Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce at the Waverly Inn in New York City, Oct. 15, 2023. (Gotham/GC Images via Getty Images)Americans may not have a royal family whose weddings and baby announcements we can gush over, but the news of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's engagement is about as close as it gets.
The celebrity power couple announced the next step in their love story via an Instagram post on Aug. 26. Their romance has been one of pop culture's most intensely followed fairy tales, and fans are now clamoring for any details they can get on the engagement ring and the wedding plans.
Here's a look back at how the romance unfolded between the Kansas City Chiefs tight end and the 14-time Grammy Award winner.
It all started with a friendship bracelet...
July 8, 2023: Travis Kelce attends a Swift concert at Arrowhead Stadium, where he plays football for the Kansas City Chiefs.
AdvertisementAdvertisementJuly 26, 2023: Kelce reveals on his weekly podcast New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce that he tried to meet Taylor Swift after the July 8 show but failed. "If you're up on Taylor Swift concerts, there are friendship bracelets, and I received a bunch of them being there, but I wanted to give Taylor Swift one with my number on it," he says on the show. Kelce adds that he was disappointed that the music star doesn't meet with fans before or after her shows in order to save her voice for the grueling three-and-a-half hour concerts. Kelce confesses he was "a little butt-hurt" that he didn't get to give her the handmade bracelet. "She doesn't meet anybody - or at least she didn't want to meet me, so I took it personal," he jokes on the podcast.
Sept. 21, 2023: The footballer reacts to rumors about a romance between him and Swift on The Pat McAfee Show. "I'll tell you what," he says, "it's hilarious how much traction this has actually gotten." He then adds how he challenged her to come to Arrowhead Stadium to see him play. "I threw it out there, I threw the ball in her court, and I told her, 'I've seen you rock the stage at Arrowhead. You might have to come see me rock the stage at Arrowhead and see which one's a little more lit.' So we'll see what happens in the near future."Sept. 24, 2023: Swift makes a surprise appearance at Kelce's Kansas City Chiefs game, sitting in his suite along with his mom, Donna. Kelce and Swift leave together after the game.
Taylor Swift at a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Chicago Bears at Arrowhead Stadium, Sept. 24, 2023. (David Eulitt/Getty Images)Sept. 25, 2023: A source tells People that Kelce and Swift are "hanging out" and they're still in the "super, super early days" of getting to know each other.
AdvertisementAdvertisementSept. 27, 2023: On an episode of his podcast, Kelce reflects on Swift attending his Sept. 24 game, saying, "I'm enjoying life and I sure as hell enjoyed this weekend." He adds, "Shout out to Taylor for pulling up. That was pretty ballsy."Oct. 1, 2023: Swift attends a second Kansas City Chiefs game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium, along with her celebrity pals including Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carpenter, Sophie Turner and Antoni Porowski.
The power couple goes public with their romanceOct. 14, 2023: Kelce and Swift make a surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live, and they are photographed holding hands as they attend the show's afterparty in New York City.
Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift out on the town after appearing on Saturday Night Live, Oct. 14, 2023. (Johnny Nunez/WireImage)Oct. 23, 2023: Swift and Kelce are photographed hanging out with Mecole Hardman Jr., Kelce's teammate, and his girlfriend Chariah Gordon, apparently after a Kansas City Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium. Gordon shares the group photos on Instagram, with one shot showing Swift giving Kelce a kiss on the cheek.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe same night, Swift and Kelce are photographed having a date night at an Argentine steakhouse in Missouri, according to the Daily Mail.
Nov. 10, 2023: Kelce and Swift are joined by her dad, Scott Swift, at a restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel in Buenos Aires after Swift's concert is postponed due to weather.
Nov. 11, 2023: Kelce sits with Swift's dad in the VIP section at the Eras tour in Argentina. The singer gives Kelce a shout-out during the concert, changing the lyrics of "Karma" to "Karma is the guy on the Chiefs coming straight home to me," prompting a big smile on Kelce's face. After the show, she is seen running into his arms to give him a big kiss.
Dec. 6, 2023: Swift is named Time's 2023 Person of the Year, and she reveals in the interview how she and Kelce's romance blossomed, saying, "This all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell."AdvertisementAdvertisement"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."Things get serio