The Taylor Swift Effect On The NFL’s Popularity Is Real

During his annual Super Bowl Week press conference, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was asked about the record-setting viewership for the conference championship games, both of which drew more than 50 million viewers, and whether the staggeringly popular Swift’s newfound association with the NFL — she is in a relationship with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce — had provided a significant boost, particularly among young females.

“I would tell you that it’s because of the great competition,” said Goodell. “The competition has been off the charts this year. Seventy percent of our games have been within one score in the fourth quarter. The young stars, the older stars, the amazing performances by teams, you see all that. That’s what fans ultimately love.

“Having the Taylor Swift Effect is also a positive. Both Travis and Taylor are wonderful young people. They seem very happy. She knows great entertainment. And I think that’s why she loves NFL football. I think it’s great to have her a part of it.

“Obviously, it creates a buzz. It creates another group of young fans, particularly young women, that are interested in seeing why is she going to this game, why is she interested in this game. Besides Travis, she is a football fan. And I think that’s great for us.”

Taylor Swift

According to Chad Finn at The Boston Globe, it is great for the league. Of that there is no doubt. Swift is practically an entire economy on her own. Apex Marketing Group recently estimated that her equivalent brand value — the amount of money that would have to be spent to receive an equal amount of media exposure to what the Chiefs and the NFL have received across various forms of media since she started attending Kelce’s games Sept. 24 — was more than $330 million.

But the full measure of the Swift Effect is difficult to gauge, because the NFL is enjoying a run of overwhelming dominance in the sports, television, and even marketing landscapes that began before she ever set foot in an Arrowhead Stadium luxury box.

Ninety-three of the top 100 television shows in 2023 were NFL games — up five from 2022. Sunday’s Super Bowl almost certainly will be officially the most-watched of all time — a designation that currently belongs to Super Bowl LVII between the Eagles and Chiefs just last year on Fox and Fox Deportes, with 115.1 million viewers. (The “officially” is necessary because Nielsen, which measures viewership, has been including out-of-home data — such as people watching in bars — only since 2020.)

The NFL did enjoy a noteworthy uptick in viewership this season, averaging 17.9 million viewers for regular-season games, a 7 percent increase from last year and its best since 2015, which averaged a record 18.1 million. Female viewership increased 9 percent, giving the league its best numbers on record among women.

But per Sports Business Journal, it wasn’t just women who were watching in larger numbers; the NFL saw increases of 4-10 percent across all key demographics, with overall male viewership up 9 percent.