Brittany Mahomes, Taylor Swift, Charles Barkley.Photo:Randy Shropshire/Getty; Neilson Barnard/Getty; Randy Holmes/ABC via Getty
Randy Shropshire/Getty; Neilson Barnard/Getty; Randy Holmes/ABC via Getty
Brittany MahomeshasTaylor Swift’s back!
Mahomes, 28, defended her friend on Instagram Friday, when she cosigned a take from NBA great and analystCharles Barkley, who argued this week that any football fan who claims Swift “ruined” football is just a “loser.”
“Let. Them. Know.” Mahomes wrote on her Instagram Storiesalongside a quotefrom Barkley’s CNN programKing Charles.
Mahomes' post comes just days after the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, 60, defended Swift, 34, during a Wednesday episode of his withGayle King.
“If you’re screaming at Taylor Swift saying she ruined [football], you’re just a loser. You’re just a loser or a jackass,” Barkleydeclared on air. “You can be A or B.”
Brittany Mahomes and Taylor Swift.Brittany Mahomes/Instagram
Brittany Mahomes/Instagram
Bob Costas, who appeared alongside King and Barkley during the discussion, then added that “a lot of people who don’t watch football all year long” tune into the Super Bowl — where Swift’s boyfriendTravis Kelce, Mahomes' husbandPatrickand the Kansas City Chiefs are set to take on the San Francisco 49ers on Feb. 11.
King then pointed to “all the new” viewers that Swift has “brought to the NFL.”
“It’s hard to imagine the Super Bowl could have a larger rating but in a small percentage it may even up that,” Costas said, sharing that the NFL “tapped into another demographic” with Swift’s appearances.
“And in terms of merchandise sales, the Travis Kelce jerseys and all the rest, and the attention to regular season games, the NFL reigns supreme not only over sports but over all of American entertainment,” he continued.
Taylor Swift and Brittany Mahomes attend an NFL game at Arrowhead Stadium in October 2023.David Eulitt/Getty
David Eulitt/Getty
The Herdhost Colin Cowherd has alsospoken this week aboutthose who are not embracing Swift’s relationship with Kelce, 34 — calling them “weird, lonely, insecure men."
The analyst added that most fans keeping up with NFL games don’t “just want to watch football” regardless, adding that “the commercials for four hours before the Super Bowl will be widely watched.”
“Did you know, statistically, in a three-and-a-half hour NFL playoff broadcast or regular-season broadcast, just 18 minutes are actual football,” he said. “About the length of five Taylor Swift songs.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Also supportive of Swift’s impact on the NFL is Hall of Fame quarterbackKurt Warnerwhospoke to PEOPLE about his appreciationfor her and Kelce’s relationship.
“Our sport has become as much about spectacle as anything that’s out there — and so I love it,” Warner, 52, said. “I love it more for those two because I know Travis and I’m a big fan, and that it seems to be working well for those two.”
He added, “It brings another layer of excitement to the games and to what’s going on, and to a fan base that maybe hadn’t watched that much football before, and now we’re watching it and maybe they tuned in for something besides football.”
source: people.com
