The Kansas City Chiefs tight end is quite the catch, on and off the field. The two-time Super Bowl champion is one of the biggest stars in sports who has won the hearts of many admirers, but Travis Kelce’s dating history shows he’s given his own to a select few.
Most people assume Kelce’s media attention spurred from his Super Bowl victories but OG fans of the athlete have had eyes on him since 2016 when he appeared on E! Networks’ Catching Kelce, a reality show centered around his dating life. But, more on that later. For those just hopping on the Travis Kelce train, we’ll run back some stats of the star player.
To much surprise, he wasn’t always considered a star on the field. In his early days of football, Kelce was actually considered a two-star recruit coming out of high school by Rivals.com.
He accepted a scholarship from the University of Cincinnati to play as the college team’s tight end — a decision that eventually landed him a spot playing with the pros. In 2013, Kelce was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in round three of the NFL draft and 63rd pick overall.
After a rough start to his rookie season due to a knee injury, Kelce hit the ground running in his second year. For real — he had 67 receptions and ran the most receiving yards out of anyone on his team. A total of 862 yards to be exact, which is typically unheard of for a tight end.
Kelce would go on to win Super Bowls LIV and LVII alongside his teammates and now has a case to be considered the greatest tight end of all time.Anyway, back to what you came here for: Travis Kelce’s dating life. Let’s dive in.
Who is Travis Kelce dating?
Here’s a running total.
Kayla Nicole (2017 – 2022)
Kelce’s longest public relationship to date was with fashion influencer and journalist Kayla Nicole.
The on-air reporter’s passion for sports goes way back, long before crossing paths with her then-beau. Nicole obtained her Bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from Pepperdine University in 2013 and has since appeared covering NBA courtside action on the NFL sidelines and even dishing out some entertainment news.
In addition to Nicole’s media career, her roles as an influencer and ambassador for brands like Savage x Fenty, Revolve, and Crocs have helped her garner over half a million social media followers.
One of those followers being Kelce himself. He set his sights on Nicole via Instagram, and it didn’t take long for Nicole to notice her admirer was throwing “all double taps and no DM.” In a since-deleted Instagram story captured by TMZ, Nicole spilled she was the one to make the first move by sliding into Kelce’s DMs “after a little liquid courage.”
Their initial flirtatious exchanges in 2017 ignited an on-again, off-again relationship over five years.Reports blamed their first breakup in August 2020 on Kelce’s infidelity, which he denied in a Tweet responding to accusations. “This is fake news … a lie … and not why Kayla and I broke up … take all your hatred somewhere else, please.”
In November 2020, the couple was back on and kept going strong until officially turning in the towel in May 2022. This time, rumors for the second (and final) breakup were said to be because of financial reasons. Allegedly, Kelce was keen on Nicole splitting all expenses 50/50, but both parties vehemently called BS.
During an interview with the hosts of The Pivot Podcast, Kelce jumped to his ex-girlfriend’s defense saying that Nicole lives a “financially stable life” because of her successful career. He went on to say people were crazy to think he wasn’t willing to put down his wallet.“We were in a relationship for five years,” Kelce stated. “A hundred dollars here and hundred dollars there wasn’t even thought about.”
The two deleted each other’s presence from their social media profiles, which is always a tell-tale sign that it’s over.
Maya Benberry (2016)
Before Kayla, came Maya.Once upon a time, in 2016, before Kelce competed for Super Bowl rings, he competed for a chance at love. That’s right, the TE had his own reality-dating show on the E! Network called Catching Kelce, where 50 women representing each of the 50 states took a chance to win Kelce’s heart. Maya Benberry from Kentucky was Kelce’s first-draft pick in the end.
However, the couple only carried on for about eight months, which wasn’t necessarily surprising to most. After all, Catching Kelce didn’t overpromise a “happily-ever-after” conclusion. It was just your average matchmaking series with a prize minimum of a couple of months’ relationship with a handsomely charming pro athlete.
The conversation regarding the reason for their split took a turn in May 2017 when Kelce’s new relationship with Kayla Nicole was confirmed by TMZ.Benberry took to Twitter to comment on reports about her ex-boyfriend’s new relationship status. In the since-deleted Tweets captured by The Shade Room, Benberry accused Kelce of cheating on her with Nicole after seeing that the couple had already been dating for six months.
“When you and your ex broke up five months ago but you find out via social media that he’s supposedly been in another relationship for 6…” Benberry allegedly wrote.She goes on to call out Kelce for claiming he was single in 2017 during one of their text exchanges. It’s still unclear if there was any overlap.
Unofficial flings
While Travis Kelce’s dating history in the public eye has been seemingly brief, a few short-term GFs might be unaccounted for.
After the final split with Kayla Nicole in 2022, speculations surrounding a possible fling with Access Hollywood correspondent Zuri Hall. The intrigue sparked in October of that year when a video surfaced, posted by a friend of Kelce’s, capturing the entertainment host hanging in the same room as Kelce (wow — they’re basically married!). Around the same time, Hall was also seen attending a Kansas City Chiefs game where she was seated in the same box suite as Kelce’s family, according to Barstool Sports.
Both Kelce and Hall never confirmed if there was anything romantic going on and no longer follow each other on Instagram.
In April 2023, Kelce was also rumored to be linked with Grammy-winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion after snapshots of the two at the Country Music Awards surfaced. It’s alleged that Kelce even went as far as to fly the Houston-based rapper to Austin, the location of the award show, aboard his private jet.Once again, the rumors were never confirmed, and it seems as though the two are likely just good pals, as evidenced by their mutual following of each other on IG.
A few months before the CMT news, in January 2023, Kelce confirmed his single status to the hosts of The Pivot Podcast. “I’m in the free market right now,” he said. “I’m out there just enjoying life. Focused on my profession.”
Or, maybe he’s just holding out for his ultimate crush, Taylor Swift, whom Kelce tried to shoot his shot with while attending The Eras Tour Kansas City show. Unfortunately for Kelce, their meet-cute will have to wait another day as Swift is under strict vocal rest when she isn’t performing.
Let’s also not forget that Swift is a professed Philadelphia Eagles fan. So, who knows, Travis, maybe it would be worth crossing over to your rivals’ side to win Taylor over.
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