The 2025 Super Bowl was marked by something unusual and noticeable, beyond the usual football fanfare. The crowd booed Taylor Swift, an American pop icon, when she made her appearance. The event sparked a resurgence of the ongoing feud between Swift and former President Donald Trump. Their history of discord dates back to years before Trump embarked on his political career.
In the year 2012, Trump, still a businessman and reality TV star, publicly praised Swift, going as far as to describe a photo he took with her as ‘beautiful’ and ‘fantastic’. His admiration for the pop-star went beyond photos as he enthusiastically tweeted about her co-hosting a Grammy’s TV show. Only later would this amicable public display devolve into a contentious exchange on social media platforms.
Years later, in 2014, Trump was filmed driving a Rolls Royce in silence while Taylor Swift’s hit track ‘Blank Space’ played. It’s curious to see Trump’s youngest son, Barron, in the passenger seat during the clip. Swift, however, mostly maintained her silence in response to Trump, keeping politics outside of her celebrity persona.
In her early career, Swift was known for her quintessentially American blonde country singer image, perceived as a darling of conservative politics. But by October 2018, she pivoted from her previous diffidence about politics, citing several personal and global events that spurred her change in mindset.
Swift made her political stance clear by endorsing two Democratic candidates in her home state of Tennessee, marking a notable shift from her previous non-political image. Further displaying her discontent with Republican politics, Swift made her disdain for Republican senator Marsha Blackburn’s positions on women’s rights evident.
In response, Trump waved off Swift’s criticism. He praised Blackburn as a ‘tremendous woman’ and indicated that Swift had no real grasp of Blackburn’s record. Swift’s critique of Blackburn didn’t dissuade Trump from his support, but it did make him appreciate Swift’s music ‘about 25 percent less now’. It’s notable that Swift’s merchandise saw a 25 percent sale around this time, a seeming response to Trump’s comment.
Swift didn’t hide her discontent about Trump’s actions and comments related to the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. She condemned his behaviors and indicated the electorate’s willingness to remove him from office in the upcoming November elections.
In 2024, Swift again voiced her opposition to Trump. However, the year saw a proliferation of fabricated AI videos which falsely portrayed her endorsing Trump for the U.S. presidency. Amidst the disinformation campaign, Swift made it clear by explicitly endorsing Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate.
Swift’s endorsement statement took a path that subtly rebuked Trump. Instead of employing harsh words against Trump, Swift opted to express strong support for Harris and Tim Walz on their stances towards LGBTQ+ and women’s rights. It was impossible not to connect this endorsement with a derogatory comment made by Trump’s running mate, Vance, labeling Democrat politicians as ‘childless cat ladies’ who are ‘miserable at their own lives’. Swift’s sign-off, ‘Childless Cat Lady’, was more than just a signature, it was a firm retort.
In response, Trump retorted with his signature blunt and straightforward style, simply stating in all caps ‘I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!’. Additionally, his campaign cashed in on the feud, selling merchandise that mimicked Swift’s from The Eras Tour.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk took a middle-ground approach and in a way, skillfully defused the situation with a humorous tweet saying ‘Fine Taylor… you win… I will give you a child and guard your cats with my life’.
At the 2025 Super Bowl, Swift was reportedly in a private box with the HAIM sisters and Ice Spice. Rumor had it that she was there to support a footballer with whom she was rumored to be in a secretive relationship. The crowd’s reaction was less than welcoming when the cameras panned to her, resulting in noticeable boos.
The speculation was further fueled when Trump, who was also present at the stadium, retweeted videos of the event. He juxtaposed the cheering for him with the jeering for Swift, even going to the extent of commenting that the only individual having a harder time than the losing Kansas City Chiefs was Taylor Swift.
Despite Trump’s claim that ‘MAGA is very unforgiving’, it’s important to note that there is no clear evidence linking Swift’s booing exclusively to MAGA supporters. Swift has been at the receiving end of boos from American football fans pre-dating her endorsement of Kamala Harris. Some spectators even cheered for Swift, and contrary to Trump’s claims, many in the audience indeed jeered at him.
Furthermore, it’s worth correcting Trump’s spelling error; in his tweet, ‘Stadium’ should not be capitalized, as it’s not a proper noun. It could be argued that such petty grammatical mistakes reveal something about his character.
In the aftermath of the Super Bowl incident and tweets, Swift has chosen not to address Trump’s comments publicly as of yet.