Taylor Swift Secretly Supported Travis Kelce at Games Before She Was Spotted in September, Chiefs Coach Says

Taylor Swift was secretly coming to Kansas City Chiefs games before anyone knew, a team coach claims.

Swift, 34, immediately made headlines when she first appeared in a team skybox last fall to cheer on her boyfriend Travis Kelce as their relationship blossomed.

The “Cruel Summer” singer was first spotted on camera at the Chiefs’ home game against the Chicago Bears on September 24 during the third week of the season.

But Kansas City Chiefs defensive backs coach Dave Merritt says in a new interview that she was showing up in the crowd at the Chiefs’ games before even then.

“When she started to come around, it was privately. She was coming into the stadiums without people really knowing until the camera put a big spotlight on it,” Merritt said on the “The Sports Shop with Reese and K-Mac” podcast, which aired last Friday.

Upon meeting her, I felt like she actually added to what it was we were trying to do,” Merritt said. “Because there were so many people that were hating the fact that she was being shown on the TV. [We were like], you know what? You’re part of our family because you’re with Travis, so therefore you’re our little sister. You’re part of our family.”

Merritt continued: “She actually affected the team in a positive way. It wasn’t a negative way. Everybody was excited that Travis was happy. So, when my player, my brother, is happy beside me that helps me and that encourages me. Travis came in there a different man.”

Merritt continued: “She actually affected the team in a positive way. It wasn’t a negative way. Everybody was excited that Travis was happy. So, when my player, my brother, is happy beside me that helps me and that encourages me. Travis came in there a different man.”

Kelce, also 34, became the talk of the NFL throughout the season for his play on the field and his high-profile relationship off of it.

Rumors about their budding romance began swimming around the internet early in the season after Kelce joked on his New Heights podcast that he tried to give Swift a friendship bracelet with his phone number on it when she performed her Eras Tour concert in Kansas City last July.

Swift confirmed in an interview with Time Magazine late last year that “we started hanging out right after that.” The “Love Story” singer also indicated then that she and Kelce had been privately seeing each other before she began sitting in the team’s skybox alongside Kelce’s family and friends last September.

We actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other,” Swift said

We actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other,” Swift said

Swift continued to show up at many of the Chiefs’ games throughout the season, and the team would ultimately go on to win their second-straight Super Bowl with the pop star there in support.

An insider told PEOPLE earlier this month that Kelce and Swift are now “making plans for the summer and are excited to travel together in Europe when Taylor takes her tour there.”

Kelce jetted to Australia last week to meet up with Swift and see her perform in Sydney, rocking multiple friendship bracelets and tying their story back to the start.