A guide to the Super Bowl, in Taylor Swift lyrics

The Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers may have some bad blood after their last Super Bowl showdown in 2020. But fans are ready for it. And for everyone who hates football, you need to calm down.

This year’s Super Bowl viewership can be neatly divided into four segments: Those who like football and Taylor Swift, those who only like football, those who only like Taylor Swift, and those who like neither but are, for whatever reason, watching anyway. For all the Swifties who are choosing to care about the Super Bowl for the first time — and all the football fans who need a crash course in Taylor Swift — here is a look at Sunday’s game as seen through Swift’s lyrics. So, as Swift herself says in “…Ready For It?,” baby, let the games begin. First of all, there’s definitely some bad blood between Sunday’s teams, the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers. The two rivals faced each other in Super Bowl LIV in 2020, when the Chiefs dealt the 49ers a devastating loss, 31-20, giving Kansas City its first Super Bowl victory since 1970. The game was a close one until the fourth quarter, when the Chiefs went on to score 21 points (three touchdowns) in an exhilarating finish, breaking the hearts of San Francisco fans in the process. Given that history, it’s understandable that fans of the Niners — and the players themselves — might be out for revenge, ready to take what was taken from them. The 49ers quarterback, Brock Purdy, didn’t play that game in 2020, but he is out to prove himself. Two years ago he was Mr. Irrelevant, the very last pick in the 2022 NFL draft. He began his pro career as the Niners’ third-string quarterback. Now, after a surprising MVP-level season, he’s trying to take his team all the way.