The Wedding of the Century is no longer just Swiftie fan fiction. Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are reportedly set to take over Madison Square Garden for a Fourth of July weekend celebration, bringing together pop royalty, NFL royalty, and enough security to make the World’s Most Famous Arena feel like the world’s most locked-down wedding venue.
While Swift and Kelce have not confirmed any details, and a representative for Swift declined to comment when reached by Consequence, multiple media reports have painted a picture of a massive, tightly controlled wedding weekend unfolding in New York City. Based on those reports, here’s what we know so far about the venue, schedule, guest list, dress code, performers, security, and more.
When and Where Is Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Wedding?
While Swift and Kelce have not yet announced a date and venue themselves, numerous media reports (including The Associated Press) point to the wedding taking place during the Fourth of July weekend at Madison Square Garden, with festivities beginning Thursday, July 2nd, followed by a larger celebration expected Friday, July 3rd.
Page Six reports that a rehearsal dinner involving about 100 guests is scheduled for Thursday night at Madison Square Garden’s Infosys Theater, with a much larger celebration set to take place the following night at Madison Square Garden’s main arena.
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In anticipation, crews have been seen loading equipment and decorations into Madison Square Garden throughout the week.
Why Madison Square Garden?
The appeal of Madison Square Garden may come down to more than spectacle. For a wedding expected to attract paparazzi, fans, drones, and more than 1,000 high-profile guests, MSG offers a level of control that a private estate or hotel ballroom likely could not. The arena’s enclosed layout makes it harder to capture aerial shots from drones, while its loading docks and parking garage access allow VIP guests to arrive and depart with far more privacy than they would have at a traditional venue. In other words, the Garden gives Swift and Kelce the scale of a mega-event while still allowing their team to lock down sightlines, entrances, and exits.
Crews load into Madison Square Garden, photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images
Who Is on the Guest List?
Swift’s close friends Sabrina Carpenter, Ed Sheeran, and Aaron Dessner have already been spotted in New York in the days leading up to the reported wedding.
Swift’s maid of honor has not been confirmed, though longtime best friend Abigail Anderson Berard has been widely speculated as the most likely choice.
Other celebrities have self-confirmed their attendance, including NFL star George Kittle, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, UK broadcaster Graham Norton, and Suki Waterhouse.
Logic would suggest many of Swift’s other close friends and collaborators will also be in attendance, including the HAIM sisters, Gigi Hadid, Jack Antonoff, Selena Gomez, Sombr, Phoebe Bridgers, Emma Stone, and Mariska Hargitay.
Surely, a number of Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs teammates, including quarterback Patrick Mahomes, will also be present.
Variety has reported on other A-list invites, including Zoe Kravitz, Ellen Pompeo, Steven Spielberg, Miranda Lambert, Kane Brown, Little Big Town, Kelsea Ballerini, Maren Morris, Max Martin, Shellback, Phoebe Dynevor, former Disney CEO Bob Iger, Disney’s president and chief creative officer Dana Walden, and AMC Theatres CEO Adam Aron.
And what would a wedding be without family: Swift’s mother Andrea, her father Scott, and brother Austin will be joined by Kelce’s mother Donna, father Ed, brother Jason, sister-in-law Kylie, and nieces Wyatt, Elliotte, Bennett, and Finnley.
One notable omission: US Weekly reports that following Swift’s reported fall-out with Blake Lively stemming from her legal battle with Justin Baldoni, neither Lively nor her husband Ryan Reynolds are expected to be on the guest list.
Harry Styles was also reportedly invited, but unable to attend due to touring commitments.
The Wedding Band
According to Rolling Stone, Stevie Nicks is expected to take the mic and perform. A separate report from Page Six says Paul McCartney and Tim McGraw are also expected to perform.
The Dress Code
The New York Times, citing two people familiar with the event, said the dress code is a black tie affair. Many of the women attending will be wearing gowns or elevated cocktail dresses, while men are expected to be wearing a tuxedo with a jacket and bow tie.
Taylor’s Dress
As for the dress, the frontrunner appears to be a custom couture gown by Jonathan Anderson for Christian Dior, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Page Six previously reported that Swift had several gowns prepared by Monse, the New York label founded by her friends Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia, along with a possible Stella McCartney design in the mix. But THR’s sources suggest Anderson’s Dior look is likely to be the one Swift wears for the ceremony.
The Security Situation
Security around the reported wedding festivities is expected to be intense, even by Taylor Swift standards. A permit request filed with New York City called for the closure of West 31st Street near Madison Square Garden from July 2nd through July 4th, while local reports have pointed to fencing, barricades, tenting, and an increased NYPD presence around the venue.
Page Six reports that over 130 NYPD officers are working the event in addition to the private security the couple has enlisted.
Once inside the venue, “guests have been told there will be a phone check” and they will not be permitted to take pictures, according to PEOPLE.
There have also been reports that the couple’s wedding invitations were watermarked and that guests were asked to sign NDAs in hopes of preventing leaks about the event.
The Wedding Planner
Luxury event planner Mark Seed is said to be bringing this massive production to life. Seed has reportedly worked on several high-profile weddings in the past, including Jennifer Lawrence and Cooke Maroney’s 2019 ceremony, as well as events tied to Jack Antonoff and Margaret Qualley and Sam Ressler. According to reports, he has been working on Swift and Kelce’s celebration for months, while Swift herself has been closely involved in the creative direction.
Will the Wedding Be Streamed?
There is no indication that Swift and Kelce will be streaming their wedding; though surely they’ll share photos and video of the ceremony on social media at some point down the road.
How Much Is This All Going to Cost?
If you factor in the price to rent out Madison Square Garden multiple days, security, florals, and everything else involved in putting together this wedding of a century, Forbes estimates that the costs will easily top $20 million.
Breaking it down, Madison Square Garden itself costs between $8 to $10 million to rent out for three days (and that’s not including insurance fees and buying out MSG’s unionized and preferred vendors and labor, assumign their bringing in their own people). As for security, estimates suggest a price tag of $1 to $2 million per day. Food and beverage costs for an expected audience of 1,000 people would added another high six figures to that total.
