Sportscaster Al Michaels has been navigating how to highlight Travis Kelce‘s high-profile romance with Taylor Swift while still keeping NFL in the mix.
During the Monday, October 16, episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Michaels, 78, discussed the viral moment where he struggled with what to call Swift, 33, as she cheered for the 34-year-old tight end during the Kansas City Chiefs game on Thursday, October 12.
“Looking on is [Kelce’s] … well at the moment … his good buddy and girlfriend Taylor Swift,” Michaels said during the broadcast, pausing several times.
Kimmel joked about Michaels’ cautious approach, asking, “So, is she his good buddy or his girlfriend? Now you can’t be both.”
Michaels revealed he originally had other ideas about what to call Swift. “You know you’re doing a game like that, I know the internet’s going to blow up. You know what I really wanted to say?” he asked. “Fiancée.”
Michaels stopped himself from saying the phrase though, quipping, “I didn’t because I figured Travis would beat me up at the end of the game.”
Kelce’s whirlwind romance with Swift has been making headlines since he discussed how he wanted to make a move during her Eras Tour performances.
“Well, 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,” Travis, 34, told brother Jason Kelce on their “New Heights” podcast in July. “So I was a little butthurt, I didn’t get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her. 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. Kansas City showed out.”
Two months later, Swift publicly responded by showing up to Travis’ game against the Chicago Bears. She was seen spending time with Travis’ mother, Donna Kelce, in the VIP suite before leaving the stadium with the athlete.
“They’re taking it day by day, but she has high hopes. She likes that he’s a normal, nice guy. He’s down-to-earth and isn’t affected by fame. She also thinks he’s hot,” an insider exclusively told Us Weekly after the outing.
Swift and Travis were also photographed in New York City on multiple occasions over the weekend after filming separate cameos for Pete Davidson‘s hosting debut on Saturday Night Live on Saturday, October 14.
Michaels previously noted that the NFL planned to cover Swift in “moderation” following backlash at the emphasis of her presence at the games.
“The vast majority of the audience are tuning in to watch a football game,” he told Sports Illustrated ahead of Thursday’s game. “There are people, I don’t know how many, it could be a sizable number, but it’s certainly not a majority, that if you trained the camera on her [Swift] all night long, they’d be satisfied with that. This is not what we’re doing to do.”
During his appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Michaels added that the NFL had to be “judicious” about showing Swift on the big screen.
“We knew she’d be there, so how much do you show her? I mean she’d been on twice and football fans are going, ‘Enough.’ But we were praying she’d come into the booth and sing for us and do the whole thing,” he admitted. “It’s hard because people tune in to watch a football game.”
