Serena Williams Explains Why She Avoided Taylor Swift at the 2025 Super Bowl: ‘I Completely Understand’

During the halftime show of the game, the retired tennis champion made a brief appearance, showing off her dance moves. Meanwhile, Swift was in the audience to support her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, whose team, the Kansas City Chiefs, were playing against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Serena Williams was also at the event with her husband, Alexis Ohanian, and their eldest daughter, Olympia.

In a chat with Time Magazine, Williams revealed that she chose not to visit Swift in her VIP box during the Super Bowl.

The tennis legend mentioned that besides being friends with the singer, there was another special reason for her to want to meet Swift. She explained that her daughter Olympia, who was also present at the game, was excited about getting Swift’s autograph.

“I’m such a mom,” Williams said during the interview. “I was ready to go in here myself and be like, ‘Taylor, come get this girl.'”

Despite her initial plans to introduce Olympia to Swift, Williams changed her mind when she witnessed the singer being booed by Philadelphia Eagles fans. At that moment, even though Williams was en route to the suite with her husband, Alexis Ohanian, and their daughter, she decided to cancel the meeting.

“It’s hard when your team is losing, I totally get it,” Williams added, before giving more context to what happened.

“My husband and I, we’re so in a different space,” she said. “We’re so connected, we’re so in love, we’re just, like, trying to get our daughter Taylor Swift autographs. And nothing else.”

While Williams couldn’t get the autograph she wanted for her daughter, that did not stop her from defending the singer on social media against the boos.

“I love you @taylorswift13 dont listen to those booo!!” Williams wrote on X at the time.

During the heckling at the game, Swift responded with a mocking side-eye glance and reportedly mumbled, “aww what, what’s going on.”

Later on, a source revealed that the singer was “deeply” hurt by the incident and that her boyfriend, Kelce, felt helpless about the situation.

“Travis was aware of Taylor getting booed and he felt helpless. Seeing the look on her face got to him,” a source said, per the Daily Mail.

They added, “He always protects her and it broke his heart. He was already having a tough night and the fact that the stadium was predominantly Eagles fans didn’t help.”

As for Williams, she went on to have quite a memorable night, making a surprise cameo during Lamar’s halftime performance.

Taking to the stage, the multiple Grand Slam winner showed off her dancing skills, Crip Walking to the rapper’s viral song “Not Like Us,” which, coincidentally, is a diss track about Williams’ ex, Drake.

After the performance, Williams seemed really excited with her appearance as she shared behind-the-scenes photos from rehearsals with Olympia.

“Rehearsals anyone?” the tennis star captioned the post.

And when it was all over, Williams received praises from her fans and her husband.

“Pretty fantastic halftime show,” the wealthy entrepreneur, Ohanian, wrote on X.

A few critics took aim at Williams’ Super Bowl performance, alleging that her Crip Walk was a subtle jab at ex-boyfriend Drake, who was the subject of Lamar’s track.

In response, Williams expressed her disappointment, saying she was saddened that anyone would believe she was capable of such a petty move.