Taylor Swift invited to East Kilbride American football team after Super Bowl extravaganza

Interest in gridiron has exploded among young women since the 14-time Grammy winner started dating Kansas City Chief tight end Travis Kelce, who will play in this Sunday’s match

taylor swift in east kilbride village
Could Taylor Swift pay a visit to East Kilbride to see the town’s American football team?
She may be more used to the Hollywood lifestyle, but Taylor Swift would be welcome in East Kilbride to see the work being done by an American football team in the town. Interest in the sport among women has skyrocketed since Swift started dating Travis Kelce, who will play in this weekend’s Super Bowl for Kansas City Chiefs.

Music icon Swift, 34, is expected to be among the thousands of spectators at the extravaganza, which takes place in Paradise, Nevada, just outside Las Vegas. It is a far cry from the experience of the East Kilbride Pirates, Scotland’s top gridiron team.

The club has two women’s teams playing both contact and flag football and coach Craig Robertson would love to see the 14-time Grammy winner, who has Scottish roots, swing by to see the work they are doing. And he said her connection with the sport was raising interest among young women right here in Scotland.

Speaking to BBC Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland on Friday, he said: “I’ve got a young daughter, she likes to listen to Taylor Swift. I’ve got a niece who likes to listen to Taylor Swift.

“They know I play American football. My daughter is quite young, she’s three, but she’s putting two and two together and getting 10 and thinking, ‘Daddy’s going to meet Taylor Swift soon because he plays American football’. And I’m not going to put her off that because there’s every chance – you never know – she might want to come down to East Kilbride one night and meet us all.”

While tongue may have been in cheek, Swift will be in Scotland with her Eras tour later this year, so there could be a possibility of her taking in a game. Mr Robertson added: “The Taylor Swift hype has been fantastic for the sport, the attention and focus she’s bringing from people who would never have looked twice at American football before is incredible, and it’s benefiting the sport.”

Tight end Kelce will be bidding for a third Super Bowl ring on Sunday. The 34-year-old, who made history by playing against his brother Jason in last year’s match, will line up against the San Francisco 49ers having enjoyed a stellar play-off season.

Whether Swift, currently the biggest pop star in the world, will be cheering him on from the bleachers remains a mystery. She has a concert in Tokyo on Saturday night and faces a trip across the Pacific to make it on time. The game kicks off at 11.30pm on Sunday, February 11 with the famous half-time show, which this year features Usher, starting at around 1.15am on Monday, February 12.