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Yes, the United States was treated unfairly by the controversial Folarin Balogun red card decision
The USMNT is through to the round of 16 after winning their first knockout stage game at a World Cup since 2002. By any measure, the 2026 tournament has been a resounding success, both for the United States as a host, and for U.S. soccer.
For the first time in, well, maybe forever, the U.S. Men's National Team looks, at times, dominant. They control play and control possession. They're threading through balls at an elite international level. They've outscored their opponents 8-1 with their starting 11 on the field. Malik Tillman's free kick goal to cement the 2-0 win over Bosnia & Herzegovina was world class.
And it all might be taken away by absurd, unfair officiating.
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Folarin Balogun's red card came as the result of a series of ridiculous, unforgivable errors from the officials in this match. And the players, coaches, and fans have noticed and pointed out what the laughable "process" has done to the legitimacy of FIFA's officiating staff.
The biggest mistake? That the decision to go to VAR was made in the first place. Andy Davies, a referee who worked in the Premier League and Championship and was a Select Group referee for over 12 seasons, published a short analysis of the VAR process on this play for ESPN, saying that the review should never have taken place.
"VAR made their recommendation to the referee based on slow-motion and still replays, which is not aligned with VAR protocols, as these should be used for only point-of-contact purposes in a red card tackle situation," Davies wrote.
Davies did explain that based on the letter of the rules, the tackle itself was always likely to receive a red card. But the review should never have happened, because it was only recommended based on slow-motion replays.
Importantly, too, many other similar plays have happened throughout the tournament, with no reviews or red cards given. And the players know it.
"Obviously the ref made a decision that he made, but I think it’s questionable," said USMNT star Weston McKennie after the match. "I think there’s been many other plays like that throughout the tournament on other players that a card wasn’t given at all. It’s disappointing."
The most prominent similar play? One involving Argentinian star Lionel Messi. Messi, in the early stages, went after a loose ball against Algeria, only to catch Aissa Mandi with his studs up. Algeria were awarded a free kick, but no card for Messi, and no review from VAR.
Algeria were so furious about the no call that they filed a complaint to FIFA for the poor officiating.
There have been plenty of other similar plays throughout the World Cup that also received no review. And because FIFA is FIFA, there is no process for appealing Balogun's suspension for the massive Round of 16 matchup against Belgium on Monday.
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The referee on the field, Raphael Claus, has previously been investigated for match fixing in Brazil, though of course, there's no indication that this was a motivating factor in this case. But Claus also did not see anything on the field, at full speed, to warrant a card at all, let alone a red. Only after the VAR official incorrectly used slow-motion to recommend a second look, did he send Balogun off.
Fans of the USMNT are right to be furious with this call. Not only were the rules misapplied, according to an expert referee with years of elite experience, but similar plays during this tournament have been ignored. This isn't just about Messi, but it's impossible not to see the double standard. VAR officials would never, ever, call for a review of a red card on the tournament's most famous player. But they did so against Balogun and the USMNT.
The USMNT may go on to beat Belgium on Monday, even without their star striker. Or they might get eliminated without him. The former would not excuse the referee's poor decision making and process. The latter would put a permanent stain on the 2026 World Cup and potentially damage the future of the sport in the United States. It's unlikely bordering on impossible that the USMNT win the tournament, with or without Balogun. But a loss, coming after such an absurd, farcical process, and removing the possibility of a gigantic matchup against Spain or Portugal in the quarterfinals in Los Angeles, would be unforgivable.
But for FIFA, unforgivable is just another day at the office.
Ahead of America's 250th birthday, faith group urges families to reconnect through patriotic traditions
As the U.S. prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, a faith organization is urging parents to make the most of Independence Day by reconnecting with their kids and taking time to teach them about the nation's founding ideals.
Ahead of July 4, Communio, a faith-based organization focused on strengthening families, released its "Great American Family Fun Kit," complete with activity ideas, recipes for patriotic treats, and a prayer for the nation. Some of the activities include trying to use 18th-century slang, making a gratitude jar, creating a family flag and having an Independence Day-themed scavenger hunt.
"When you think about all the holidays we have as a country, the Fourth of July, the Independence Day is — of our non-religious holidays — it's right up there with Thanksgiving as being the most important family celebration that we have as a country," Communio founder and president J.P. De Gance told Fox News Digital.
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Communio is using its partnerships that cover 17,000 churches across the U.S. to reach out to families and encourage them to celebrate Independence Day through neighborhood gatherings, block parties and activities to build their communities.
"The most fundamental building block of a society is not the individual, it's the family," De Gance said.
De Gance told Fox News Digital that Communio's Great American Family Fun Kit reflects the organization's belief that strong families are the foundation of strong communities.
"I think there's a lot of recent polling data that shows love of country, good old-fashioned patriotism, has declined in our nation amongst a lot of folks. And the goal here is to tie people back to the ideals of our founding and do so in a really grassroots, organic way at the local level," De Gance said of Communio's Great American Family Fun Kit.
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While the kit's activities are centered around America's 250th birthday, De Gance said their broader purpose is to encourage families to spend more meaningful time together away from screens. The Communio founder and president asserted that even simple activities can create these opportunities for parents and children to connect.
"One of the things that we know about family life is that parents and kids who communicate regularly, those kids report a more warm and good relationship with mom and dad," De Gance told Fox News Digital. He added that children who have good relationships with their parents tend to have better long-term outcomes and are more likely to see faith as an important part of their lives.
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While at first glance, the kit appears to be geared toward families with younger children, it also contains activities aimed at teen engagement too. De Gance suggested that the scavenger hunt activity could be used to get children of different ages to do something together.
De Gance also pointed to rising rates of reported loneliness and sadness among American teenagers, arguing that family time could be key to combatting these issues.
"I think if we were honest with ourselves… there's probably not a high number of those kids who would report having frequent time with their family and siblings and recreation and fun together, right?" he said. "Because when that happens, they're more likely to report having a good relationship with their mom and dad, and they're less likely to report being lonely and being isolated."
As he looks to America's future, De Gance would like to see a revival of healthy marriages and family life across the nation. He said he is hopeful that young people are becoming more focused on finding purpose in "enduring things," such as faith, marriage and family.
"The pathway to making sure that we celebrate America 300 and America 350 and America 400, really runs through the family," he said.
James Carville breaks with famous ‘It’s the economy, stupid’ slogan because of Trump
James Carville, the architect of President Bill Clinton’s 1992 victory over President George H.W. Bush and industrialist H. Ross Perot, said this week that President Donald Trump has forced him to break with the catchphrase that many believe helped win that election and made him a political household name.
Carville originally coined "It’s the economy, stupid," as an internal reminder to campaign staff at Clinton’s Little Rock headquarters to stay on-message amid Bush’s rising approval ratings connected to his handling of the Gulf War.
But this week, Carville suggested allegations of corruption involving President Donald Trump have supplanted the idea that the economy should remain top of mind during election season.
During a discussion on his "Politicon" podcast network, former Mount Holyoke dean Joseph Ellis mentioned "It’s the economy, stupid" before the Ragin Cajun cut him off.
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"So, professor, I thought about that recently – about ‘It’s the economy, stupid' – it's a great catchphrase. It's maybe one of the most oft-repeated things in politics," Carville said.
"I now have come to detest the fact I said that."
Without mentioning Trump by name, Carville — who has repeatedly accused the incumbent of corruption in recent months — compared him with the more genteel Bush.
"I'll listen to people who say, ‘people don't care about corruption, they care about the economy -- As long as their incomes are up, they don't care what he does’ – and I'm afraid that's right."
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"But I said it in 1992, and say what you want about George H.W. Bush, he was not… a corrupt man at all; decent man too. We have now the breathtaking, staggering -- I understand if people say, ‘Yeah, you know, you're right, that's all people care about is the economy, and I won't do it, I don't say anything, I'm nice’," he said, appearing to envision voters preferring to focus on the economy over other personality issues.
"I want to punch him in the f---ing face. OK? Yes. I'm serious… Because the phrase actually haunts me today."
Asked about the invective, White House spokesman Davis Ingle called the Ragin' Cajun a "stone-cold loser."
"[Carville] suffers from a severe and incurable disease known as Trump Derangement Syndrome, and it has rotted his peanut-sized brain," Ingle said.
During an earlier discussion with his co-host, former Wall Street Journal Washington bureau chief Al Hunt, Carville said that "we are drowning; we’re suffocating in corruption" before accusing Trump of increasing his net worth by $2 billion since becoming president.
"I’m just really fearful for the United States," he added.
In February, Carville directed one of his segments at Trump as though the president were watching, telling the president that his inner circle "hates" him and that he is a "fat, sorry, sack of s---."
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Since then, he has continued criticizing the president and recently said he is proud to have proverbial "Trump Derangement Syndrome."
Carville has been a mainstay in Democratic politics ever since helping engineer Clinton’s 1992 victory, alongside other notable campaign aides, including ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, whom Trump also spars with on occasion.
Clinton’s 1992 campaign produced several enduring touchstones, from Carville’s "It’s the economy, stupid," to Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 hit "Don’t Stop," which became the de facto theme song for his successful bid.
Carville's comments about his old slogan also come as he recently rebuked socialist nominees taking over his party.
Fox News Digital reached out to Carville via his Politicon podcast for further comment.
MMA fighter leans on faith in quest to catch suspected child predators
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – Dustin Lampros strides into a grocery store, scanning the aisles for his target. But it’s not an item on the shelf that he’s pursuing. It’s a suspected child predator.
The mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter has been working to expose alleged child predators since 2022. On social media, where he shares about his quest, he’s known as 561 Predator Catcher, a nod to his hometown area code.
To his friends and in cage fights, he’s Scrappy. He earned the nickname on the fourth-grade football field after taking on two bigger boys who’d picked on him.
His mission to catch adults who prey on children was launched when a friend in cybersecurity told him about the online danger.
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Lampros had just recommitted to his faith, he told Fox News Digital. He’d started praying to know God’s will for his life.
He was stunned when his friend demonstrated the problem.
It took minutes to create a fake profile for a 13-year-old girl, "Amy," on a platform known for facilitating connections.
It took seconds for men to make contact. "We had multiple grown adults reaching out trying to talk to who they thought was a 13-year-old," Lampros said, fuming at the memory.
That sparked painful memories.
"Two people close to me in my life were victims," he said, including a close childhood friend. "He was raped by our principal from sixth to eighth grade."
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Lampros felt a calling on his life.
"Instantly, I knew that I was meant to do something.
"I could help."
Now, the 32-year-old professional fighter coordinates with people across the country who work as decoys posing as children. They converse online. They exchange photos.
Once an in-person meeting is arranged, and plans for sexual activity are discussed, Lampros prepares to pounce.
At the agreed-upon time, he waits outside the meet-up location. And when he spots the person who’s been communicating with the child, he places a 911 call to police.
Then, he strolls inside. Coolly and confidently, he walks up and addresses his "target" by name.
Immediately, Lampros pummels them with questions about why they’re there, who they’d planned to meet, and what they’d planned to do. He films the interactions on Meta glasses.
"I've gotten really good at getting these guys to just kind of … admit everything to me," he said. Twice, his targets were women. One was a law enforcement officer. Several have been teachers.
When their answers to his questions don’t match the conversations decoys shared with him in screenshots, he brandishes his phone.
"I have all the messages right here," Lampros reveals.
When police arrive, he turns over the messages and his video of the "catch," as he calls it, as evidence.
He credits his MMA training and his faith for his ability to stay calm.
"Inside I'm fuming, I'm boiling," he said.
"The goal is to get these guys arrested, charged, and convicted, and I know that if I put my hands on them, or if I act out, I know that that can affect the case. So, therefore, I keep myself calm, and keep myself composed."
Lampros trains at the MMA Science Academy in Sunrise, Florida. The other fighters and coaches celebrate his successes, said the gym owner, Roger Krahl.
By sparring with him and helping him hone his skills, they feel they play a role in his mission, he said.
But they’re mystified by how Lampros refrains from flexing his fighting skills when interacting with alleged child predators.
"We tell him all the time," Krahl said. "But he’s got the perfect personality for it. He stays very calm and keeps his cool, which is obviously a big thing in the cage.
"When you get in there and fight, you’ve got to be calm under pressure. You’ve got to be able to think."
Lampros has completed about 100 catches since 2022. About 10 have resulted in convictions, he said. Others still simmer in the legal pipeline.
"The cases take years," he said.
Meanwhile, his technique has evolved, even softened, he admitted.
He used to order catches to do pushups while waiting for police. Now, he coaxes alleged predators to discuss details on video that can be turned over to police.
"He’s very comfortable," Krahl said, adding that he doesn’t worry about the 5-foot-7 fighter’s safety.
"Obviously, he can protect himself. He’s a high-level professional athlete.
"Even though he’s a smaller guy—a bantamweight, 135 pounds—I wouldn’t worry about him versus anybody. Just a trained professional athlete versus an untrained person is not even fair."
Lampros and his decoy helpers don’t coordinate with law enforcement. He reveals the details when he calls police.
"I tell them exactly what's going on, that there's a grown adult coming there to meet what they believe is a 13- or 14-year-old to engage in sexual activity."
When officers don’t arrive quickly, Lampros stalls.
Twice the situation spiraled dangerously, he said. Once, a man he was questioning pulled a gun from his car. Lampros and his helper fled. Another man wielded a boxcutter during their interaction.
Lampros isn’t deterred. If he’s ever badly injured or killed during a "catch," he’ll know he was doing God’s will, he said.
"It took years for police departments and state attorneys to actually look at us as legit and to make these cases stick," Lampros said.
Now, about every month, a years-old case yields a conviction, he said.
Some lawyers in Florida advertise that they can help defend accused child predators who interacted with Lampros. They accuse him of being a vigilante. They subpoena him for depositions. Some insist he’s "just in it for the clicks," he said.
But no matter the cost, Lampros said he’s in this fight for the long term.
He won’t stop working to expose child predators, he said. And when his MMA fighting career is over, he hopes to travel the country, educating parents about how to protect children from online dangers.
Before starting 561 Predator Catcher, Lampros said he was where any young, professional fighter would want to be.
He’d moved from Illinois to South Florida, a hub for the sport. He had a 7-0 record in cage fights, with five knockouts.
His sole focus: becoming a fighter for the UFC. The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the world’s largest professional MMA organization.
But, "I felt very empty," he said. "My whole identity had been behind being an MMA fighter, being ‘Scrappy’ the fighter. I knew that having UFC as my idol wasn't gonna fulfill me. That's when I realized there's got to be something more for me."
He started praying, he said, "asking for His will to be done in my life."
It was then that he was introduced to the idea of catching child predators. "When you start focusing on God's plan, the doors kind of open up."
"Once I figured that out, and I started living for Him instead of living for Scrappy the Fighter, my life has evolved so much more into such a blessing."
He still hopes to be selected as a fighter in the UFC. But, he said, a fight against evil is far more important. "Knowing that God's on my side, whatever happens, I believe it's God's will."
Vulnerable House Dem's bipartisanship push clashes with fantasy to ‘beat the s--- out of’ Hegseth
Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., a swing-district Democrat who touts herself as a bipartisan dealmaker, told a liberal audience she wants to "work across the aisle" before saying moments later that watching Pete Hegseth testify made her want to "beat the s--- out of him."
Lee made the remarks during an appearance last month before the Sun City Liberal Club in Las Vegas while discussing rare earth minerals and her work supporting MP Materials, a Las Vegas-based company involved in U.S. critical minerals production. The comments come as she seeks re-election in Nevada’s closely divided 3rd Congressional District.
"I want to be bipartisan. I want to work across the aisle," Lee told the crowd, according to video of the remarks. But moments later, while discussing Hegseth appearing before her committee, she said, "Now listen, it’s so easy. It’s so easy. Like you just wanna beat the s--- out of him."
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"But you got to bite it," Lee said of wanting to "beat the s---" out of Hegseth.
The Hegseth remark is not the first profanity-laced comment to draw scrutiny for Lee. In April, Fox News Digital reported that Lee deleted an expletive-filled late-night social media post targeting Trump after online backlash, then defended her remarks by saying her "nerve was touched" by what she described as attacks on the Constitution.
"Secretary Hegseth has made life less safe and more expensive for Americans. The war of choice that he and President Trump started has placed more burden on working families by increasing the cost of gas and groceries. And despite promising to immediately review Congresswoman Lee’s request to get Nevada Test and Training Range veterans the health care they need, Secretary Hegseth has dragged his feet for nearly two months," a spokesperson for Lee told Fox News Digital. "Clearly, there are many areas in which Congresswoman Lee does not see eye to eye with the Secretary."
Lee's comments about wanting to beat up Hegseth came while she was teeing up a story to the Sun City Liberal Club about pressing the Secretary of War during a hearing on the Pentagon's decision to invest in an Australian company while supposedly leaving a U.S.-based one out to dry. Lee said she appealed to Hegseth by telling him she believed in "made in America" and questioned why the Pentagon had invested more heavily in a different Australian company as opposed to MP Materials, an American one.
"Now listen, it’s so easy. It’s so easy. Like you just wanna beat the s--- out of him. I mean yea, but you just got to bite it. So this is what I did – he came in front of my committee twice," Lee said as she told the story about the rare earth investments.
"You got to lay on their ego, right?" she continued. "Well, three weeks later, they announced a $2 billion investment in MP Materials, okay? I didn’t want to be sweet with Hegseth, okay, I didn’t. But, you know, you got to do what you got to do to get s--- done, right?"
"Congresswoman Lee set aside [her differences with Hegseth] on behalf of her constituents to secure an investment in a Nevada-based employer that will create hundreds of jobs in southern Nevada," Lee's spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "She will continue putting politics aside and working with anyone — regardless of party — to lower costs, create jobs, and make life better for her constituents."
But Republicans took aim at the remarks as evidence that Lee’s bipartisan brand is at odds with how she talks about Trump administration officials behind closed doors.
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"It's unfortunate for our Republic, near our 250th birthday of this great experiment we call America, that town hall comments like this reveal the truth, and Republican voters should be warned that Democrats, if they take over the majority, will simply spend their time going after President Trump and his administration," said Mark Bednar, former head of communications for former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.
Republicans also took issue with Lee’s claim that her exchange with Hegseth helped spur a major Defense Department investment in MP Materials, accusing the Nevada Democrat of overstating her role while using the story to burnish her bipartisan credentials.
"Either Susie Lee believes her words contain the persuasive power of the word of God, or she's making stuff up and being completely unhinged to boot," said Republican National Committee spokesperson Nick Poché. "Nevadans deserve a leader who will work to deliver for them, not posers whose only objective in office is to improve their stock portfolios like Susie Lee."
MP Materials eventually signed a major agreement with the Defense Department, including a $400 million Pentagon investment that made the federal government the company’s largest shareholder and other commitments aimed at strengthening the U.S. rare earth magnet supply chain.
Trump kicks off Fourth of July weekend with symbolic salute to America’s legacy
President Donald Trump will open America’s 250th Independence Day weekend with a return to Mount Rushmore, reviving one of the most symbolic scenes of his first administration as the White House stages a week of patriotic events across some of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Trump last attended a Mount Rushmore fireworks display in 2020, when the landmark hosted its first official fireworks show since 2009.
Trump issued a presidential action in January to honor the history of America, ordering "a grand celebration worthy of the momentous occasion of the 250th anniversary of American Independence on July 4, 2026." On both a federal and state level, the nation has thrown a summer line up of events including the "Great American State Fair" on the National Mall.
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Trump kicked off the fair on June 24 by hosting a rally the night before the beginning of the fair.
He will return Saturday for the "Salute to America" event, where he is expected to take the stage.
Washington, D.C., has been placed under an "Extreme Heat Alert" until Sunday morning with temperatures predicted to feel like 105°F or hotter, according to DC Homeland Security & Emergency Management.
Trump’s remarks are expected to begin around 9:00 PM ET, prior to a massive fireworks display on the National Mall that has been touted by the administration as the largest in history.
The National Mall has garnered special attention this year after a string of vandalism against the Reflecting Pool and monuments.
The pattern emerged after Trump ordered a restoration and repainting of the reflecting pool, which was then met with "razor-blade cuts" to its lining, according to the White House.
Earlier this week, Trump attended the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Library in Medora, North Dakota, on Wednesday.
Roosevelt was known for his passion for the outdoors – dramatically expanding federal protection of natural resources and public lands. He established national parks, created national monuments and strengthened the U.S. Forest Service.
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Trump signed the "Great American Outdoors Act Reauthorization," which centers on previous legislation signed by the 45th and 47th president but renews funding in honor of America’s 250th birthday.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's love story in photos as wedding day arrives
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding day has arrived.
The couple first sparked romance rumors in 2023, after Kelce spoke about attending an Eras Tour show in Kansas City in the hopes of getting Swift's number during an episode of his podcast "New Heights."
Soon after, Swift was spotted at a Chiefs game, further fueling speculation. Eventually, the two were spotted out together on numerous occasions, confirming they were dating. The two announced their engagement in August 2025, with an Instagram post featuring Kelce on one knee, with the caption, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married 🧨."
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As their wedding approaches, here is a look back at their relationship over the years, in pictures.
Swift made headlines when she was photographed sitting next to Kelce's mom, Donna, at a Kansas City Chiefs game in September 2023.
Rumors of their relationship continued to swirl after they were photographed leaving Arrowhead Stadium together after the game. The rumors first began after Kelce gave her a shout-out on his podcast in July 2023.
"We started hanging out right after that. So we actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other," she told Time in her Person of the Year cover story in December 2024. "By the time I went to that first game, we were a couple. I think some people think that they saw our first date at that game? We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date."
In one of their first photos out together as a couple, Swift and Kelce were seen arriving to the "Saturday Night Live" after-party, after they both made appearances in an October 2023 episode.
"She's very self-aware," Kelce said of Swift in a June 2024 episode of the "Bussin' with the Boys" podcast. "And I think that's why I really started to really fall for her, was how genuine she is around friends [and] family. It can get crazy for somebody with that much attention ... and she just keeps it so chill and so cool."
Swift and Kelce began stepping out into public together more often, as they were photographed holding hands during a date night in New York in October 2023.
"I’ve never dealt with it," he told the WSJ in 2024. "But at the same time, I’m not running away from any of it ... The scrutiny she gets, how much she has a magnifying glass on her, every single day, paparazzi outside her house, outside every restaurant she goes to, after every flight she gets off, and she’s just living, enjoying life. When she acts like that, I better not be the one acting all strange."
Swift was there to comfort Kelce when his team lost to the Buffalo Bills in December 2023.
"I'm enjoying all aspects of life. Me and Taylor are happy," Kelce said on an episode of The Stephen A. Smith Show, in January 2025. "I couldn't be happier to have that confidence and that comfort off the field and all the support I could ever ask for in the stadium."
Swift and Kelce were all smiles while posing with their arms around one another as they celebrated Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs becoming the 2024 AFC Champions.
"I don’t know how they know what suite I’m in," she told Time Magazine. "There’s a camera, like, a half-mile away, and you don’t know where it is, and you have no idea when the camera is putting you in the broadcast, so I don’t know if I’m being shown 17 times or once."
"I’m just there to support Travis," she added. "I have no awareness of if I’m being shown too much and pissing off a few dads, Brads, and Chads."
Swift and Kelce could not help but show some PDA as they celebrated the Kansas City Chiefs winning the Super Bowl in February 2024.
"Thank you for coming, baby. Thank you for the support. Thank you for coming," Kelce said to Swift following the win, according to ABC News. "Thank you for making it all the way across the world. You are the best, baby. The absolute best."
Kelce and Swift were spotted getting cuddly while watching the men's singles final match during the US Open in September 2024.
"Your most popular pop star, beloved musician, somehow met your most popular beloved athlete, and they actually fell in love, and it's just real," Kelce said in an April 2024 episode of his podcast. "Anyone who hates on it is a bitter loser. But I think a lot of people who maybe would expect to hate on it actually love it, and they acknowledge they love it because there's something so American about it or something. There’s something just classic about it."
Kelce surprised audiences when he joined Swift on stage as a dancer during her performance of "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" on the London stop of her Eras Tour in June 2024.
"When you say a relationship is public, that means I’m going to see him do what he loves, we’re showing up for each other, other people are there and we don’t care," she told Time Magazine. "The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you’re seeing someone. And we’re just proud of each other."
Swift and Kelce attended a friend's wedding together in New York in September 2024, and were photographed smiling and holding hands outside.
Kelce debuted a new look when he was photographed holding hands with Swift while sporting a Hawaiian shirt and a mustache while the pair were out together in New York in October 2024.
Kelce and Swift took a break from football and the Eras Tour to enjoy an outing in Game 1 of the ALCS, played between the Yankees and the Guardians, in October 2024.
"Something that I'll always remember is when I would finish a take, and I'd say ‘cut,’ and we'd be done with that take, I would always just hear, like, someone cheering from across the studio where we were shooting it, and that one person was my boyfriend, Travis," she said when accepting her award for Video of the Year at the VMAs in September 2024.
"Everything this man touches turns to happiness and fun and magic. So, I want to thank him for adding that to our shoot because I’ll always remember that."
Swift was there to support Kelce when the Chiefs won the AFC Championship again in January 2025, telling Time Magazine, "Football is awesome, it turns out."
She has apparently picked up parts of the game quite quickly, with Kelce telling the "Rich Eisen Show" in September 2024, she even "creates plays for me."
"She had just been so open to learning the game, she didn’t know much about the rules or anything…I think she was just curious about the profession...I know none of the plays have gotten to Coach Reid yet, but if they ever do I’ll make sure everyone knows it was her creation."
Following the end of football season and the Eras Tour, Swift and Kelce took time to enjoy some other sports, and were all smiles as they watched Game Four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final in June.
"I knew that he wasn't crazy the first couple of times that we talked. I was just like, 'He's truly getting to know me in a way that's very natural, very normal," she said on an episode of "New Heights" in August 2025. "The way that he could make me laugh so immediately about normal things."
Kelce posted photos of the two of them having fun and posing with matching hats while on a boat in July 2025.
"I hadn't experienced somebody in the same shoes as me, having a partner who understands the scrutiny, understands the ups and downs of being in front of millions," Kelce told GQ in August 2025. "That was very relatable, seeing how exhausted she would get after shows."
He added, "She may not think of herself as an athlete. She will never tell anyone that she is an athlete. But I've seen what she goes through. I've seen the amount of work that she puts on her body, and it's mind-blowing."
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The two announced their engagement in August 2025, with an Instagram post featuring Kelce on one knee, with the caption, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married 🧨."
"He's just my favorite person I've ever met, no offense to everyone else, but the fact that this is the person that I get to hang out with every day forever, that's the whole thing of it," she said on the "Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" in October 2025. "You look at it and you're like, ‘I'm going to hang out with him forever,' and this represents that."
Swift and Kelce have attended many industry events together, including the iHeartRadio Music Awards in March 2026.
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Swift and Kelce were most recently spotted sitting court-side at game three of the Eastern Conference Finals played between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the New York Knicks in May 2026.
"I feel like whenever I'm on a date I'm always having the sense of like, I'm a man in the situation, I'm like protective, yeah for sure," Kelce said on his "New Heights" podcast in October 2023. "You always kind of have that feeling — or that self-awareness, I guess."
Massachusetts woman steps in after 'shameful' Dem governor boycotts Great American State Fair
A patriotic woman from Massachusetts took matters into her own hands after leaders in her state decided to boycott the Great American State Fair out of anger at President Donald Trump — and she showed no mercy to those who made that decision.
"I came here to represent Massachusetts because I didn't want the public to walk into an empty room. I wanted somebody to be there," said Donna Festinger, who paid her own way from the Bay State to the nation's capital to celebrate 250 years of American independence.
Festinger is manning her state's booth at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall, part of the Trump-aligned Freedom 250 event that began on June 25 and ends on July 10.
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She had a clear message for Massachusetts leadership, along with the leadership of other states who also declined to participate in the celebration.
"I'm very disappointed that Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts decided — their governments decided not to support this effort to celebrate our American heritage," she said. "It's actually shameful."
"It makes me feel like they really don't love America or Massachusetts — my governor," she said of Democrat Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, who has had some very public spats with Trump.
Festinger, a former teacher who paid her own way to the event in Washington, D.C. and arrived at the beginning of the celebration, says she plans to stay through the entire 16-day event.
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She told Fox News Digital that she thinks the state boycotts are actually a point of unity for the American public, "because most people are upset about it and do not understand why a governor would do that."
"And so that's actually uniting people, Democrats, Republicans, independents, and agreeing that every state should be proud of our country," Festinger speculated.
She added: "I think the Trump administration is working hard to bring the country together."
Meanwhile, Healey, known for her rabid anti-Trump streak, mocked the fair in an interview with Boston Public Radio.
Asked whether she would welcome Trump if he visited the state, she reportedly said the president is "too busy with his Great American State Fair down there that everybody’s bailing on."
She also claimed without evidence that Trump is using the fair to "get money into his own pocket," and falsely claimed that states were being charged to participate in the fair.
Festinger also recently garnered some backup at the Massachusetts booth.
Judith Kalaora, a Boston resident, stood at the state's stand dressed to the nines in a Revolutionary War uniform to honor Deborah Sampson, a Massachusetts woman who disguised herself as a man to fight the British.
"I'm hopeful that my being here will unite folks to realize that Boston and Massachusetts have a great spirit, and that that spirit can unite the United States through our nation's heritage and through our military history," said Kalaora.
"I believe that the United States of American has accomplished in 250 years than many other nations have accomplished in 400 or 500 years,"
Eleven states, all run by Democrats, decided to skip the fair.
Some had explicitly anti-Trump reasons in declining to participate. Like Illinois Democrat Gov. J.B. Pritzker citing what he said is Trump's "politicization of America 250 activities."
Oregon's leadership expressed a similar sentiment, though did not mention Trump by name.
"The State of Oregon will not be participating in the Great American State Fair due to both the cost of participating in the Fair and growing concerns that the event in Washington, D.C. is shaping up to be a more partisan affair than originally presented," Democrat Gov. Tina Kotek's office said in a statement.
Kalaora, however, remains optimistic.
"Times change, and emotions change, and that's okay, as long as we still remember that we've done great things," she said.
"I'm happy to be here."
America's most-searched ice cream brand may surprise you — and there's a healthy reason why
As Americans celebrate National Ice Cream Month this July, the brand they're searching for most online is one that takes an unconventional approach to making frozen desserts.
Halo Top was the most-searched ice cream brand from April 2025 through April 2026, according to Google search trends from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., analyzed in a study from Innerbody Research.
Halo Top markets its ice cream as a "feel-good treat" with "fewer calories and less sugar than other leading brands, with a good source of protein."
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"From the beginning, Halo Top has taken a different path," the company's website says. "While most ice cream brands hide their calorie counts, we put ours right on the front: big, bold and impossible to miss."
Halo Top was founded in 2011 and named "Food Disruptor of the Year" in 2017 by Food Dive after it reported a 2,500% increase in sales the previous year.
Ice cream manufacturer Wells Enterprises, which also owns Blue Bunny, acquired Halo Top in 2019.
The other ice cream brands with the highest search interest after Halo Top were Cold Stone Creamery, Breyers, Talenti and Häagen Dazs, according to the Innerbody Research report.
Searches don't necessarily translate to sales, however. In 2025, Breyers, Blue Bunny and Turkey Hill were the top-selling brands by dollar sales, Dairy Foods Magazine reported.
"A most-searched list is often a mirror for our anxieties," food scientist and Johns Hopkins University senior lecturer Kantha Shelke told Fox News Digital.
"Halo Top is winning the search bar because it promises indulgence without the consequences naturally associated with that experience."
The Halo Top curiosity is the GLP-1 era translated into dessert, Shelke said.
"Protein-forward, portion-sized, low-sugar and guilt-free indulgence," she said of Halo Top.
Consumers looking for foods that they can enjoy without the guilt is not a new concept, said Maeve Webster, president of Vermont-based food and beverage consulting firm Menu Matters. It happened before with the frozen yogurt trend.
"What is new, particularly with Halo Top, is the technology for how you create a healthier ice cream without the crystallization or the poor flavor or the poor mouthfeel that we may have seen in some previous iterations of these kinds of efforts," Webster told Fox News Digital.
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"The technology is catching up," Webster added. "And increasingly, we'll be able to create healthier versions of these kinds of products that are closer, if not almost exactly like, the original full-indulgence ice cream experience."
Webster also believes social media and inventive marketing played a role in people becoming more interested in Halo Top recently.
"With the volume of information people get on a daily basis, they're probably seeing a lot of things they've never heard of before, haven't seen in the stores and suddenly they're curious about it because they see some video on social media," she said.
Ice cream is often cited as America's favorite dessert, with 97% of Americans saying they love or like ice cream, according to a 2024 International Dairy Foods Association survey. The average American consumes about 20 pounds — almost 4 gallons — of ice cream each year, the association also reported.
Because consumers eat ice cream so often, they're more likely to make an effort to find a brand that enables them to "enjoy ice cream without that guilt and the feeling that you're doing something wrong or bad for yourself," Webster said.
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Foods marketed as "natural" are not the same as "risk-free," and "high protein" is not the same as healthy, Shelke noted.
"Safety and benefit are designed at the formulation stage, not conferred by a claim on the front of the box," she said.
Consumers should beware of light ice creams that use the sugar alcohol erythritol, which is produced through the fermentation of corn, Shelke said.
She cited a 2023 Cleveland Clinic study, published in Nature Medicine, that linked higher blood erythritol levels with increased rates of heart attack and stroke and found the sweetener appeared to make platelets more likely to form clots.
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"The context matters: that is an association in at-risk cardiac patients, it concerns circulating blood levels rather than any single serving and it has been debated in the literature. The authors notably called for long-term safety studies," Shelke said.
"Not a reason to panic. Just a reason to pay attention."
Fox News Digital's News Quiz: July 3, 2026
Test your news knowledge with this week's Fox News Digital News Quiz, featuring a primary upset in Colorado, while police identify the Empire State Building climbers as foreign daredevils.
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Second lady Usha Vance mocking The New York Times for reading political significance into her Old Navy maternity dress and the New York Knicks celebrating their NBA title were featured in last week's News Quiz.
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