Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce said on Wednesday he was honoured that US president Donald Trump would attend Sunday's Super Bowl in New Orleans, despite the Republican's previous invective towards Kelce's girlfriend Taylor Swift.
Mr Trump will become the first sitting president to be a spectator at the NFL title game, in which the Kansas City Chiefs will go for an unprecedented "three-peat" against the Philadelphia Eagles at the Superdome.
"It's a great honor I think, no matter who the president is," Kelce told reporters.
"I'm excited because it's the biggest game of my life, you know, and having the president there - it's the best country in the world so it'd be pretty cool."
Kelce has been in a relationship since 2023 with pop mega-star Swift, who brought legions of new fans to the NFL when she began showing up at Chiefs games to support the 10-times Pro Bowler.
Swift, who attended the Chiefs' AFC Championship game last month, endorsed Trump's Democratic opponent Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, prompting Mr Trump to post "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT" on his Truth Social account.
Kelce's teammate Patrick Mahomes, the three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback, also told reporters he was excited to perform in front of Mr Trump.
"It’s always cool to be able to play in front of a sitting president. Someone that is at the top position in our country," Mahomes said.
