Swift, 33, praised Kelce, 34, for “adorably” putting her “on blast” in July when he tried and failed to give her his phone number at a Missouri Eras Tour stop.

The “Cruel Summer” singer thought the athlete’s “New Heights” podcast callout was “metal as hell.”

She recalled, “We started hanging out right after that. So we actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other.”

5Taylor Swift spoke about Travis Kelce for the first time to Time magazine. GC Images

5The Grammy winner clarified their relationship timeline. chariah/Instagram

5She called the athlete “metal as hell” and gushed over his sport. GC Images

In fact, Swift confirmed the duo “were a couple” by the time she made headlines for attending her first Kansas City Chiefs game in September.

“I think some people think that they saw our first date at that game?” she added. “We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date.

“When you say a relationship is public, that means I’m going to see him do what he loves, we’re showing up for each other, other people are there and we don’t care. The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you’re seeing someone. And we’re just proud of each other.”

5Swift’s comments come as she’s honored as the magazine’s Person of the Year. Inez and Vinoodh for TIME

The songwriter noted that she thinks football is an “awesome” sport that she has been “missing out on” her whole life.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship: Here’s the inside scoop

5Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship has taken the world by storm. GC Images

• Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce tried to give pop star Taylor Swift a friendship bracelet with his number on it at a July 2023 Eras tour concert but was blocked from doing so.
• Swift confirmed that she and Kelce “started hanging out right after that.”
• Swift confirmed the two were a couple by the time she attended her first Chiefs game in September, when she watched her beau score a touchdown against the Chicago Bears alongside Kelce’s family.
• Travis’ dad, Ed Kelce, called the two a “wonderful couple,” and his mom, Donna, posted a video of her hugging Swift in October.
• Travis Kelce was spotted dancing next to Swift’s father at an Eras tour concert in Argentina.

What do you think? Post a comment.

While Kelce has spoken about Swift multiple times since their many public dates — and called her a “genius” in a WSJ. Magazine profile last month — the performer’s Time’s cover story marks her first mention of the tight end.

Swift did, however, change the lyrics of “Karma” to honor “the guy on the Chiefs” while performing in Argentina last month.