It was like the final glow of a long-lost era: On Thursday, the Beatles released a final song, “Now and Then,” 53 years after the breakup of the band that were once the greatest musicians in the universe.
The German album charts published a day later made it clear how much all of this is a thing of the past: the current superstar is ranked number 1 there. Also with the new recording of older material. But “TayTay’s” influence goes far beyond the music. Wherever she appears, she triggers a huge media frenzy. Attention that you can take advantage of if you direct it in a targeted manner.
The North American football league NFL is benefiting from this this week. Since the rumor started circulating that Swift was dating Kansas City Chiefs footballer Travis Kelce, his popularity has reached new heights. The 1.96 meter tall man is already a star in his profession – Kelce is a two-time champion and is considered one of the best players in the league.
Swift’s repeated presence at Chiefs games fueled the hype surrounding Kelce even further. According to a report by the business magazine Forbes, the already high sales of his jersey quadrupled, catapulting Kelce into the top five best-selling players.
But football also benefits from Taylor Swift’s presence. Although the NFL is already the highest-grossing league in the world, interest has so far been mainly driven by older men. That could change now. Swift could finally help a long-standing goal of the NFL: attract more women to stadiums and in front of televisions. With her huge following, the 33-year-old would be the ideal ambassador to inspire a younger and, above all, female audience for football.
And now the singer could also help the sport gain a significant boost in popularity in Germany. There will be an NFL match in Frankfurt am Main on Sunday. The Miami Dolphins meet Travis Kelce and his Kansas City Chiefs (can be seen on free TV on RTL from 2:30 p.m.). And the question of whether Taylor Swift will also come to the banking city has been discussed for weeks.
Sports officials in particular are hoping that the pop superstar will appear: According to NFL Germany boss Alexander Steinforth, Swift doesn’t have another concert until November 9th, then in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires. Steinforth hopes in an interview with the DPA that there would be enough time for a visit to Frankfurt. “The flight would take less than five days.”
So it’s quite possible that Taylor Swift will prove to be the ideal brand ambassador for football. The Beatles have at least immortalized themselves in another sport. Their “Yellow Submarine” was last sung by tens of thousands of people in a football stadium on Wednesday evening. The fans of 1. FC Saarbrücken sang it after their win against FC Bayern with the text that is still sung in almost all football stadiums today: “Take off Bayern’s Lederhosen.”
Sources: Forbes, DPA, YouTube
The star belongs to Gruner Jahr. The publisher belongs to RTL Deutschland.
