If love was a sport, Travis Kelce would surely be playing it in the major leagues. From his reality TV romance roll-call to dating pop royalty, here’s a tally of all the hearts he’s huddled up with before Taylor Swift caught his pass.
US musician Taylor Swift (L) and US NFL football player Travis Kelce (R) attend the men’s final match between Italy’s Jannik Sinner and USA’s Taylor Fritz on day fourteen of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City, on September 8, 2024. Before finding love with Swift, Kelce had quite the lineup in his dating playbook.
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Maya Benberry (2016)
The 34-year-old Kansas City Chiefs tight end’s foray into love games started in 2016 with E!‘s dating reality show, Catching Kelce, where he juggled 50 hopefuls — one from each state. But it was Kentucky’s Maya Benberry who snagged the final rose. “I love your confidence, but at times it does get overconfident,” he told her at the time, according to the US Sun.
The pair called it quits after a few months post-show at the end of 2016. Benberry later accused her ex-beau of infidelity. Although their romance faded faster than a Snapchat story, it was just the beginning of Kelce’s public love life.
Kayla Nicole (2017 to 2022)
Fast forward to 2017, the Super Bowl champ met sports journalist and fitness enthusiast Kayla Nicole. They started dating after the football star got flirty with the model on Instagram in 2017. “I was just stalking her and then finally on New Year’s, she gave in. And, you know, New Year, new me. She just shot her shot, jumped in my DMs and the rest is history,” he explained to E! News in February 2022.
The duo started off strong but broke up for the first time in August 2020 after rumors that Kelce was unfaithful, which he vehemently denied over X (formerly Twitter). “This is fake news…a lie…and not why Kayla and I broke up… take all your hatred somewhere else please,” he said in a since-deleted post, according to TMZ.
The two rekindled their romance briefly before throwing in the towel for good in May 2022. Despite a Barstool Sports report that claimed their breakup was over financial disagreements (which both denied), they shared a relatively lengthy spotlight together.
Zuri Hall (2022 to 2023)
In a plot twist that felt like a celebrity crossover episode, chatter of Kelce being connected to Access Hollywood correspondent Zuri Hall surfaced in 2022. Spotted in his family suite at a Chiefs game in October, per Barstool Sports, the buzz was strong, though neither party confirmed their status at the time.
In 2024, however, the 36-year-old TV host finally cleared the air, laughing off the rumors of a fling with Kelce. “I laugh that stuff off, particularly when rumors aren’t true,” she explained to Page Six during the 2024 Cannes Lions Festival.
Taylor Swift (2023 to Present)
And then came Taylor.
Everything changed when the 34-year-old pop sensation entered the stadium in September 2023. Since then, the love playbook has been all about #Traylor and #Swelce. The love birds took their relationship from the football field to global stages, becoming an undeniable force in both the sports and entertainment worlds. As Swift cheered from the stands, Kelce reciprocated with his presence at multiple stops on her Eras Tour, even joining his sweetheart on stage during a skit at London’s Wembley Stadium on Sunday, June 23.
While they haven’t spilled any engagement tea yet, sources close to the couple are hoping to hear wedding bells in the near future. According to a source who spoke with Us Weekly, the “Cruel Summer” singer and famous athlete are “so in love.” As they navigate their relationship amidst tours and touchdowns, it seems Kelce’s dating history is now a prelude to what many hope is his endgame.
