AFL star Mason Cox was blindsided on live TV after he was questioned on The Project over his public plea after watching Taylor Swift.

Collingwood Magpies premiership star Mason Cox has been blindsided on live TV after being called the “world’s biggest Cox blocker” by The Project’s Sarah Harris.

The 211cm American hit headlines this week after he put out a public plea to Taylor Swift fans who got stuck behind him at one of her three shows at the MCG last weekend.

Cox outted himself as a Swiftie last year when he landed his tickets to the concert, taking to social media to write: “I want to sincerely apologise in advance for who has tickets behind me at the Taylor Swift concert. I know you paid a lot but I don’t care. T Swift is more important.”

He added it was a “1 in 100,000 chance you’ll be behind me” — but the thing about odds is that there’s always a one.

While he talked a big game months out from the concert, Cox wasn’t unapologetic when it came to the crunch, sharing a photo of him head and shoulders above the crowd.

Cox had a great view. Photo: Instagram

Mason Cox with friends at the Taylor Swift concert
While he revealed he and his crew shared chocolates with the unlucky fans sat behind him, Cox revealed he felt “absolutely dreadful” in a radio interview on Tuesday.

It was the perfect in for The Project.

“How does it feel to be the world’s biggest Cox blocker?” Harris asked.

Through laughter, Cox said: “One way to put it. Geez, I didn’t expect that one off the bat.”

Harris replied that they “made me”, with Cox adding: “I’ll blame it on Waleed,” before answering the question.

“I feel bad every time I go to a concert because there’s always a huge, massive haul of people behind me — it’s not ideal,” Cox said.

“I know Taylor Swift, being an iconic act, coming to Melbourne, I had to ruin someone’s day. Unfortunately the people behind me got the unfortunate ticket.”

It’s not the first time Cox’s height has landed him in the headlines.

In 2020, a fan took a photo of the back of Cox’s head almost completely blocking the court — or at least the parts that matter most — at Rod Laver Arena.

Asked if it happens a lot, Cox said it happens a fair bit.

“Being 6’11”, unfortunately this is just part of it. I can’t do anything about it,” Cox said. “I want to go and experience things. Sometimes there’s got to some unlucky fans behind me.”

Sarah Harris surprised Mason Cox. Photo: Channel 10
Cox was also questioned about how he’s going to find the fans who sat behind him — revealing he had actually found them.

He said he’s going to organise tickets and take them into the rooms after the game “and give them a unique experience and apologise for having zero view during the whole Taylor Swift concert.

Project host Sam Taunton then quipped: “First they miss Taylor Swift and now have to endure a Collingwood game.”

Cox replied that they were actually Collingwood fans.

Waleed Aly, a noted Richmond fan said: “In that case, they don’t deserve to watch Taylor Swift being a Collingwood fan.”

Cox had been doing the media rounds on Tuesday, telling Nova 100’s Ben, Liam & Belle, Cox said he was hoping to get an aisle seat so he could move out of the way.

“No! Middle of the row, no options whatsoever,” he said.

He added he wanted to apologise after the show for “being a jerk and jumping around like an absolute idiot for the last three and a half hours in front of you” – but the girls behind him had already gone.

“I feel so bad with them sitting behind me after paying all the money and everything else and then probably not even seeing Taylor Swift,” he said.

Cox at training for the Pies. Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images
It comes after some complaints from those seated on the floor that they did not have great views of Swift or the stage, which is located at one end of the stadium.

As one woman with three young children lamented to news.com.au during Friday’s show: “We would’ve been better staying home and watching a live stream (of the concert).”

Meanwhile, another detail at Melbourne’s MCG is leaving Swift’s American fanbase in disbelief, with many asking where the 96,000 fans who attended each show parked their cars.

The MCG is ringed by parkland on three sides and serviced by two major nearby train stations – a very different set-up from many major American concert venues, which are surrounded by multiple giant parking lots.