A little confidence since we’re with each other… Somewhere, the wind of madness surrounding the romance between pop icon Taylor Swift and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, the football fanatic that I am, is blowing on the Annoy. As a good Quebecer, this “annoys” me a little!
• Also read: The Taylor Swift Effect: The Chiefs’ last game was the most-watched since the Super Bowl
• Also read: NFL: Travis Kelce leaves the stadium without Taylor Swift
• Also read: Taylor Swift is still part of the Kansas City Chiefs entourage
But, you know what ? It’s a godsend for the NFL and some of its audience, so I might as well take my pill.
On Sunday night, the Chiefs and Jets faced off against all odds in a hard-fought matchup. The Chiefs were heavily favored, but the Jets players on the field gave it their all to put on a quality show.
Still, it’s like the NBC broadcast team is all about global fame and I’m not talking about Mahomes or Kelce. The camera showed her in her locker room 17 times during the game. Not once, not eight times, 17 times!
Taylor Swift calls for a Chiefs touchdown. Taylor Swift hugs her boyfriend Travis’ mother. Taylor Swift chats with Mahomes’ better half, Brittany. Taylor Swift takes photos. In short, Taylor Swift would file her nails and the banal image would still put the audience and the TV production in a trance.
The singer is flanked by her expected new mother-in-law, Donna Kelce. Getty Images via AFP
A new audience
Let me be clear: I am not taking anything away from this artist who has worked for colossal success. She didn’t steal her hits or her charisma. What’s wrong for me personally is that his presence at a game is as important to me as the arrival of the royal baby in dreary Buckingham Palace or the arrival of the Pope. Regardless of whether we talk about one or the other of these three characters every time, the enthusiasm seems excessive to me.
I told you, I’m an NFL fanatic, a real purist. Since I can never get enough football, I’d much rather the description team spend time analyzing a game than getting upset at the sight of Swift.
Monstrous reviews
However, we must be clear that my band of purists and I have already established ourselves among the NFL’s target audience. There is nothing left to gain from us. This league, like any serious and sensible business, constantly wants to expand its tentacles to new audiences.
- Listen to the interview with Luc Dupont, professor in the communications department at the University of Ottawa QUB radio :
Swift is an international star with whom millions of young people, especially women, identify.
We don’t reach this kind of audience by snapping our fingers, even if we are the all-powerful NFL. The Taylor-Swift effect is therefore no joke. It has become real and quantifiable.
From a marketing perspective, there isn’t a league or team in the world that wouldn’t dream of such a marriage of hearts and minds.
On an ESPN set, Mark Cuban, the inauspicious owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, even jokingly invited the singer to break up with Travis Kelce. “We have some handsome young single men here who are ready. We’ll take care of you,” he joked.
Seduce the masses
The Chiefs’ final game in New York had a red carpet feel with the presence of Taylor Swift and several other stars, including actor Ryan Reynolds. Getty Images via AFP
The anecdote shows the appeal of such an icon. Wherever Taylor Swift goes, the audience follows. So the NFL is seizing the opportunity, and while a small percentage of Swifties on the field will remain addicted to the product if the romance becomes nothing more than a burning memory, the league is seeing huge increases.
Professional sports leagues are looking in every way possible to appeal to young people who are difficult to reach. Whether in social networks, video games, animations or other gadgets, the various circuits cannot remain idle. The NFL just found another way to print dollars and significantly expand its audience.
Whether I or other die-hards roll our eyes because the league and its networks rave about Swift won’t make a difference. Shake it off, as the star would say in one of his countless hits.