Did Taylor Swift turn down the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show in Arizona?

Could Taylor Swift play the Super Bowl 2023 halftime show at State Farm Stadium in Glendale in February?

That's what sleuthing Swifties are speculating in reaction to the NFL's announcement at the stroke of midnight East Coast time on Friday that Pepsi had been replaced as the halftime show sponsor by Apple Music just in time for Super Bowl LVII.

But TMZ reported Friday afternoon that the NFL did ask her to perform, but she declined the offer.

TMZ says "sources with direct knowledge of the Super Bowl halftime show" told them Swift "didn't want to perform until she finished rerecording all of her first six albums."

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She's already rerecorded and released two of those six albums, "Red" and "Fearless." But she still has four to go, which would appear to rule out next year's Super Bowl.

TMZ added, "We're told Taylor would like to headline a Super Bowl halftime show, but now it's an issue of timing."

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So why did Swift fans think it might be her?

Swift has never played a Super Bowl, a conspicuous circumstance that felt like it had everything to do with the sponsorship deal she's had for years with Coca-Cola, Pepsi's far superior main competition.

The NFL's announcement made no mention of Swift or any other potential performer.

The rumored connection to 'Midnights'

To Swift fans, it's the timing of the NFL's announcement.

Not only had she dropped two albums at midnight but she has another album coming out in October.

Its title? "Midnights."

And every announcement Swift has shared about that album since her initial announcement at the VMAs has dropped at midnight East Coast time.

Has the NFL weighed in on the Taylor Swift Super Bowl rumor?

The NFL has not confirmed these rumors. Nor has it denied them.

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Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495. Follow him on Twitter @EdMasley.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Did Taylor Swift turn down the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show?