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All eyes were on Taylor Swift Thursday night as the pop star turned up to watch her boyfriend, Travis Kelce — and his Kansas City Chiefs — open the NFL season against the Baltimore Ravens.
Clad in a denim crop top and shorts along with red, knee-high heeled boots, Swift arrived about 90 minutes prior to kickoff in a rematch of last winter’s AFC title game.
But eagle eyed fans who were dividing their attention between the action on the field and watching Swift’s every movement in her private luxury box couldn’t help but notice that her BFF Brittany Mahomes was nowhere in sight.
Amid swirling social media controversies that have erupted over Mahomes’ apparent social media support for former President Donald Trump, the two sat in separate suites Thursday night.
Mahomes and Swift have a history of watching Chiefs games together after the Cruel Summer singer started dating the Chiefs’ tight end last fall.
During the offseason, the two hung out together in Amsterdam when Swift brought her Eras Tour to Europe.
But Mahomes made waves last month when she lashed out at critics suffering “deep rooted issues” as rumours swirled that she had given her stamp of approval to “The 2024 GOP Platform” shared by Trump.
In the former president’s Instagram message, he promised, among other things, to “stop the migrant invasion,” “deport pro-Hamas radicals,” “keep men OUT of women’s sports,” “lock up violent offenders,” “prevent World War III,” and “stop the migrant crime epidemic.”
News of Mahomes’ supposed social media endorsement made news with Newsweek and The New York Post, while several accounts on X shared screenshots and screen-recorded video of the her Instagram handle among the likes appearing on Trump’s post.
But the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model fired back at critics in a message of her own.
“I mean honestly, to be a hater as an adult, you have to have some deep-rooted issues you refuse to heal from childhood,” a message on Mahomes’ Instagram read. “There’s no reason your brain is fully developed and you hate to see others doing well.”
Mahomes followed up with another post published to her Instagram Stories in which she shared a user’s message that read, “Contrary to the tone of the world today….you can disagree with someone, and still love them. You can have differing views, and still be kind.”
Accompanying the repost, Mahomes wrote, “Read that again!”
In an interview with the Whoop podcast, Mahomes went a step further saying she “doesn’t give a f***” what people say about her online, and credited her husband for her attitude.
“The main thing he always told me is to stop caring what people think – especially the people that don’t even know you,” she said. “It used to get to me a lot and now it’s just like, honestly, I don’t give a f*** what people have to say about me anymore.”
As the fallout continued, Trump thanked Mahomes for “defending” him.
“I want to thank beautiful Brittany Mahomes for so strongly defending me, and the fact that MAGA is the greatest and most powerful Political Movement in the History of our now Failing Country,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social website. “With Crime and Illegal Immigration totally out of control, INFLATION Ravaging all Americans, and a World that is laughing at the stupidity of our hapless ‘leaders,’ it is nice to see someone who loves our Country, and wants to save it from DOOM.”
Trump ended his message by toasting Mahomes and her husband, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. “What a great couple,” Trump said of the Mahomeses. “See you both at the Super Bowl!”
Following the Chiefs’ 27-20 victory over the Ravens, an insider told the Daily Mailthat none of Mahomes’ football friends plan to question the mother-of-two about her political beliefs.
“Patrick is still the darling of the NFL, and as long as he continues to win, no matter what his family does — from Brittany, to his brother, and his dad — Patrick will be fine,” the source told the outlet.
The confidante said that any discussion about Mahomes’ support of Trump is happening “behind closed doors.”
“Nobody will ever bring it up during a hangout or at a game,” they added. “It will not be a thing that is addressed.”
Before Thursday night’s game, some people online wondered if the ensuing drama could affect Mahomes and Swift’s relationship heading into the fall.
“This season is gonna be awkward in the stadium suites with Brittany and Taylor Swift,” one person joked.
Swift has made no endorsement in this year’s U.S. presidential race, but in 2020, after Trump tweeted threats at George Floyd protestors in Minnesota, she accused the commander-in-chief of “stoking the fires of white supremacy” and promised to use her voice against him in that year’s presidential election.
“After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence? When the looting starts the shooting starts’???” the pop star tweeted.
She then tagged Trump with a promise: “We will vote you out in November.”