Sisters Katie and Stephanie Speicher show off their Taylor Swift-themed friendship bracelets and 13 hands before Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concert at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on May 12, 2023.
Stephanie Speicher held by the Nittany Lion at her first Penn State football game.
Sisters Katie and Stephanie Speicher show off their Taylor Swift-themed friendship bracelets and 13 hands before Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concert at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on May 12, 2023.
I was about 3 years old when I attended my first football game.
My dad took me to see Penn State, and while I have no memory of that game, I do have a ’90s-quality photo of the Nittany Lion holding me on the field.
I’ve been going to Penn State football games ever since.
I started watching the NFL with my dad when I was about 8. I distinctly remember sitting with him in our living room, asking him what felt like hundreds of questions about the game.
What do the lines on the field mean?
How many points are scored in a touchdown?
What exactly is a holding penalty?
How does a challenge work?
Each week, Dad would patiently answer all my questions, explaining every aspect of the game.
It didn’t take long for me to get it and, in turn, to love watching the NFL — especially the Steelers.
Essentially, I’ve been a football fan for most of my life.
Stephanie Speicher held by the Nittany Lion at her first Penn State football game.
As many know, I’ve also been a Taylor Swift fan for most of my life, since she released her first single in 2006.
As a lifelong football fan and a proud Swiftie, I feel inherently qualified to talk about this year’s Super Bowl.
I truly do not understand the backlash Taylor has been getting for merely showing up to support her boyfriend and his team — Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs, in case you’ve somehow managed to avoid all the fanfare.
As Taylor said, there are a lot of angry “dads, Brads and Chads” because of her visibility during NFL broadcasts.
But here’s the thing, she can’t control what these broadcast networks choose to show during the game. She’s not the one directing the cameras or the decisions in the production studio.
Considering the level of some people’s anger — I’ve seen many videos on social media of men literally screaming about how much they hate seeing her on TV — you’d think she was on the air for an hour.
On average she’s been shown less than 25 seconds at the games she’s attended. Keep in mind that football games last well over three hours. That means Taylor Swift is on screen 0.2% of the game time.
Again in the words of Taylor, “You need to calm down.”
But what stands out most to me since she started cheering for Travis back in September is the significant increase of women watching NFL football.
According to MarketWatch, female football viewership rose 24% in the age range of 18-24, 34% in those over 35, and a whopping 53% in girls 12-17.
These women, and girls, are interested in learning about a new sport thanks to their favorite singer.
I’ve seen social media posts from men saying how happy they are that their daughters now actively want to watch football with them. Every time I see one of those posts, it brings me right back to being 8 and learning about football with my dad. A beautiful father-daughter experience is now being created for many by the convergence of two different interests in one stadium.
While I love sports, there are always a few frustrations that come with being a female fan.
There’s a tendency for men to question us about the sport, to make us prove we’re “real” fans. For example:
Who’s your favorite Steelers player? (Pat Freiermuth)
What position does he play? (tight end)
How many Super Bowl rings do the Steelers have? (six)
Who’s Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback? (I’m not really sure the Steelers can answer that one at the moment. Will it be Kenny Pickett? Will Mason Rudolph get the nod? Or will they try to snag someone in the draft? Who knows.)
You get the idea.
It’s unfortunate that women sometimes have to justify their place in a male-dominated space.
But that’s not isolated to sports. It can be true in agriculture, too.
In our new FarmHouse podcast, we’ve heard stories of women being passed over by customers who assume the man is the owner of the farm. But we’ve also heard encouraging stories of women making strides in ag leadership positions.
While our podcast certainly doesn’t have the broad reach of Taylor Swift — not yet anyway — I hope that opening a space for women in ag to share their stories can in turn open up the potential for other women to grow their interest in farming and the ag industry.
If you don’t plan on watching the Super Bowl, maybe check out one of our FarmHouse episodes instead. You can find them at LancasterFarming.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
I will be watching the Super Bowl with my dad, cheering on the Chiefs and hoping that Taylor Swift has fun.
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Social Media Editor
Stephanie Speicher is the social media editor at Lancaster Farming. She can be reached at [email protected] or 717-721-4457. Follow her on Twitter @Steph_Speicher.
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