Travis Kelce’s Girlfriends Before Taylor Swift Include an Ex from His Reality Dating Show

Taylor Swift (2023 – present)

Travis Kelce’s girlfriend is Taylor Swift?? We didn’t have that on our bingo card for this year but in September 2023, The Messenger reported that “Taylor and Travis have been quietly hanging out,” a source said. “She saw him when she was in NYC a few weeks ago,” without adding any other context. Following that report, a source told ET that, “Travis has been into Taylor for a while and definitely has a crush on her. He is a simple guy that is very funny, charismatic, chill, and loves playing football.”

During an episode of the podcast New Heights in July 2023, the star tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs star revealed that he tried to give Swift a friendship bracelet with the digits of his phone number before her concert for her Eras Tour at the Arrowhead Stadium. “I was disappointed that she doesn’t talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings, so I was a little butthurt I didn’t get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her,” Kelce admitted. Kelce’s brother, Jason Kelce added, “She doesn’t meet anybody — or at least she didn’t want to meet me, so I took it personal, but it was an unbelievable show.”

Jason, whose Eagles lost to Travis’ Chiefs in the 2024 Super Bowl, had a theory as to why Swift didn’t want to meet his brother that night. “She probably just hasn’t gotten over the Super Bowl yet,” Jason quipped. “She’s a big Eagles fan, so maybe she just made something up and didn’t want to talk to you.” Travis exclaimed: “Dammit!” 

Since then, she’s become an eagerly-awaited fixture at Chiefs games and attracting a whole new fanbase to the sport. Things sound like they could be getting serious between Tay and Trav, as well.

In January 2024, and according to an insider who spoke to DailyMail, Kelce is actively brainstorming ideas for a “unique” ring for a future proposal. “He isn’t going to propose to her anytime soon, so no one should get those hopes up, but he has talked to family and friends about what he could do that would be special for an engagement ring,” the source said.

“Travis’ career is a major focus for the next several weeks. He has to get the job done. He wants another Super Bowl ring, but it is safe to say that there is room to think about Taylor,” the insider continued. “And when it comes to Taylor, he loves her and sees a future with her and has thought about what a ring for her would be like as well.”

Apparently, Kelce’s special plans include incorporating diamonds from his two Super Bowl rings into Taylor’s future engagement ring. Beyond diamonds, Kelce also wants the ring to have a special engraving. The insider explained, “He has thought of having a lyric or a quote engraved on the band that is special to both of them, and he has also floated using some of the diamonds from his Super Bowl rings on her band. He wants to make sure it isn’t something cheesy, but more unique and something that is a part of him that he shares with her to show that forever means forever.”

Will he propose to her at the Super Bowl? When he was asked by reporters at a press conference if he was ready to propose to Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce replied, “Wouldn’t you like to know,” as he smiled at the camera. 

Travis Kelce gave more insights into their private relationship during the conference. A reporter asked what’s his favorite food that she makes. “Oh, she’s quite the cook,” he replied. “I’m a breakfast guy, man. I would say her homemade Pop Tarts are unbelievable.”

He added, “I better hold up my end of the bargain. She’s up there being the superstar that she is and never taking no for an answer and always working her tail off. I better match that energy for sure.”

Kayla Nicole (2017 – 2022)

Travis Kelce’s girlfriend previously was his longest public relationship to date: fashion influencer and journalist Kayla Nicole. 

The on-air reporter’s passion for sports goes way back, long before crossing paths with her then-beau. Nicole obtained her Bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from Pepperdine University in 2013 and has since appeared covering NBA courtside action, to the NFL sidelines and even dishing out some entertainment news. 

In addition to Nicole’s media career, her roles as an influencer and ambassador for brands like Savage x Fenty, Revolve, and Crocs have helped her garner over half a million social media followers. one of those followers being Kelce himself.

He set his sights on Nicole via Instagram, and it didn’t take long for Nicole to notice her admirer was throwing “all double taps and no DM.” In a since-deleted Instagram story captured by TMZ, Nicole spilled she was the one to make the first move by sliding into Kelce’s DMs “after a little liquid courage.” 

Their initial flirtatious exchanges in 2017 ignited an on-again, off-again relationship over five years. Reports blamed their first breakup in August 2020 on Kelce’s infidelity, which he denied in a Tweet responding to accusations. “This is fake news … a lie … and not why Kayla and I broke up … take all your hatred somewhere else, please.” 

In November 2020, the couple was back on and kept going strong until officially turning in the towel in May 2022. This time, rumors for the second (and final) breakup were said to be because of financial reasons. Allegedly, Kelce was keen on Nicole splitting all expenses 50/50, but both parties vehemently called BS. 

During an interview with the hosts of The Pivot Podcast, Kelce jumped to his ex-girlfriend’s defense saying that Nicole lives a “financially stable life” because of her successful career. He went on to say people were crazy to think he wasn’t willing to put down his wallet. “We were in a relationship for five years,” Kelce stated. “A hundred dollars here and hundred dollars there wasn’t even thought about.” The two deleted each other’s presence from their social media profiles, which is always a tell-tale sign that it’s over.

Nicole, meanwhile, has sworn off athletes, preferring to sit “courtside at a Laker game,” for example. “That’s my kind of guy,” she added. “I don’t really need to go to any more sporting events because I have a jersey on with somebody.”

She continued: “I would love to just date someone that — I do think that I’m attracted to men in positions of power, I do think that those types of men are attracted to me,” she revealed during the Wednesday, January 24, episode of the “Behind the Likes” podcast. “So, I would love to date an executive of a record label or a movie producer.”

Maya Benberry (2016)

Travis Kelce’s girlfriend before Kayla was Maya. Once upon a time, in 2016, before Kelce competed for Super Bowl rings, he competed for a chance at love. That’s right, the TE had his own reality-dating show on the E! Network called Catching Kelce, where 50 women representing each of the 50 states took a chance to win Kelce’s heart. Maya Benberry from Kentucky was Kelce’s first-draft pick in the end. 

However, the couple only carried on for about eight months, which wasn’t necessarily surprising to most. After all, Catching Kelce didn’t overpromise a “happily-ever-after” conclusion. It was just your average matchmaking series with a prize minimum of a couple of months’ relationship with a handsomely charming pro athlete. 

The conversation regarding the reason for their split took a turn in May 2017 when Kelce’s new relationship with Kayla Nicole was confirmed by TMZ. Benberry took to Twitter to comment on reports about her ex-boyfriend’s new relationship status. In the since-deleted Tweets captured by The Shade Room, Benberry accused Kelce of cheating on her with Nicole after seeing that the couple had already been dating for six months. 

“When you and your ex broke up five months ago but you find out via social media that he’s supposedly been in another relationship for 6…” Benberry allegedly wrote. She goes on to call out Kelce for claiming he was single in 2017 during one of their text exchanges. It’s still unclear if there was any overlap. 

Unofficial flings

While Travis Kelce’s dating history in the public eye has been seemingly brief, a few short-term GFs might be unaccounted for. 

After the final split with Kayla Nicole in 2022, speculations surrounded a possible fling with Access Hollywood correspondent Zuri Hall. The intrigue sparked in October of that year when a video surfaced, posted by a friend of Kelce’s, capturing the entertainment host hanging in the same room as Kelce (wow — they’re basically married!). Around the same time, Hall was also seen attending a Kansas City Chiefs game where she was seated in the same box suite as Kelce’s family, according to Barstool Sports. 

Both Kelce and Hall never confirmed if there was anything romantic going on and no longer follow each other on Instagram. 

In April 2023, Kelce was also rumored to be linked with Grammy-winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion after snapshots of the two at the Country Music Awards surfaced. It’s alleged that Kelce even went as far as to fly the Houston-based rapper to Austin, the location of the award show, aboard his private jet. Once again, the rumors were never confirmed, and it seems as though the two are likely just good pals, as evidenced by their mutual following of each other on IG.  

A few months before the CMT news, in January 2023, Kelce confirmed his single status to the hosts of The Pivot Podcast. “I’m in the free market right now,” he said. “I’m out there just enjoying life. Focused on my profession.”       

When It Was Just a Game: Remembering the First Super Bowl

For more about the Super Bowl, football fans can check out When It Was Just a Game: Remembering the First Super Bowl by Harvey Frommer. The best-selling book delves into the history of the first Super Bowl, which was originally known as the AFL-NFL Championship Game. (The term “Super Bowl” was coined only in its third year.) The debut game, between the winning Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs, was played in front of only 61,946 people at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum—an audience well below the stadium’s capacity. Harvey Frommer, a sports historian and reporter, puts the tale of that momentous game together using oral history, gathered by hundreds of interviews with players, coaches, media and spectators alike.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission from the sale.