Swift says no formal Super Bowl offer, focus on Kelce's season

Taylor Swift said she never formally turned down an invitation to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show and that she was never presented with a contract, telling Jimmy Fallon on Monday that informal inquiries from Jay-Z’s Roc Nation never progressed to an offer. Speaking on The Tonight Show to promote her new album, The Life of a Showgirl, Swift said her real reason for not pursuing the slot is personal: she is focused on fiancé Travis Kelce and his National Football League season.

“Jay-Z has always been very good to me. Our teams are really close,” Swift told Fallon, describing occasional, informal outreach in which Roc Nation asked “How does she feel about the Super Bowl?” and stressing that such conversations were not “an official offer or, like, a conference room conversation.” She said it was not a matter of negotiating rights to performance footage, a rumor that circulated online, and that even if an offer had been made she would have declined for personal reasons.

Swift framed her choice around Kelce’s playing season. “I am in love with a guy who does that sport on that actual field,” she said. “That is violent chess. That is gladiators without swords. That is...