Since it was revealed that Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce was dating Taylor Swift, pro-footballer romances have grabbed the curiosity of popular media. There were Hailee Steinfeld, Josh Allen, Travis, and Taylor, but San Francisco 49ers athlete Fred Warner and his wife Sydney Warner (previously Hightower) have been making headlines since their relationship began in 2020.
While Sydney and Fred Warner may not receive the celebrity-level attention that other NFL couples do, they are both notable personalities in their own right. Fred Warner was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 2018 after graduating from Brigham Young University; he has since made a name for himself in the league, appearing in the Super Bowl in 2020 and 2024. However, it was Fred and Sydney’s first loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2020 Super Bowl that drew them together in an unexpected way.
Fred and Sydney met after he saw her on television.
In February 2020, Fred Warner and the San Francisco 49ers were licking their wounds after losing the Super Bowl to the Kansas City Chiefs. That resulted in Fred staying at home and watching television, when he first saw Sydney Hightower on Peter Weber’s season of “The Bachelor.”
“He was single and had just lost the Super Bowl, so he was feeling down,” Sydney said on the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast (People). “He spent much of his time at home and rarely left his room. He would watch television shows, and while he didn’t watch much of ‘The Bachelor,’ his family did.
Fred watched as Sydney was removed from the reality dating show and sent packing, so he decided to take a chance and message her via Instagram. Even though Sydney admits that he only sent an emoji since he was convinced she wouldn’t give him any attention, his efforts paid off, and the couple began dating shortly after.
Fred’s suggestion paid tribute to Sydney’s reality television background.
Despite being removed from Peter Weber’s season of “The Bachelor” in the sixth week, Sydney Warner eventually found her happily ever after with Fred Warner. After about a year of dating, the couple got engaged in May 2021, and Fred devised a unique way to incorporate her reality TV experience into his proposal.
Set against the stunning backdrop of Napa, California, Fred proposed to Sydney while giving her something she had never received during her time on “The Bachelor”: a final rose. Sydney accepted his proposal, indicating that she was the person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, and the couple will marry in June 2022.
“I’ll never be able to express into words the magic of June 25th,” Sydney posted on Instagram of her wedding day. “The love and support that permeated those walls was undeniable. I am still in wonder that I get to be this incredible man’s wife and adore him for the rest of my life. We will treasure these photographs and memories forever.”
The 2024 Super Bowl was memorable for the couple.
Playing in the Super Bowl is a career highlight for any professional football player, but San Francisco 49ers player Fred Warner’s preparation for the 2024 game was made even more memorable by his wife, Sydney Warner. The pair announced in October 2023 that they were having their first child together, so Sydney was 35 weeks pregnant when the Super Bowl rolled around. Despite concerns that she might be unable to attend the game, Sydney was authorized to fly to Las Vegas to support her husband.
“She’s always keeping me grounded in terms of just keeping things in perspective,” Fred told People in January 2024. “She’s currently eight months pregnant with our firstborn baby, so that’s something I’m trying to balance. I’m making sure she has all she needs while also preparing for the Super Bowl.”
Despite the possibility that Sydney would miss the game, she was overjoyed to be able to go. “It’s like a movie,” she said to People. “And we’ll be able to have these memories forever, will be able to tell our son and show him pictures like this of his mother pregnant with him and his dad, so excited to meet him, literally at the Super Bowl.”
