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Inside Cardi B's Relationship With Stefon Diggs
Joan Vassos had an extra special connection to one of the NFL players in the 2026 Super Bowl.
The Golden Bachelorette alum shared the surprising revelation that her daughter Allison Vassos once dated New England Patriots star Stefon Diggs.
“I know Stefon Diggs because my daughter dated him when she was in high school,” Joan explained on the Feb. 6 episode of Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti’s Almost Famous podcast. “She was a senior in high school, and he went to a high school that was down the road. So, she dated him.”
The 63-year-old—who shares kids Nicholas, 36, Erica, 33, Allison, 30, and Luke, 29, with late husband John Vassos—noted that Stefon was part of the family, sharing, “He came over to my house all the time. I have pictures of him with my family.”
In fact, one of those photos was taken at a family birthday dinner for John, who shared the same birthday as the 32-year-old wide receiver.
“We took him to Morton’s [steakhouse] for dinner,” the reality star—who has since gotten engaged to her Golden Bachelorette finalist Chock Chapple—said on the podcast. “I have a picture of them at Morton’s.”
However, Joan made sure to clarify that this was all “pre-Cardi B.”
Bruce Glikas/WireImage; Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Indeed, Stefon—whose team lost to the Seattle Seahawks 29-13 in the Super Bowl on Feb. 8—has been dating the “Bodak Yellow” rapper since May after Cardi ended her seven-year marriage to Offset in August 2024.
The two welcomed a baby boy in November and Stefon recently teased that an engagement could be on the horizon if he won the Super Bowl with the Patriots.
“It’s on the agenda,” he told reporters during the Super Bowl Opening Night on Feb. 2. “Maybe, right? I gotta get [my Super Bowl ring] first.”
Stefon also praised Cardi—who also shares Kulture, 7, Wave, 4, and Blossom, 16 months, with Offset—for her support through the season.
“As a significant other I really appreciate it,” Stefon shared at the time. “It’s a level of appreciation because she’s an amazing woman. Being there for me is hard, you can imagine. I’m a lot to deal with but I never want to not let her know that I appreciate her for being there. Not just for the games but she supported me when she wasn’t there.”
“She was watching the games,” he added of the 33-year-old. “She was texting me before the games and after the games and checking on me making sure that I was alright.”
(Photo by Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images)
Though the couple appeared to be a united front before the Super Bowl, they have since sparked breakup rumors after unfollowing each other on social media, according to Page Six.
Cardi—who made a cameo in Bad Bunny’s halftime show performance—also raised eyebrows when an ESPN reporter asked if she had a message for Stefon before the big game and she said, “Good luck,” before walking away. She later left the game early, sharing a video singing to Bad Bunny from inside her car after the halftime show.
E! News has reached out to Cardi and Stefon’s reps for comment but has not heard back.
As for Joan’s daughter Allison, she has kept her life mostly private but is a business owner and mom to son Boomer, 5, according to People.
While Bachelor Nation fans may be surprised to know Joan has a connection to Stefon, there are plenty of other celebrities who are friends with the most unexpected people. Keep reading to see more surprising celebrity friendships…
Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for The Hollywood Reporter
Mindy Kaling & Reese Witherspoon
They have been friends for years and have worked together. The two starred together in A Wrinkle in Time, while Mindy also had a recurring role on The Morning Show. In addition, the latter is co-writing Legally Blonde 3.
Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Netflix
Ayesha Curry & Lindsay Lohan
The Food Network star and Mean Girls alum first became friends during a trip to Dubai years ago and have since grown closer. In fact, Ayesha and Stephen Curry were even named the godparents of Lindsay and husband Bader Shammas' son Laui.
Raymond Hall/GC Images
Adam Sandler & Timothée Chalamet
The two actors, who costarred in the 2014 film Men, Women & Children, reunited for an outdoor game of basketball in New York City in July 2023.
Craig Barritt/Getty Images
Russell Crowe & RZA
The actor has worked with the Wu-Tang Clan rapper on several movies, including The Man with the Iron Fists, American Gangster and The Next Three Days. But their bond goes much deeper than that. "As friends, we talk," Crowe tells Fuse. "It is no effort for me to give a friend advice. Film has many gods and you have to understand, as a director, you will be required to please and appease them all."
Karwai Tang/WireImage
Michelle Dockery & Pippa Middleton
Before running into each other again at Wimbledon, the unlikely duo first crossed paths at the Downton Abbey set. "She actually came on-set with her brother, James, a few years ago," Dockery told E! News."They are good fans of the show."
Brian Aris/Live 8 via Getty Images
David Beckham & Snoop Dogg
When the "footballer" moved to L.A. and became a "soccer player," he befriended the rapper. Becks appeared on Snoop's reality show, the two played soccer and Snoop plays his new music for David first.
Jeff Vespa/Getty Images
Dakota Fanning & Kristen Stewart
The two former child actors have worked on two films, Twilight and The Runaways, but Dakota says their friendship isn't based on work, "When we're together, we're not talking about movie stuff."
Chris Polk/FilmMagic
Paris Hilton & Britney Spears
The two hung out together in the aughts and maintained their friendship over the years.
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
Nicki Minaj & Anna Wintour
The two have two very different approaches to fashion (has Anna ever been bedazzled?), but they bonded in the front row of an Oscar de la Renta show and Anna scored a name-drop in one of Nicki's raps.
Johnny Nunez/Getty Images
50 Cent & Bette Midler
Now this is one strange duet! Fiddy met Bette working for the charity New York Restoration Project, where she gushed, "He's one of the newest members of our tribe. He's really made my life worth living."
Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Taylor Swift & Lena Dunham
Taylor is a self-proclaimed good girl. Lena isn't afraid to stir the pot. But they have a lot of mutual respect for each other and the Girls creator described T.Swift's show as the "most life-affirming thing I've experienced."
Jeffrey Mayer/Getty Images
Jennifer Lopez & Leah Remini
The former King of Queens actress has been supertight with Jenny From the Block for a while now, bonding over fashion and tweeting cutesy things at each other with the hashtag "#luckybesties."
Dave M. Benett/Getty Images
Gwyneth Paltrow & Jay-Z
The Goop goddess herself is actually friends with both Jay and his wife Beyoncé, though you might be more surprised to learn that Gwyn is an intense rap enthusiast and her kids even call Mr. Carter "Uncle Jay."
Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
Brad Pitt & Jonah Hill
You might not expect the hunky thespian to be close with the dude from Superbad, but look at it this way: Brad is a total prankster (says Jonah) and Jonah is now a serious Oscar nominee (for their film Moneyball).
HECTOR MATA/AFP/Getty Images
Eminem & Elton John
The controversial rapper joined forces with Sir Elton at the 2001 Grammys and later Em turned to his new friend for support getting sober: "I told him, 'Look, I'm going through a problem and I need your advice.'"
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