Calgary business seizes on Swifties' newfound passion for the Super Bowl
Whether it’s the food, the halftime show or the game itself, Super Bowl Sunday draws tens of millions of viewers every year. It’s regularly the most-watched telecast of the year.
But this year, it’s also the spectacle in the stands that has a whole new passionate fan base tuning in, and one Calgary business cashing in.
Super Bowl 58 features the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs, led by coach Andy Reid, and the San Francisco 49ers, led by Kyle Shanahan, facing off in Las Vegas late Sunday afternoon in a sequel to the 2020 Super Bowl.
It’s the fourth head coach rematch in Super Bowl history, but this one is historic for another reason.
The high-profile romance between Chiefs all-pro tight end Travis Kelce and pop superstar Taylor swift has taken fans’ attention off the field and into the stands, where the TV cameras frequently find Swift, dressed in Chiefs gear, cheering the team on.
One pop culture expert says it’s almost a mythological romance.
“I think people see it almost as a Romeo and Juliet story,” says Lethbridge College pop culture instructor Brent Cottle.
And the love story between Kelce and Swift has attracted an unlikely new fan base to NFL football: the TikTok generation.
“I think the NFL is happy with it,” says Kottle, “because I think they’ll take any fans that they can get – and their brand is so huge, I think they think they can absorb any audience.”
According to SportsMedia.com, 93 of the top 100 television shows of 2023 were NFL games. The top-rated show of 2023 was last year's Super Bowl between the Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, which drew 115.1 million viewers in the U.S. -- and tens of millions more around the world.
The Alberta Beer Exchange in Calgary is selling six packs of craft cocktails targeted at Swifties watching the Super Bowl Sunday
SWIFTIE SIX PACKS
The meeting of the NFL with Swifties also means big money for business, including TV spots that are selling for over $7 million for a 30-second slot.
But it’s not just TV networks cashing in on the Taylor Swift effect: the Alberta Beer Exchange has created its own six pack of craft cocktails inspired by Swift and Kelce’s relationship.
“Me and my wife were having a laugh,” says Corey Baier, the owner of the Alberta Beer Exchange, “and because we have 49ers and Chiefs packs, we thought we would include the Swifties this year.”
Those six-packs are selling just as fast as those ‘Eras’ concert tickets whenever a Taylor Swift tour stop gets announced.
“(They’re selling) crazy fast,” says Baier. “They (Swifties) love it, they think it’s hilarious…it brings everyone together so it’s good.”
But not everyone is drinking from the same glass when it comes to Swiftie Super Bowl Gatorade.
“I think they preload the seats with a lot of fame,” says one Calgarian, “so that regular people watch it too because they want to see all those (famous) people.”
Another says, “People get bothered by it, people get quite upset by it (Kelce and Swift). I quite like it. I think it’s quite nice and it’s not harming anybody.”
Image from a Swiftie six-pack
While the romantics hope love won’t stay confined to the sidelines on the biggest TV night of 2024.
“I’m hoping they get engaged is the big thing,” another says, “and I will cry.”
The remaining custom Swiftie six packs are on sale at Alberta Beer Exchange at 1642 10th avenue S.W.
Super Bowl 58 kicks off Sunday at 4:30 p.m. MST.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Chants of 'shame on you' greet guests arriving for the annual White House correspondents' dinner
An election-year roast of U.S. President Joe Biden before journalists, celebrities and politicians at the annual White House correspondents' dinner Saturday.
What is a 'halal mortgage'? Does it make housing more accessible?
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized after return to New York from upstate prison
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
'We are declaring our readiness': No decision made yet as Poland declares it's ready to host nuclear weapons
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
Central Alberta queer groups react to request from Red Deer-South to reinstate Jennifer Johnson to UCP caucus
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.