As 75,000 American football fans packed out Arrowhead Stadium to watch the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Chicago Bears, all eyes were on the action taking place away from the pitch – where Taylor Swift watched the game from a VIP suite, confirming the romance rumours that had been swirling around her and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
Not only was the pop icon, 33, clad in the Chiefs’ colours, but she was pictured chatting with her new beau’s mum Donna, before leaving the game with him and jumping into the passenger seat of his vintage convertible. And heat is told that there is a very good reason why the American sports star doesn’t fit Taylor’s typical boyfriend profile – she wants to deviate from her norm as her thoughts have turned to starting a family.
“Taylor is fairly sensitive when people bring up the topic of kids and whether or not she’s feeling broody or pressured in that department,” our source says.
“She hates that stigmatised perception that she has to hurry up because of her age. But she does privately admit that this is something she absolutely wants, preferably by her mid-30s. As much as she’s enjoyed the dating scene, she’s happiest when settled down with someone long-term. She wants to find the right guy to have a family with and ideally be planning for it next year. This is a process for her, but she’s going to have fun.”
After Taylor’s six-year relationship with British actor Joe Alwyn broke down in April, she was briefly linked to The 1975’s Matty Healy. But the summer saw new romance speculation with NFL star Travis, kickstarted by his very public flirting. After she played a show on her Eras tour at the Arrowhead Stadium – the Chiefs’ home ground – Travis quipped that he was “butt hurt” Taylor didn’t meet with him and revealed he had hoped to give her a friendship bracelet with his number on. He also publicly invited her to watch him play a match.
And after her shock appearance at his game, he said on his podcast, “Shout out to Taylor for pulling up. That was pretty ballsy. I just thought it was awesome how everyone in the suite had nothing but great things to say about her, the friends and family,” before adding that he would stick to talking about sports from now on. Now, we’re told that, while Travis is delighted to have captured Tay’s attention, he’s happy to go at her pace.
“Travis is being very attentive, but he’s not pressuring her,” says our source. “He’s happy to go with the flow instead of full throttle.”
Taylor has previously revealed that she wanted a “bunch of [kids] running around”, but we are told that she won’t be rushing in with Travis – or any other potential baby daddy.
Our insider says, “Travis’ schedule is insane just like hers, so they aren’t really in a position to be spending every day together. But they’re planning fun dates in different cities – she’s planning on some nights out in NYC and Nashville, where he can meet her folks like she’s met his.
“She throws herself in quite heavily from a friendship standpoint at first, then if things click, the serious stuff comes later. She’s by no means putting all her hopes on him. Her philosophy is very much, ‘It’ll happen when it happens’, and there’s every faith that it will.”