Why Travis Kelce's 2024 Athlete Of The Year Victory Is So Ironic
Before the Super Bowl took place, Travis Kelce learned that he was a nominee for the People's Choice Athlete of the Year Award when the list was unveiled in January 2024. Just days later, the NFL tight end took to his New Heights podcast to call out the nomination, questioning, "[That is] F**king nonsense. How am I on this?" later adding, "What did I do to get Athlete of the Year? I did [Saturday Night Live]" (via The U.S. Sun). When Kelce's name was announced during the People's Choice Awards ceremony in February, he was absent, opting to remain in Missouri to continue celebrating his team's Super Bowl win.
Kelce helped lead his team to the Super Bowl victory against the San Francisco 49ers on February 11, 2024. In addition to his 11-season career, Kelce's popularity has also soared among music fans when it was learned that he was dating Taylor Swift in 2023. All of this may have contributed to his People's Choice Athlete of the Year victory on February 18, 2024, which was ironic.
Kelce previously called his nomination for the award 'nonsense'
Kelce may be an adored football player, but he surely had some stiff competition. His remarks about his Athlete of the Year nomination for the People's Choice Awards seem to show he didn't exactly feel that he belonged among them. Tennis star Coco Gauff, NBA star players Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, and Stephen Curry, soccer superstar Lionel Messi, WNBA player Sabrina Ionescu, and gymnast Simone Biles were all nominated for Athlete of the Year for their many accomplishments. Though each of these nominees earned such an acknowledgment, Kelce was not excited to hear that his name had made the list.
While Kelce may have felt underqualified for the award, there had been some chatter about him bringing in popularity votes due to his highly publicized relationship with superstar Taylor Swift. The pair managed to take over headlines throughout the majority of the 2023 season, angering some fans with the intense spotlight on them at the games. With Kelce securing the Athlete of the Year trophy, as voted by fans, football viewers were only further annoyed.
NFL fans believed Travis Kelce was undeserving of the award because of his behavior on the field
In addition to Travis Kelce's ties to Taylor Swift being rumored to have contributed to his People's Choice Award win, some believed he shouldn't have been awarded after several alarming moments. One instance that frustrated viewers took place during the Super Bowl. Kelce was criticized for yelling at Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid while on the sidelines. Some social media users even accused Kelce of having anger and alcohol issues, with one Twitter user writing, "Sad when a man with anger and alcohol issues is honored like he is wonderful."
In March 2024, he secured another prize at the iHeartPodcast Awards, which saw Travis and his brother Jason Kelce take home the Podcast of the Year. During their acceptance speech, the brothers even playfully thanked Swift fans. "Listen, this is an incredible honor, especially for two jabronis like us, to receive an award like this is beyond humbling and we would be remiss if we didn't immediately thank all of the 92 percenters out there — aka Swifties — who voted for us to win this award," Jason expressed on stage (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Elsewhere, with the 2023 NFL season complete and Swift no longer on her Eras tour, the pair is reportedly resting in Los Angeles. He also turned his attention to opening a new 1587 Prime restaurant with fellow teammate Patrick Mahomes. It seems that Kelce has already moved on from his interesting Athlete of the Year honor.