American tennis star Frances Tiafoe recalled how his rise to fame led to invitations and interactions with the most powerful couple in football.
Tiafoe appeared on the podcast “The Pivot,” hosted by ex-NFL stars Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor and Channing Crowder, and revealed that he once took photos with Taylor Swift.
He also said he received invitations to Kansas City from a pair of Chiefs stars: Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes.
“I said it in real time, whoever I’m with, like, ‘Yo, I’m over here taking pictures with Taylor Swift,’” Tiafoe, 26, said on the podcast.
“Granted, I have to hold on a bit, we’re here at ‘The Pivot’ – I’m a Beyonce guy. But right now I’m thinking, man, this is crazy, she’s the biggest star here.
“Then Mahomes and Travis were like, ‘Yo, we need you there [Kansas City]. They say I think that’s wild and then they rolled out the red carpet for me.
Frances Tiafoe opened up about his rise in fame and how it has changed who he interacts with
Tiafoe said he once took photos with singer Taylor Swift (above left) and that Chiefs stars Travis Kelce (above center) and Patrick Mahomes (above right) invited him to Kansas City
“It’s crazy because playing tennis and being able to reach so many people and people wanting to meet me and hang out and do stuff, those are the things, that’s why you do what you do.”
Tiafoe did not reveal when or where these hangouts took place, but said he keeps in touch with other stars, such as tennis legend John McEnroe and New York Knicks teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart.
The 26-year-old has not been seen in public with Swift or Kelce. However, the famous couple also played some tennis themselves at last summer’s US Open in Flushing, Queens.
Swift and Kelce were joined by Mahomes and his wife Brittany from a suite at Arthur Ashe Stadium for the men’s singles final between American Taylor Fritz and Italian Jannik Sinner.
Fritz – who defeated Tiafoe in the semi-finals of the grand slam tournament in five sets – eventually lost to Sinner in straight sets.
Tiafoe is still looking for his first Grand Slam title. His best result at any of the four major tennis tournaments was two places in the semi-finals at the US Open in 2022 and 2024. In previous years he also reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.
The rising star said he’s “just a regular guy from Maryland” and insists he isn’t defined by the sport he plays.
“I have a lot of interests outside of hitting a tennis ball, and you can feel it,” he said. ‘I am who I am, in every room. I’m not trying to pretend to be someone else.’
Tiafoe is one of the starting players in the upcoming Australian Open men’s singles tournament
He noticed a rise in his popularity at the 2022 US Open, when he defeated Rafael Nadal in the fourth round to reach the quarterfinals.
‘It’s amazing how things can change just like that. Suddenly everyone wants to come and watch, people hit me, I go to events.
‘It took me a while to accept that because I never really saw myself that way. But now I’ve kind of embraced it and it’s definitely helped me.”
Tiafoe is currently ranked No. 17 in the ATP Rankings and is one of the seeded men’s singles players at the 2025 Australian Open – which starts in just three days.