an Eras Tour-themed bash
In celebration of her record-breaking $2 billion world tour and 35th birthday, Travis threw an Eras Tour-themed party for Taylor in December 2024.
"When she thought she was going to a small, quiet dinner, but it was actually a giant surprise party with her friends and family, props included," her friend Ashley Avignone wrote in her Instagram post.
Aug. 27, 2025: Officially engaged!
Taylor announced their engagement on Wednesday, Aug. 27 (PH Time). "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married,” they captioned the post.
In the photos, the two looked blissfully in love in a garden-themed shoot, showing off the huge diamond ring. According to American outlets, including PEOPLE Magazine and USA Today, the NFL star worked with jewelry designer Kindred Lubeck of the New York-based Artifex Fine Jewelry for the ring's design.
His dad, Ed, spilled some details on Travis' proposal to the singer, revealing that the happened "maybe two weeks, not quite two weeks ago" at Travis' home.
"He was going to put it off till this week. I think she was getting maybe a little antsy, but he was going to put her off till this week, to, you know, make some grand thing, to make it a big special event," Ed said in his interview with News 5's John Kosich.
"He got her out there, they were about to go out to dinner, and he said, 'Let's go out and have a glass of wine' ... they got out there, and that's when he asked her, and it was beautiful."
After the proposal, Ed said the couple FaceTimed the family to break the news.
Prior to this, Taylor also talked about their romance, saying she was swooned by Travis' public declaration of interest and that the gesture made her feel like she was "in an '80s John Hughes movie, and he was just like, standing outside of my window with a boombox and being like, 'I want to date you,'" she said on the episode.
She thought, "If this guy isn't crazy, which is a big if, this is sort of what I've been writing songs about wanting to happen to me since I was a teenager."
