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LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas is for lovers.
And it was the perfect place for Kansas City Chiefs fans Calvin Hicks and Brooke Myers to get married ahead of Super Bowl 58. The couple tied the knot Saturday afternoon at The Little Vegas Chapel with Myers' two sisters, Rebecca Luke and Tara Trevarthen, in attendance.
The theme: Chiefs everything.
"I vow to love you as much as I love the Kansas City Chiefs," officiant Eunice Weisbart, who wore a red plaid jacket, had Hicks and Myers repeat to each other. The whole room laughed.
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The couple tied the knot in custom jerseys with the Nos. 2 and 10 to commemorate the date and "Mr. Hicks and Mrs. Hicks" on the nameplates. Myers' brother customized a jean jacket for her that said "Bride" with Kansas City patches and she wore a white tulle skirt for a touch of tradition. Her bouquet was made up of red and yellow flowers with a Chiefs wrap around the stems. The couple had matching red and white Nike sneakers and Myers wore a red and yellow beaded friendship bracelet.
Myers is a Swiftie and walked down the aisle to Taylor Swift's "Lover."
The pop superstar has made waves because she's dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Her attendance at games has brought a new audience of young women to the league.
"I'm a huge Taylor Swift fan, so it seemed perfect," Myers told USA TODAY Sports while Hicks rolled his eyes. She said the 13-time Grammy winner joining Chiefs Kingdom is "awesome." "It's like my two worlds have collided in the best possible way."
The wedding party flew in from Lebanon, Missouri. The couple told the sisters to simply wear Chiefs gear. The ceremony was live-streamed for friends and family who couldn't make the trip.
Having the Super Bowl in Las Vegas for the first time marks the marriage of the NFL's national growth, the legalization of sports betting and the expansion of the city as a sports empire. The Las Vegas Raiders, NHL's Vegas Golden Knights and the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix have all joined the city's entertainment landscape in the past decade.
Weddings are an essential part of Las Vegas culture, whether the appeal is an Elvis impersonator serving as the officiant or the thrill of getting married on a whim. According to U.S. News and World Report, Nevada was the state with the highest marriage rate in 2021 after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Per the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Las Vegas wedding industry is worth $2.6 billion dollars. In 2022, the Clark County Marriage License Bureau surpassed 5 million marriage licenses issued.
"We're very honored to have the Super Bowl here," Elmer Turcios, assistant to the general manager at The Little Vegas Chapel, told USA TODAY Sports. The chapel specializes in themed weddings, including Star Wars, superheroes and dinosaurs. Yes, a literal Bridezilla.
"It's probably the most convenient place to get married is Las Vegas, so we've sort of developed a little party around the wedding industry, if you will. It's just a lot of happiness," Turcios said.
Hicks and Myers met through the Hinge dating app. She said he messaged her first.
What drew them to each other? The Chiefs photos they had on their profiles. Their mutual fandom continued to bring them together. Hicks helped design a bald eagle tattoo on Myers' leg that has a Chiefs logo incorporated into it.
They got engaged in August and were considering different options for their wedding, including staging it at Arrowhead Stadium. Myers' sisters were the ones who kept bringing up the idea of going to Las Vegas if Kansas City made it to the Super Bowl. As soon as the Chiefs won the AFC championship, they hit "purchase" and booked everything.
The only hiccup? The initial order for the custom jerseys said they'd arrive in March, a month after the wedding and Super Bowl. But that situation was cleared up in 48 hours.
The couple purposely chose the day before the big game to get married so that they could enjoy the moment in case the Chiefs don't win the Super Bowl.
"We didn't want our anniversary to have that bad memory," Myers said.
Hicks, a man of few words, got emotional during the ceremony. His soft-spokenness and Myers' bubbly energy fill all blank spaces.
"They're soulmates," Luke said, welling up with happy tears. "They are. I remember Calvin coming to my house and he was like telling me stories about Brooke and he was like, 'we're so much alike. I think I really love her.' "
