Taylor Swift gives big boost to TV ratings for Chiefs-Bears, especially among young women
Swifties packed Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium not once, but twice this summer to watch Taylor Swift's Eras Tour. Apparently, they couldn't get enough of the iconic venue.
And on Sunday, many Swift fans were presumably watching Kanas City's NFL game, too.
The national FOX broadcast of the Chiefs' win over the Chicago Bears was the highest-rated NFL game of the week for women in three different age demographics covering 12 to 49, according to FOX Sports: the game ranked first in females 12-17, 18-34 and 18-49. The telecast was also the most-watched NFL broadcast of the week on any network with 24.3 million total viewers.
Swift was at Sunday's game and cheered on Travis Kelce in a suite while sitting next to his mom, Donna. The pop superstar and the Super Bowl champion have been rumored to be dating. They walked out of Arrowhead Stadium together after the game in what was their first public appearance as a duo.
Swift's presence has also contributed to a mega boost in sales for Kelce's No. 87 jersey and a spike in his social media numbers. The tight end has now passed 3 million Instagram followers, gaining 325,000 in a week, which is a bigger increase than he saw after winning last year's Super Bowl, per Front Office Sports.
The takeover isn't quite complete as Sports Media Watch reports that viewership for the Sunday late afternoon window was down from last year's Week 3 ratings, however. Last season, the top game was a clash of iconic quarterbacks as Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers took on Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That game drew 26.4 million viewers as the most-watched Week 3 game in eight years.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Taylor Swift appearance lifts Chiefs-Bears TV rating for Sunday game
