Remember Vice President JD Vance’s fear of the NFL giving the Kansas City Chiefs preferential treatment in the aftermath of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift’s engagement announcement? If the claim escaped your memory, it’s probably because it was totally unfounded.
Vance, a Cincinnati Bengals fan from Middletown, Ohio, told USA TODAY Sports in an exclusive interview in August of 2025 he hoped the NFL wouldn't favor the Chiefs following Kelce and Swift’s engagement announcement.
"I will say as a football fan − as a Cincinnati Bengals fan − I hope that the NFL does not put a thumb on the scale for the Kansas City Chiefs just because Travis Kelce is now getting married to maybe the most famous woman in the world," Vance said at the time. "You guys can't sort of have this, I'm worried they're going to have a Super Bowl wedding thing this season. Can't do it. The Kansas City Chiefs have to follow the same rules as everybody else."
"So if we see the refs being particularly friendly to Kansas City Chiefs players, then I think all football fans should be willing to push back on the NFL and say, look, you guys got to be fair. Just because Travis is getting married to Taylor, you still can't put your thumb on the scale for the Kansas City Chiefs."
Vance’s words ignited NFL conspiracy theorists who believed the NFL had been biased toward the Chiefs following back-to-back Super Bowl **** les.
Vance, a Cincinnati Bengals fan from Middletown, Ohio, told USA TODAY Sports in an exclusive interview in August of 2025 he hoped the NFL wouldn't favor the Chiefs following Kelce and Swift’s engagement announcement.
"I will say as a football fan − as a Cincinnati Bengals fan − I hope that the NFL does not put a thumb on the scale for the Kansas City Chiefs just because Travis Kelce is now getting married to maybe the most famous woman in the world," Vance said at the time. "You guys can't sort of have this, I'm worried they're going to have a Super Bowl wedding thing this season. Can't do it. The Kansas City Chiefs have to follow the same rules as everybody else."
"So if we see the refs being particularly friendly to Kansas City Chiefs players, then I think all football fans should be willing to push back on the NFL and say, look, you guys got to be fair. Just because Travis is getting married to Taylor, you still can't put your thumb on the scale for the Kansas City Chiefs."
Vance’s words ignited NFL conspiracy theorists who believed the NFL had been biased toward the Chiefs following back-to-back Super Bowl **** les.
2 months ago
