A recent study from MyBettingSites Canada analyzed the Instagram following of all accounts belonging to NFL teams and their total social media presence from after the Super Bowl and the week following Thanksgiving this year. In that time, the company made a determination that the Kansas City Chiefs were the most influential NFL team in that timeframe, something that can be attributed to more than just the on-field success of the team. Bob Fescoe shared the study results on 610 Sports Kansas City on Wednesday morning.
Award-winning singer and songwriter Taylor Swift has attended six of the team’s contests, and the study stated that the numbers took off upon her first appearance in the suite from GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Swift’s support of her boyfriend, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, catalyzed a gain of over 200,000 followers in the days after the first game she attended, which took place on Sept. 24. During that same week, Kelce’s name increased 920% in search, something the study presumes were fans of Swift investigating who he is. Over the total period of time, the Chiefs Instagram following has augmented 22% to 3.2 million fans as the franchise competes for another Super Bowl championship.
“It’s amazing to think the Chiefs have been on this remarkable run where they’ve picked up fans and [are] kind of the hot team and we’ve talked about jerseys being everywhere,” 610 Sports Kansas City morning co-host Josh Klingler said. “Did she just blow that out of the water in like two months?”
Klingler affirmed that Chiefs jerseys have become a common sight around the city and that the team’s success has compelled people to follow them. He is somewhat incredulous to the fact that it does not compare to the level of intrigue surrounding the organization since Swift began attending games. Broadcast networks have been cognizant of Swift’s presence at these games and documented her reactions to both touchdowns and turnovers.
“Taylor Swift’s bigger than the NFL,” co-host Bob Fescoe said, “and that’s not a hyperbolic statement; that’s the truth.”
Swift alone has 278 million followers on Instagram and releases music that frequently soars to the top of the charts. Fescoe understands the impact that she has and explained how he recently saw the results for Google’s Year in Search, which finished with Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin being the most-searched athlete and person in the world.
Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest during a game last season and had to be rushed to a nearby hospital to receive assistance from medical professionals. He was able to recover from the event and made a return to the field during Week 10 this season and was also honored as the recipient of the George Halas Award from the Pro Football Writers of America. Second to Hamlin in these results was Travis Kelce, who finished as the fifth most-searched person globally as well.
“I know people know Taylor Swift, but I don’t think people know what Taylor Swift has brought to Kansas City and what Taylor Swift has brought to the Chiefs and what Taylor Swift has brought to Travis Kelce,” Bob Fescoe said. “It has taken a great thing and made it 25 million times even greater than it already is, and if this relationship ends up going down the aisle and they get married and she ends up kind of settling here in Kansas City [and] starts doing a residency at T-Mobile Center or wherever the case may be, Kansas City’s going to blow up even more.”
