Remember Vice President JD Vance’s fear of the NFL giving the Kansas City Chiefs preferential treatment in the aftermath of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift’s engagement announcement? If the claim escaped your memory, it’s probably because it was totally unfounded.
Vance, a Cincinnati Bengals fan from Middletown, Ohio, told USA TODAY Sports in an exclusive interview in August of 2025 he hoped the NFL wouldn’t favor the Chiefs following Kelce and Swift’s engagement announcement.
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“I will say as a football fan − as a Cincinnati Bengals fan − I hope that the NFL does not put a thumb on the scale for the Kansas City Chiefs just because Travis Kelce is now getting married to maybe the most famous woman in the world,” Vance said at the time. “You guys can’t sort of have this, I’m worried they’re going to have a Super Bowl wedding thing this season. Can’t do it. The Kansas City Chiefs have to follow the same rules as everybody else.”
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
While it might seem shocking, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s rumored wedding at Madison Square Garden won’t be the first time the venue has seen such an event.
In between sports and concerts, Madison Square Garden has been home to two major wedding ceremonies in New York City’s history.
Here’s a look at the famed vows that took place at MSG as rumors of Swift and Kelce’s venue of choice continue to grow.
(Patrick Smith, Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
While it might seem shocking, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s rumored wedding at Madison Square Garden won’t be the first time the venue has seen such an event.
In between sports and concerts, Madison Square Garden has been home to two major wedding ceremonies in New York City’s history.
Here’s a look at the famed vows that took place at MSG as rumors of Swift and Kelce’s venue of choice continue to grow.
(Patrick Smith, Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
On June 5, 1974, signer Sly Stone married Kathy Silva at Madison Square Garden in a lavish ceremony.
Bishop B.R. Stewart (3rd from R) officiated the wedding onstage. Stone and Silva are pictured together by the microphone taking their vows.
(Peter Simins, WWD/Penske Media via Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Stone and Silva smile during their 1974 wedding at Madison Square Garden.
(Oscar Abolafia, TPLP/Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
As part of the ceremony, Stone (C) held a concert while attendees watched.
(Fairchild Archive, WWD/Penske Media via Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Stone performs during his wedding in Madison Square Garden.
(Ron Galella, Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Another notable wedding ceremony at Madison Square Garden, Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his wife, Hak Ja Han, famously married 2,075 couples during a mass wedding event on July 1, 1982.
(Yvonne Hemsey, Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Rev. Sun Myung Moon blessed 4,150 young men and women during the mass event.
(Bettmann, Bettmann Archive via Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Two brides congratulate each other during the ceremony.
(Yvonne Hemsey, Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his wife, Hak Ja Han, during the July 1 ceremony at Madison Square Garden.
(Yvonne Hemsey, Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
While not a wedding ceremony, another notable event that occurred at Madison Square outside of sports and music was Marilyn Monroe’s birthday serenade to President John F. Kennedy in 1962.
(Bettmann, Bettmann Archive via Getty Images)
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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wouldn’t be MSG’s first wedding. See who came before
Similarly, a more recent event held at Madison Square Garden outside of sports or concerts, was Mass facilitated by Pope Francis on September 25, 2015.
(Michael Appleton-Pool, Getty Images)
“So if we see the refs being particularly friendly to Kansas City Chiefs players, then I think all football fans should be willing to push back on the NFL and say, look, you guys got to be fair. Just because Travis is getting married to Taylor, you still can’t put your thumb on the scale for the Kansas City Chiefs.”
Vance’s words ignited NFL conspiracy theorists who believed the NFL had been biased toward the Chiefs following back-to-back Super Bowl titles.
But in the months after Vance’s comments, the Chiefs endured a nightmare season. Superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes sustained a season-ending knee injury in December, the Chiefs finished 6-11, third in the AFC West and out of the playoffs.
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The season was clear evidence the NFL wasn’t “particularly friendly” toward the Chiefs.
As for Kelce and Swift, they are expected to tie the knot on Friday, July 3, in New York City. The wedding is a few weeks before Kelce and the Chiefs begin training camp as they prepare for the 2026 season – a season where everyone can put their Chiefs conspiracies to bed.
