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Surprise! USA water polo team gets tickets to see the Eras Tour in Paris from Taylor Swift
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Date:2025-04-16 16:29:00
A cold email with a big wish led to a once-in-a-lifetime night for 23 members of the U.S. women's water polo team.
"I don't know how I'm going to top this," says Ally Beck over Zoom. Beck, the operational manager, reached out to Taylor Swift's team earlier this year hoping to surprise her athletes with tickets to the Eras Tour.
"We've been preparing for the Olympics and got invited by France to do a test event in Paris," Beck says. When she looked for activities for the team to do, she noticed Swift would kick off the second year of her record-breaking tour in the French capital city. So she e-mailed the singer's team.
Weeks went by and while Beck was boarding the plane from Los Angeles to France, she got a reply that stopped her in her tracks.
"The audible squeal that came out of me on the plane," she says. "I was like, 'Oh, I'm sorry, everyone.'"
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Beck waited until the Wednesday before the concert to tell the team.
You can see the reaction in the video above.
"The girls just lost it," Beck says. "And from there, it was like, 'What are we going to wear?' We were squealing down the hallway."
'There is no amount of times to say thank you'
On Friday, 15 water polo athletes and eight staff members piled into the VIP floor section dubbed the "Red" lounge. Two of the biggest Swifties on the team are Denise Mammolito, the utility outside shooter, and center Ava Johnson. Mammolito's first concert was Swift's second era: "Fearless."
The Eras Tour added to an already amazing week for the team, after rapper Flavor Flav said he would help financially support the team's trip to the summer games in Paris.
Team captain Maggie Steffens took to Instagram with an inspirational post that read in part: "Some may not know this, but most Olympians need a 2nd (or 3rd) job to support chasing the dream (myself included!) and most teams rely on sponsors for travel, accommodations, nutritional support, rent/lodging, and simply affording to live in this day and age. Especially female sports and female athletes."
Flavor Flav replied, "AYYY YOOO,,, as a girl dad and supporter of all women’s sports - imma personally sponsor you my girl,,, whatever you need. And imma sponsor the whole team. My manager is in touch with your agent and imma use all my relationships and resources to help all y’all even more. That’s a FLAVOR FLAV promise."
Beck could not be more grateful to Swift and Flavor Flav for their generosity and kindness.
"There is no amount of times to say thank you," Beck says, "just seeing everybody light up, enjoy like the power that is Taylor and kind of getting to watch her in her element and then the extra layer of knowing she's rocking the La Défense arena and we're going to go for gold there in a couple of months, just the amount of inspiration we were able to draw from her is a whole other level."
The team will compete in the stadium at the end of July and beginning of August. They are poised to defend their three consecutive gold titles: 2012 in London, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro and 2020 in Tokyo.
Swift continues her European leg of the Eras Tour in Sweden this weekend before heading to Lisbon, Portugal, next week.
Don't miss any Taylor Swift news; sign up for the free, weekly newsletter This Swift Beat.
Follow Bryan West, the USA TODAY Network's Taylor Swift reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
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