In the house: Taylor Swift cheers on the Chiefs during Sunday night's game at MetLife Stadium. (Elsa/Getty Images )
By Bob D'Angelo, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Taylor Swift has the ability to command a stadium audience from the stage -- and now, by simply walking into the stadium and up to a private box.
The 12-time Grammy winner walked through a metal detector at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Sunday night, NBC News reported. Her appearance stoked more rumors about a possible romance with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
Swift, who attracted more than 80,000 fans to MetLife Stadium when The Eras Tour stopped in the metropolitan New York area in May, was in attendance to watch the Chiefs play the host New York Jets.
The pop superstar was accompanied by actors Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman. Swift was spotted with Reynolds’ wife, Blake Lively, over the weekend in New York City, NBC News reported.
“Hi Swifties, we’ll be with you all night,” NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” announcer Mike Tirico said at the start of the broadcast, adding that Swift’s presence would be a recurring theme throughout the telecast.
Swift attended last Sunday’s NFL game between the host Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears, adding fuel to the romance rumors between the “Anti-Hero” singer and Kelce. She sat in the box with the All-Pro tight end’s mother, Donna Kelce, and cheered as the Chiefs won 41-10.
Kelce did his part in that game, catching a touchdown pass for the Chiefs’ final score.
Swift’s appearance triggered a huge media frenzy that has become a huge cultural event, Deadline reported. Her appearance at the Chiefs-Jets game made it even more intense and even overshadowed the appearance of injured quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who was on the sidelines before kickoff.
Rodgers, who was in crutches, shared a laugh with Kelce on the sidelines.
Kelce’s purported connection with Swift has been a boon to his social media accounts.
He gained more than 860,000 Instagram followers, Deadline reported. That was more than 2023′s voted-on top 100 NFL players combined, according to @bknownagency.
Ian Trombetta, the NFL’s senior vice president of social, influencer and content marketing, told CBS News that Swift’s impact on NFL viewers has “definitely” created a “stir.”
“Another thing that’s been a little surprising is that it really hasn’t slowed down. It’s continued to build in this momentum of conversation,” Trombetta said.
Swift -- and Kelce -- both left Sunday’s game happy, as the Chiefs held off the Jets, 23-20.
In the house: Taylor Swift and Blake Lively cheer during the first half of Sunday's game. (Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
In the house: Taylor Swift and actress Blake Lively enjoy themselves during Sunday night's game. (Elsa/Getty Images)
In the house: Taylor Swift cheers on the Chiefs during Sunday night's game at MetLife Stadium. (Elsa/Getty Images )
In the house: Singer Taylor Swift points out the action during Sunday's pregame between the Chiefs and Jets. (Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
In the house: Singer Taylor Swift, left, actress Blake Lively and actor Ryan Reynolds watch Sunday night's action. (Elsa/Getty Images)
In the house: Taylor Swift arrives at Sunday's NFL game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. (Elsa/Getty Images)
In the house: Actor Ryan Reynolds, left, and singer Taylor Swift arrive at MetLife Stadium. (Elsa/Getty Images)
In the house: Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) celebrates a teammate Noah Gray's touchdown during the first quarter on Sunday night. (Elsa/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years Here are some memorable photos of Taylor Swift through the years. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for MTV)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2006: Country singer Taylor Swift arrives at the 41st annual Academy of Country Music Awards held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 23, 2006, in Las Vegas. (Michael Buckner/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2007: Music artist Taylor Swift performs during the Academy of Country Music New Artists' Party for a Cause show at the MGM Grand Conference Center on May 14, 2007, in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2008: Singer Taylor Swift arrives at the 50th annual Grammy Awards held at the Staples Center on February 10, 2008, in Los Angeles. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2009: Kanye West (left) jumps onstage after Taylor Swift (center) won the "Best Female Video" award during the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on September 13, 2009, in New York City. (Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2010: Musicians Kary Perry and Taylor Swift during the 52nd annual Grammy Awards Salute to Icons Honoring Doug Morris held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 30, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2011: Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez perform onstage during the "Speak Now World Tour" at Madison Square Garden on November 22, 2011, in New York City. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2012: Taylor Swift performs onstage during the MTV EMA's 2012 at Festhalle Frankfurt on November 11, 2012, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. (Andreas Rentz/Getty Images for MTV)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2013: Taylor Swift arrives at the 55th annual Grammy Awards on February 10, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Christopher Polk/Getty Images for NARAS)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2014: Musician Taylor Swift attends the "Charles James: Beyond Fashion" Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2014, in New York City. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2015: Taylor Swift, Jay-Z, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian attend the 57th annual Grammy Awards at the Staples Center on February 8, 2015, in Los Angeles. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2016: Recording artist Taylor Swift attends the 2016 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Graydon Carter at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on February 28, 2016, in Beverly Hills, California. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2017: Musician Taylor Swift performs onstage during the Super Saturday Night Concert at Club Nomadic on February 4, 2017, in Houston. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for DIRECTV)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2018: Taylor Swift attends the 2018 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on October 9, 2018, in Los Angeles. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2019: Taylor Swift performs during the TIME 100 Gala 2019 Dinner at Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 23, 2019, in New York City. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for TIME)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2020: Taylor Swift attends the 2020 Sundance Film Festival "Miss Americana" Premiere at Eccles Center Theatre on January 23, 2020, in Park City, Utah. (Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2021: Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff, and Aaron Dessner accept the Album of the Year award for "Folklore" onstage during the 63rd annual Grammy Awards at the Los Angeles Convention Center on March 14, 2021, in Los Angeles. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2021: Taylor Swift attends the "All Too Well" New York Premiere on November 12, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images) (DIMITRIOS.KAMBOURIS@GETTYIMAGES.COM/Getty Images)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2021: Writer-director Taylor Swift attends a premiere for the short film "All Too Well" at AMC Lincoln Square 13 on Friday, Nov. 12, 2021, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP) (Evan Agostini/Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2022: Taylor Swift speaks during a graduation ceremony for New York University at Yankee Stadium in New York, Wednesday, May 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) (Seth Wenig/AP)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years 2022: Taylor Swift waves to graduates as she participates in a graduation ceremony for New York University at Yankee Stadium in New York, Wednesday, May 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) (Seth Wenig/AP)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years Taylor Swift performs onstage during the Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour at Lumen Field on July 22, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Mat Hayward/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management) (Mat Hayward/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Mana)
Photos: Taylor Swift through the years Taylor Swift performs onstage during "Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour" at Lucas Oil Stadium on November 01, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management) (Kevin Mazur/TAS24/Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for TAS)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs talks on his phone after a game against the Chicago Bears at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on September 24, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (David Eulitt/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Travis Kelce and Donna Kelce attend the Netflix Premiere of "Quarterback" at Netflix Tudum Theater on July 11, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Randy Shropshire/Getty Images for Netflix)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Travis Kelce speaks to the crowd as the Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs are honored prior to the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on June 12, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Quarterback Patrick Mahomes (L) and tight end Travis Kelce of the NFL Kansas City Chiefs present U.S. President Joe Biden a team jersey at the White House on June 05, 2023 in Washington, DC. The Chiefs are the 2023 Super Bowl champions. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images) (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Travis Kelce #87 and Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrate on stage with teammates during the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVII victory parade on February 15, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jay Biggerstaff/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with the the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in Super Bowl LVII at State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2023: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs warms up prior to Super Bowl LVII against the Philadelphia Eagles at State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2022: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs and AFC signs autographs for fans after the 2022 NFL Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium on February 06, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2021: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs makes a catch against Lavonte David #54 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first quarter in Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium on February 07, 2021 in Tampa, Florida. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2020: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs exhorts fans during the Kansas City Super Bowl parade on February 5, 2020 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Kyle Rivas/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2020: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the San Francisco 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl LIV at Hard Rock Stadium on February 02, 2020 in Miami, Florida. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2020: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs reacts late in the game against the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 19, 2020 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2019: Tight end Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs runs up field during pre-game before a game against the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium on December 15, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2018: NFL player Travis Kelce reacts after being "slimed" onstage during the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Sports 2018 at Barker Hangar on July 19, 2018 in Santa Monica, California. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2018: Tight end Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs flexes his muscle after a touchdown catch beyond the coverage of inside linebacker Avery Williamson #54 of the Tennessee Titans during the first quarter of the AFC Wild Card Playoff Game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 6, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2017: Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce visits the SiriusXM set at Super Bowl LI Radio Row at the George R. Brown Convention Center on February 3, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
Travis Kelce through the years 2016: NFL player Travis Kelce attends the Cedars-Sinai Sports Spectacular at W Los Angeles, West Beverly Hills on March 25, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Sports Spectacular)
Travis Kelce through the years 2015: Tight end Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with fan while running off the field following the Chiefs 34-14 win over the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on December 20, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2016: Travis Kelce #87 and quarterback Alex Smith #11 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrate a fourth quarter touchdown by Spencer Ware during the AFC Wild Card Playoff game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium on January 9, 2016 in Houston, Texas. (Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2012: Teammates Dan Giordano #99, George Winn #32, Travis Kelce #18 and Brendon Kay #11 of the Cincinnati Bearcats celebrate after defeating the Duke Blue Devils 48-34 during their game at Bank of America Stadium on December 27, 2012 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Travis Kelce through the years 2012: Travis Kelce #18 of the Cincinnati Bearcats reacts after scoring the game winning touchdown against the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Bank of America Stadium on December 27, 2012 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)