Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are getting married on Friday at Madison Square Garden

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce will get married Friday evening at Madison Square Garden in New York. That is according to an anonymous police official familiar with the security plans, who was not authorized to speak about them publicly. A more intimate rehearsal dinner for a smaller group of guests is planned for Thursday. The couple themselves have not confirmed the reports so far, despite repeated requests for comment from the AP.

Speculation had been building for weeks after unconfirmed reports emerged that the wedding would take place over Independence Day weekend at one of New York's iconic venues. In recent days, large quantities of materials were unloaded from trucks outside the arena's entrance, and a large carpet briefly appeared before being quickly removed. The New York Times reported earlier that a permit has been applied for to close surrounding streets until Saturday afternoon, and that a castle like structure including a large white staircase is reportedly being built inside the stadium.

MSG holds around 19,500 to 22,000 seats and sits directly above Penn Station, the busiest train station in the United States, in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. The venue has no windows and features secured entrances and a shielded parking garage, keeping guests and the couple completely out of sight of photographers and drones. New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a press conference on Wednesday that the city faces several challenges this weekend, including major Independence Day celebrations, a World Cup match, and a heat wave. She added: "I would be remiss not to mention an event that we are tracking at Madison Square Garden on Friday night. The NYPD will, of course, have a detail in place, but I am not going to go into more specifics on that at this time."

The couple announced their engagement in August via Instagram as part of a combined album promotion and podcast campaign. The post drew 14 million likes within the first hour and now stands at 37.4 million. MSG has served as a wedding venue before: in 1974, funk singer Sly Stone and actress Kathy Silva married there in front of a sold out crowd, and in 1982 Reverend Sun Myung Moon officiated a mass wedding at the venue.

According to Page Six, Stevie Nicks and country singer Tim McGraw will perform during the festivities. Nicks and Swift have a longstanding collaborative relationship and co wrote the liner notes for Swift's 2024 album The Tortured Poets Department. McGraw was the inspiration for Swift's very first hit, written when she was 16. Paul McCartney's name is also circulating, as is that of her longtime friend Ed Sheeran. Guests reportedly received only the instruction to be in New York on July 3, with no further details. Individually watermarked invitations and non disclosure agreements are said to be part of the strict security protocols. Kelce's San Francisco 49ers teammate George Kittle appeared to let slip a detail when he mentioned that the invitation stated gifts were absolutely not expected, though he planned to ignore that rule with an old coin for Kelce's collection.

Among the rumored guests, according to various outlets, are models Gigi Hadid and Cara Delevingne, actress Emma Stone, pop stars Selena Gomez and the Haim sisters, and Swift's future sister in law Kylie Kelce. Country names such as Kenny Chesney, Little Big Town, Sugarland, and the Chicks are also mentioned, alongside actor Adrien Brody. A total of $4.5 million has now been wagered on various aspects of the ceremony, from the venue to the bridesmaids. For Dutch music fans, it is worth noting that Harry Styles, who is playing Wembley this week, may not have been invited due to his relationship with Swift's friend Zoë Kravitz.