The Internet was abuzz in mid April.
Paparazzi had photographed Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce at New York’s iconic Plaza hotel.
That also happened to be the home of the last New York apartment Tommy Hilfiger shared with his wife, and Kelce was taking part in a two-day shoot for the Hilfiger’s fall 2026 campaign.
“This will be one of our biggest and best out-of-home pushes in a long time,” Virginia Ritchie, Tommy Hilfiger’s global chief marketing officer, exclusively shared. “The film spot is magnificent.”
In the final editing stages, the video, which is currently two minutes long, has celebrity cameos and hints at the unique virtues of New York, is part of the first collaboration between Hilfiger and Kelce, the fashion brand’s latest celebrity spokesman.
Kelce will be a staple of Hilfiger’s fall 2026 campaign, which drops in early September, and also its spring 2027 campaign, which likely launches in early February.
“We have those two major heartbeats with him,” Ritchie said.
Predominantly part of the digital and paid social landscape, the ads are slated to appear on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.
How The Partnership Came About
Kelce, who even founded his own clothing company, is a longtime fan of fashion.
“I love to pick a different outfit every single day,” Kelce exclusively shared. “I have fun in fashion.”
Because that zest for fun — whether it’s appearing in Adam Sandler movies, belting out Beastie Boys lyrics or celebrating touchdowns with elaborate end-zone dances — fits with Hilfiger’s image, he had been on the company’s radar for a while.
The brand then reached out to Kelce’s management team in the fall of 2025.
“We’re always trying to find the right balance of someone who’s going to authentically represent the brand,” Ritchie said, “and ability to influence the consumer.”
Other celebrity spokespeople for the brand have included actors/models Gigi Hadid, Zendaya and Damson Idris and sports figures Rafael Nadal and Lewis Hamilton.
In the NFL world, players often make fashion statements while walking down the stadium tunnel to the locker room on gameday.
It had been erroneously reported that Kelce would wear Hilfiger gear as part of his gameday tunnel walk. His contract, however, does not specify that.
“We would definitely enjoy dressing Travis out of campaigns,” Ritchie said. “But it’s going to stay really authentic.”
Kelce, though, is particularly fond of the polo and rugby shirts, which Hilfiger continues to send him, and has worn that gear on his New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce podcast multiple times.
One-Year Contracts With Hilfiger And Chiefs
Whether or not Kelce retired from football after the 2025 season, Hilfiger was going to partner with him.
And it’s part of a one-year deal.
Kelce’s contract with the Chiefs is basically for one year as well. It’s a fully-guaranteed, $12 million deal with two void years for salary cap purposes.
“Chiefs Kingdom, let’s go baby. It’s official,” Kelce said after re-signing with the Chiefs. “Excited for 2026 and just excited to put on a Chiefs uniform in front of you guys again. Let’s get Arrowhead rocking, baby.”
Many thought Kelce would retire after a 2025 season, which saw the Chiefs, who previously went to three straight Super Bowls, fall to 6-11 and lose star quarterback Patrick Mahomes to a season-ending knee injury.
Instead Kelce, who holds the NFL record for consecutive seasons of 1,000 receiving yards by a tight end and will turn 37 in October, will aim to steer the Chiefs back to the top of the sport.
The 2026-27 season may end up being his final one in the NFL, but it also could represent the start of a new fashion career.
“We’re going to get through the first campaign before we ink Chapter Two,” Ritchie said. “We have several ideas for continuing the partnership after that — several of which Tommy and Travis already talk about regularly.”
