The 2026 Super Bowl wasn’t just about the Seattle Seahawks’ dominant 29-13 victory over the New England Patriots; it was also the stage for some major off-field fireworks. Kayla Nicole, the on-air sports journalist who dated Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce for five years, stole the spotlight during a commercial break for the betting app Sleeper. In a move that set social media ablaze, Nicole appeared to take several pointed jabs at her ex-boyfriend and his fiancée, Taylor Swift.
The “Ex-Communicators” and the “Swift” Jab
The ad featured comedian Tiffany Haddish and NBA player Ben Simmons as “emotional injury specialists” running a firm called Simmons & Haddish. Their mission? Helping clients get “ex-communicated” from high-profile exes. Haddish opened the spot by asking, “Have you
or someone you know been injured emotionally in a high-profile relationship? It’s very common.”
Nicole, 34, appeared as a skeptical client, jokingly rating the service while referencing her own public breakup. “Don’t get me started on these two,” she quipped. “They’ve got no idea what they’re doing. At all.” The most viral moment occurred when Nicole argued over how fast the service would work. After she suggested words like “quickly” and “pronto,” Simmons delivered the punchline that everyone interpreted as a nod to Kelce’s fiancée: “I said swiftly, why is that so hard to remember?” ### A Growing Feud and “Opalite” Lyrics
The timing of the ad is significant, coming nearly four years after Nicole and Kelce’s 2022 split and just months after Swift released her 12th studio album, Life of a Showgirl. Fans have long speculated that Swift’s track “Opalite” was a direct dig at Nicole, featuring lyrics like: “You were in it for real, she was in her phone and you were just a pose.” Nicole previously appeared to respond to the song by posting a clip from America’s Next Top Model where a contestant says, “I don’t compare myself to other girls… I’m no comparison to anyone else.”
By appearing in the Sleeper ad alongside other famous exes like Offset and Love Island USA’s Ace Greene, Nicole seems to be reclaiming the narrative. While the “Swifties” have been quick to criticize the influencer for “obsessing” over the couple, many others praised her for using humor to address the “ex-girlfriend fiasco” on the world’s biggest advertising stage. Travis Kelce, who was in the stands as a spectator for the game, has yet to comment on his former flame’s breakout commercial moment.
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