Katie Feeney is having a busy summer. In the past few weeks alone, she’s gotten to witness the New York Knicks win the NBA Championship, attend World Cup matches, and even catch a surprise performance at Travis Kelce’s Tight End University from her idol, Taylor Swift.
“I was shaking,” she says, her face lighting up at the memory. “I mean, it’s probably her last performance before she gets married, so that was really cool.”
You’d think Feeney would get used to star-studded events and once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, as a top-tier influencer with 13 million followers across social media channels. (In fact, after speaking at Her Conference 2026, she’s jetting off to London for the Wimbledon Championship.) But the 23-year-old remains in awe of what she gets to do.
“I feel very fortunate to have as many pinch-me moments as I do,” she says.
But it’s not just luck. Feeney put in years of work to get here, starting in college, when her social content surrounding Penn State sporting events first started taking off. In 2022, she became the NFL’s first social media correspondent, which led to her covering national sporting events like the NFL Draft and Super Bowl. She graduated with a degree in journalism and digital media in 2025, moved to New York City, and was hired as a sports and lifestyle content creator for ESPN — a role literally made for her, given her background in sports and social media.
As seamless as this all sounds, the adjustment to post-grad life hasn’t been easy. “In college, everyone’s kind of on the same timeline,” Feeney says. “We’re all in the same phase of life, but then you get into the real world and you’re meeting people that are on all sorts of different timelines. It’s kind of up to you to create your own.”
While adjusting to this new phase of life, Feeney learned a valuable lesson about adulthood. “It’s OK if you’re on your own timeline,” she says. “I definitely have had to learn how to prioritize certain things with time. I’m a big ‘yes’ person, but now that I’m not in college and I realize how valuable time is … I think it’s OK to just really take time for yourself, protect your peace, prioritize your friendships and just experience life.”
Judging by the whirlwind she’s been in lately, Feeney’s going to need to remember that lesson. Summer 2026 — or should I say “sporty girl summer” — is packed with events across all different kinds of sports. And for the record, Feeney is all for it. “I feel like this summer especially, it feels like more and more people are becoming sports fans,” she says. “There’s just so many different sports happening right now … I feel good vibes all around this summer and it’s cool to see how much sports is expanding and how it’s really leaning into the casual fan as much as it is the diehard sports fan.”
Feeney is especially excited about the increasing presence of women in sports — as athletes, fans, and (of course) commentators and content creators — and she wants to see more. “My best advice is to just be so good at what you do that no one can tell you you’re doing anything wrong,” she says, an apt message for any young woman interested in getting into a male-dominated field. “As a woman, we have to remember that every room we walk into, we’re supposed to be there. It can be a little bit intimidating at times, but just remember that you’re there for a reason and you’re going to thrive.”
Even as she’s breaking barriers as a young woman in the athletics space, Feeney is looking ahead to what’s next. “I would love to continue to grow as a storyteller and as a personality in sports,” she says. “My big goal is to one day host my own show. There’s still a lot of tentpole sporting events I would love to attend. I would love to host more red carpets. It’s crazy that I’m 23 and have done as much as I have. It’s been a whirlwind of an experience, but I’m excited to see what else I can do.”
Interview by Lexi Williams.