It’s the cultural news that’s dominating the headlines, with the internet going into full meltdown over Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s engagement.
The couple, who have been together since 2023, officially confirmed their engagement last night (CET) on Instagram, posting a carousel of photos of the pop superstar, 35, and the Kansas City player, also 35, embracing in a rather lush garden.
There was also a photo featuring a close-up of her engagement ring - a round diamond on a gold band. According to US reports, Kelce worked with Kindred Lubeck of Artifex Fine Jewelry to design the ring.
The post was captioned: “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married.”
Swift and Kelce’s joint Instagram post has been liked more than 26 million times at the time of writing.
As you can imagine, Swifties have been flooding social media with frenzied and gushing messages of good wishes, the hashtag “TAYVIS” has been trending, and more information has come to light, as Travis Kelce apparently asked Scott Swift for permission to marry his daughter about a month ago.
It was also revealed that Swift and Kelce got engaged two weeks ago in Missouri, according to Ed Kelce – Travis' father.
On the celebrity front, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and the official Instagram account for the Prince and Princess of Wales were among those who liked the post. Other celebs who liked and shared posts about the happy news include Sabrina Carpenter, The National’s Aaron Dessner and Selena Gomez.
Then came a rather bizarre reaction from none other than Donald Trump, one of Swift’s most vocal critics...
He was asked about the news during a cabinet meeting and he told reporters: “Well, I wish them a lot of luck. I think it’s - I think he’s a great player, I think he’s a great guy and I think that she’s a terrific person. So I wish them a lot of luck.”
Watch the moment below.
Colour us confused, as Trump has not been shy when it comes to bashing Swift.
He publicly declared his hatred for the musician last year after she endorsed Kamala Harris, very presidentially posting on his Truth Social media account, in all-caps, “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” and stating that Swift would “probably pay a price” for her support of Harris. This led to the trending phrase “I love Taylor Swift”.
Trump had also posted AI images suggesting Swift had endorsed him, clearly showing that he coveted her endorsement.
In June 2024, he commented on Swift’s appearance in the book titled "Apprentice In Wonderland: How Donald Trump And Mark Burnett Took America Through The Looking Glass", calling her “unusually beautiful” and questioning whether she was "legitimately liberal."
Earlier this month, Trump took the time to share his thoughts about the Sydney Sweeney / American Eagle controversy, and decided to hit out at Swift, describing her in his Truth Social post as “no longer hot.”
He wrote: “Just look at Woke singer Taylor Swift. Ever since I alerted the world as to what she was by saying on TRUTH that I can’t stand her (HATE!). She was booed out of the Super Bowl and became, NO LONGER HOT.”
So, has Trump joined ranks with former FBI chief James Comey, who confessed last week that he was a massive Swiftie? Was it a classy move on his part to put the hatred to bed once and for all? Or was he simply confused regarding who he was talking about and will we be treated to a Truth Social rant about the engagement soon?
Either way, fans can’t be bogged down...
The news of Swift and Kelce’s engagement comes hot off the heals of Swift announcing the release of her new album, 'The Life of a Showgirl', which hits shelves on 3 October. The album is widely expected to be inspired by her experience of her record-breaking Eras Tour and by her romance with Kelce.
Many brands and major companies jumped on the Swift marketing bandwagon following the announcement of the album, and you can bet more businesses will also be keen to get in on the engagement action.
It has already started with Duolingo posting “But when will it be your Spanish teacher’s turn”, Buffalo Wild Wings offering to cater the wedding, and Panera posting: “It’s a loaf story baby just say yeast” - a reference to Swift’s 2008 hit song ‘Love Story’.
Expect more of the same – click here to find out why.
No official date for the wedding has been announced.
