Kayla Nicole, the recently engaged Travis Kelce’s ex-girlfriend, caught fans' attention with a post perceived as a response to her old beau formalizing his relationship with Taylor Swift.
The two dated intermittently between 2017 and 2022, when the breakup gave rise to infidelity rumors.
The following year, it became apparent that Kelce was pursuing Swift, with engagement speculation taking flight months after they first met.
Highlights
- Kayla Nicole dated Travis Kelce on and off between 2017 and 2022.
- Their breakup was marred by rumors of cheating and financial disputes.
- Hours after Kelce and Taylor Swift announced their engagement, Nicole shared a workout post with pointed text.
Then, on August 27, the Diamond-certified record maker took to her Instagram account to show off the moment Kelce popped the big question.
Kayla Nicole and Travis Kelce had been dating on and off for five years
Image credits: Michael Owens/Getty
Nicole, a sports journalist, model, influencer, and podcaster, got to know the Kansas City tight-end through Instagram.
It started with Kelce liking her pictures, and then, on one New Year's Day, she sent a DM. An intimate relationship followed, along with multiple breakups and reconciliations.
One of the most notable breakups transpired in 2020. Reports that Kelce had cheated on her surfaced, but he denied these allegations in a now-deleted tweet.
Image credits: Allen Berezovsky/Getty
“This is fake news … a lie … and not why Kayla and I broke up … take all your hatred somewhere else please,” the 250 lb. footballer wrote at the time.
Their last breakup was financially motivated
The final breakup came in 2022, and Barstool Sports reported that the separation was financially motivated.
Kelce allegedly wanted Nicole to foot half their expenses, which did not sit well with her.
Image credits: iamkaylanicole
Although neither has confirmed nor denied the report, she later announced on social media that she got their dogs after the breakup, which at one point cost her $2,000.
Speaking on The Pivot Podcast, Kelce lashed out at this claim, saying: “You got to be crazy, if you think I’ve never helped or gave her a couple dollars to grab some food.”
Nicole once described going public with a breakup as “overwhelming”
Image credits: iamkaylanicole
Nicole appears to have kept out of the post-relationship spotlight through 2023, even when Swift and Kelce started popping up together and causing a stir every time they did.
She did, however, surface in the reality show Special Forces: The World's Toughest Test with the admission: “Going through a public breakup, just to be frank, it’s been overwhelming.”
Image credits: killatrav
“It doesn’t matter, I could post about the sky being blue and people will have a response about an ex and their new situation. It’s inadvertently affected me to the point where it makes me question my overall value as a person,” she observed at the time, per NBC.
The sports journalist previously talked about how fans connected everything she said in the wake of her breakup to Kelce
Then, on August 26, Kelce and Swift announced their engagement. “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married,” the singer captioned a photo of the footballer on one knee, supposedly proposing to her.
Image credits: killatrav
In a text overlay, she wrote: “The goal? A back that says stop f–king playing with me,” with Gunna’s “Made for This S**t,” playing in the background.
Nicole also reposted a snippet of Girlfriends alum, Tracee Ellis Ross, talking about joy.
Image credits: Steve Granitz/Getty
“Read about this very concept years ago in a book called Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn't Enough,” she wrote over the clip.
Netizens want her to move on
Netizens have an overwhelming amount of sympathy for Nicole, but many are telling her to move on.
“I think Kayla sees the man she wished he would have been for her. Travis was younger and a lot more wild when he was with her. I'd be upset too if I was her because she loved that man,” wrote one person.
Image credits: killatrav
“It seems apparent to me that his past attractions are polar opposite from who he just proposed to. Just saying,” observed another.
“Get over it,” advised one commenter. “He has moved on. She should do the same. A man will do right by the one he truly loves and that’s just how it goes!”
Some fans think that Nicole may be bitter
