Breakups are never easy, especially when everyone is watching. Sports broadcaster and influencer Kayla Nicole certainly shares the sentiment. Her public breakup with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce created quite a stir last year.
Kayla Nicole and Travis Kelce dated and broke up several times for over five years. So, what led to their final separation? Were the rumors of Kelce’s cheating true? Let’s rewind rewind their relationship.
Highlights
- Kayla Nicole and Travis Kelce had an on-off relationship from 2017 to 2022.
- Kelce denied rumors of cheating and financial disputes leading to their breakup.
- Kayla Nicole continues thriving in sports journalism and fashion modeling.
- Kelce hinted at retirement, but enjoys lucrative endorsement deals.
Kayla Nicole and Travis Kelce: A Relationship Timeline
Travis Kelce and Kayla Nicole had a high-profile, on-and-off romance from 2017 until their final split in 2022.
So, how did the couple first meet? On the good old Instagram! Kayla Nicole slid into Kelce’s DMs on New Year’s Eve after some “liquid courage.”
“He had been following me and insta-flirting for a few months,” Kayla revealed to HELLO! Magazine. “All double taps and no DM. Soooo after a little liquid courage and a pep talk from @iqueenb (something along the lines of ‘WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR’) I dm’d him on New Year’s,” she shared in a now-removed Instagram story.
This was one year before “Catching Kelce,” a reality dating show on which 50 women competed to win the heart of an NFL player.
In 2016, contestant Maya Benberry of Kentucky won Kelce’s heart at the end of the highly forgettable show (even Kelce wants you to, according to Vanity Fair) — the relationship didn’t go anywhere.
Kayla Nicole came into Kelce’s life in 2018. The couple made their relationship official in July during their red carpet-debut at the ESPY Awards. The next day, they attended the 2018 Kids’ Choice Sports Awards wearing complementary striped outfits (via MaximoTV).
In February 2020, they were seen once more sitting courtside at the Lakers-Grizzlies game. Later that same month, they took the lead in a celebration parade following the Chiefs’ victory over the 49ers in the Super Bowl (per TMZ).
Why Did Kayla Nicole and Travis Kelce Break Up?
Nicole and Kelce broke up for the first time in 2020. The split came amid rumors of Kelce’s infidelity, which he vehemently denied.
“This is fake news … a lie … and not why Kayla and I broke up … take all your hatred somewhere else, please,” he posted on X. TMZ captured the screenshot of the now-deleted tweet. The couple wiped each other from their social media accounts right after this.
The breakup was brief, however, and the couple was back together by December 2020. The NFL player referred to Nicole as “my girlfriend Kayla” while discussing his Christmas list during an interview with the WNBA’s Chiney Ogwumike (per TMZ).
“So obviously we’ve got the fam,” Kelce said. “My girlfriend Kayla. Kayla is definitely on the list.”
“She’s the best,” Kelce added. “She’s the absolute best.”
Break Up in 2022
In May 2022, the high-profile power couple broke up again. Although the real reason remains unknown, bizarre rumors have circulated about the split.
One such rumor was that the couple was financially at loggerheads, and Kelce would force Nicole to pay for half of everything. Both have denied the rumor.
“The story is crazy, man!” Kelce said at the Pivot Podcast in 2023. “Don’t buy into that s***, don’t buy into it,” he added.
“I would never say that I was supporting her. She had a very financially stable life and what she was doing in her career.”
Kelce continued, “But you’ve got to be crazy if you’d think I would never help or give her a couple thousand to grab some food or she gave me some money to go get some food.... we were in a relationship for five years.”
Nicole also clapped back at the rumors. “Do I look like anybody that would split anything?” she said on the Unapologetically Angel podcast.
“OK. So yeah, that was ridiculous. But he addressed that, too, though. I don’t even know how people — why that even became a thing.”
Nicole reiterated, "There’s no bill splitting…If people like to split their bills with their man, I think that that’s what you should do. I don’t do that.”
In 2024, The Sun reported another potential reason for their break up. It captured a now-deleted Kayla’s TikTok, which said: “You’re not stupid Kayla. No, I am actually. Thought I’d get wifed after dating for 5 years. That’s 1,825 days.”
It could be one reason for the split, although the exes haven’t spoken about it publicly.
The same year, Nicole posted another TikTok, poking fun at the relentless media attention she received after the breakup.
“When I do literally anything at all on this here internet,” she captioned the video of herself, where she used a filter to look like police were chasing her.
[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@iamkaylanicolesweetie/video/7140285848972627246[/embed]
Kayla Nicole’s Life After Travis Kelce
Nicole, a sports journalist and fashion influencer, continues to cover major NBA and NFL games. Despite her personal history with Kelce, she kept things strictly professional when addressing his slow start to the 2024 season (per Yahoo! Sports).
When not covering games, Kayla pursues a career in modeling and is an ambassador for several athleisure fashion brands.
In October 2023, she relaunched her fitness brand, Tribe Therepē. The health and fitness website has been modeled around the tools she learned in her post-breakup therapy sessions.
In an interview with People, she reflected on the emotional struggles she faced, saying, “I was in really great shape, but I felt like s**t, and I was sad, and I was having a hard time getting out of bed.”
Nicole emphasized the importance of mental health, adding, “It’s one thing to be physically fit, but it’s another thing to be mentally fit. You could be in the best shape of your life, but mentally, if you are not a healthy person, it’s not going to feel good.”
Fighting back tears, she shared how she “lost a substantial amount of weight” in a short period, admitting she wasn’t sleeping or eating properly.
“People were commenting on my posts saying, ‘You look so good. Tell us your tricks. You look amazing,’” Nicole recalled. “And I’m thinking, ‘I’m miserable. I’m depressed.’”
Opinion of Psychologist Daniel Hoadley
Nicole’s comments point to classic signs of depression, especially given the timing after a breakup. While she doesn’t directly link her struggles to the split, the symptoms she describes (feeling miserable, struggling to get out of bed, losing weight quickly, and not eating or sleeping properly) are all symptoms of depression.
She also touches on something a lot of people experience: the disconnect between looking healthy and actually feeling okay. She was in great shape, yet mentally, she was struggling. The way people praised her appearance while she felt awful only made that contrast more stark.
Of course, these signs could also point to other mental health issues. Anxiety or even burnout could be playing a role, especially considering the pressures of being a well-known sports journalist. High-profile figures often feel the need to ‘keep it together’ in public, which can make it even harder to open up in the earlier stages. - Daniel Hoadley
Kelce’s Dating Life Post Nicole
In October 2022, Travis Kelce was briefly linked to Access Hollywood correspondent Zuri Hall after she was spotted watching a Chiefs game from his family suite. Fans also noticed her in the background of a video one of Kelce’s friends posted, fueling speculation about their relationship.
However, the rumored romance appears to have been driven by fan theories, as neither Zuri nor Kelce ever confirmed the connection.
By 2023, Kelce clarified his relationship status during an interview on The Pivot Podcast, saying, “I’m in the free market right now. I’m out there just enjoying life, focused on my profession.”
Meeting Taylor Swift
Travis Kelce wasn’t shy about his interest in Taylor Swift. During her Eras Tour stop at Arrowhead Stadium in September 2023, Kelce tried to catch her attention with a playful gesture – a friendship bracelet featuring his phone number. Unfortunately for Kelce, Swift declined to meet him at the time.
Not one to give up easily, Kelce made another move shortly after. On The Pat McAfee Show, he shared how he invited Swift to one of his games. “I told her, ‘I’ve seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage in Arrowhead.’ We’ll see what happens in the near future,” Kelce revealed.
Swift finally made things official in November 2023 during her Eras Tour concert. She playfully changed the lyrics of her song, swapping “Karma is the guy on the screen coming straight home to me” for “Karma is the guy on the Chiefs coming straight home to me.” Later that night, she was spotted kissing Kelce after the show.
The couple has been together ever since.
How Fans and the Media Reacted to Nicole-Kelsey Breakup
During the interview with Unapologetically Angel podcast, Nicole revealed that she was trolled and received online hate from Swifties.
“I would be lying if I said that that level of hate and just, like, online chaos didn’t impact me; it does. Even to this day,” Nicole opened up in an interview.
“You can go to my most recent post and it will be people debating each other why I am worthless and I’ll never be a talented person and I have no career,” she added.
Nicole said she thought the hate came from people going “overboard” with their obsession over celebrities. “I think that there’s something about that level of fame that attracts crazy people, and it’s unfortunate because I’ve never done anything to warrant that kind of backlash,” Nicole expressed her disappointment.
She admitted she no longer communicates with Kelce, fearing backlash from Swifties. “We’ve seen each other in public spaces,” she told Reese during the podcast.
Where Do Kayla Nicole and Travis Kelce Stand Today?
Kayla is set to appear in the third season of “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test,” a reality show where celebrities are subjected to rigorous military-style challenges.
“I'm excited for viewers to see a raw, vulnerable side of me... This experience has been transformative, pushing me beyond my perceived limits,” she told Page Six.
Meanwhile, Kelce’s relationship with Taylor Swift continues to attract significant public attention. There’s speculation that Kelce is ready to propose after he reported asking friends about finding the perfect wedding ring.
On the professional side, his NFL career appears to be in a slump. The 35-year-old hinted at retirement when he gushed that it might be his last time playing in his hometown, Cleveland, Ohio.
“I just love that city, man,” he said on Jason Kelce’s podcast, New Heights (per Entertainment Tonight). “I don’t know if it’s the last time I’ll ever play in Cleveland, but it kinda felt like I was just giving it one last hurrah before I’m done because I’ve only played there twice in 12 years.”
The retirement won’t affect him much, though. The NFL star earns millions in endorsement deals with McDonald’s, Nike, Papa John’s, Bud Light, T-Mobile, Old Spice, and Walgreens.