Taylor Swift and the evolution of the NFL WAG
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Taylor Swift is again expected to be cheering at the Super Bowl on Sunday as the most famous NFL "WAG."
- Some viewers of the country's most-watched sporting event are more curious about who's sitting in her box or her attire than, you know, the game.
Why it matters: Swift joins a changing guard of WAGs who have massive platforms thanks to new media, brand partnerships, or — in Swift's case — careers that eclipse their NFL-playing partners'.
- For the unacquainted: WAGs refers to "wives and girlfriends," an early 2000's term coined by British tabloids that covered high-profile footballers' significant others — one that often carried misogynistic and derogatory connotations.
- Megastars like Swift, whose global fame and accomplishments were established well before her current relationship with Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, have helped redefine the term — and brought millions of new women fans to the NFL.
Zoom in: Beyond Swift, some other WAGs of note: actor and singer Hailee Steinfeld (Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen, this year's NFL MVP) and Olympic gymnast Simone Biles (Chicago Bears' Jonathan Owens). Steinfeld recently launched a newsletter Beau Society, and off the mat Biles is a mental health advocate.
- Ex-soccer player and sports team owner Brittany Mahomes (Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes) has secured partnerships with various beverage brands and appeared in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue last year.
- TikToker Alix Earle (Miami Dolphins' Braxton Berrios) applies her signature get-ready-with-me videos to Game Day — appearing recently in a Fox NFL Sunday edition.
- Fashion designer Kristin Juszczyk (49ers' Kyle Juszczyk) started a chic line of jackets featuring players' jerseys (notably donned by Swift in early 2024) and landed a licensing deal with the league.
- Former Miss USA Olivia Culpo (49ers' Christian McCaffrey) and YouTuber Allison Kuch (Isaac Rochell, previously of the Las Vegas Raiders) also fit the mold.
- Let us not forget Ciara (Pittsburgh Steelers' Russell Wilson).
Earle and Kylie Kelce (wife of retired Eagles center Jason Kelce) attracted headlines when their podcasts, launched in 2023 and 2024, respectively, each briefly dethroned Joe Rogan from the No. 1 spot on charts.
- There's also a growing intersection of reality TV and WAGs, with several former "Bachelor" contestants now partnered with NFL players, including Hannah Ann Sluss (Jake Funk) and Sydney Hightower (49ers' Fred Warner).
- Netflix in January released "W.A.G.s to Riches" — featuring current and former partners of NFL players plus others across sports and entertainment.
State of play: Being a WAG has become something to monetize thanks to online platforms. They can curate image and audiences via social media and podcasts.
- WAGS "can then become their own name or their own brand, or their own celebrity ... besides just the relatively anonymous girlfriend or wife that the camera might be into during the game," Cheryl Cooky, professor at Purdue University who studies the intersections of gender, sport, media and culture, tells Axios.
Weddings and pregnancies are likewise marketable opportunities, as the Wall Street Journal reported at the outset of the season.
- "When our clients announce a pregnancy and have kids, their income typically doubles," Paul Desisto, a talent agent who has represented WAGs/influencers told the Journal.
- Wedding vendors and companies making pregnancy and newborn products recognize the opportunity for promotion and partnership.
Flashback: Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen, the ex-wife of Tom Brady, was once the highest-paid super model in the world. She reached stardom long before her relationship with the NFL quarterback began.
- But during the peak visibility of their marriage in the early-to-mid 2000s, "her success was somewhat secondary to her role as Tom Brady's wife," Cooky says.
So what's changed?
- Television news and highlight shows rarely covered women and women athletes at all, Cooky (a "Swiftie") says. If they did, they were featured in supporting roles for male athletes: wives, girlfriends and mothers.
- But figures like Swift and Biles deeply complicate that narrative — with huge social followings and dynamic careers of their own.
Between the lines: NFL husbands or boyfriends have also publicly supported their partners' careers — reversing the classic script.
- Last summer Biles' husband Owens got permission from the Bears to miss multiple practices in order to cheer her on at the Paris Olympics.
- And Kelce joined Taylor Swift on stage during The Eras Tour back in June.
Zoom out: As the popularity of women's sports booms, we're seeing mega-star WAGs there, too.
- What a flex: Power couple Olympians Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird have supported each other's World Cup and WNBA Championship wins.
- Livvy Dunne, the LSU gymnast who's made millions through NIL deals, is dating MLB player Paul Skenes.
- Another power couple rooted in women's sports: Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian.
The bottom line: Next time you see a WAG in the crowd watching their partner put in work on the field or court, remember she's working too.
Go deeper: Taylor Swift effect: Female-focused ad spots take the Super Bowl
