‘I’m emotionally attached’: Fans ship a certain ‘DWTS’ couple after some cheeky ‘Thursday Night Football’ antics

Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher and Alan Bersten are undoubtedly the funniest couple on Dancing With the Stars season 33. With cheeky banter both on-screen and off-screen, the pair has developed a genuine friendship with one another that is one of the most authentic in DWTS history, but after some silly TikTok videos shared by Ilona yesterday (Oct. 24), fans are beginning to question if their relationship spans beyond a friendship.

For those who are unfamiliar, Ilona has had quite the journey on Dancing With the Stars, improving week after week, with the exception of her slip-up during “Hair Metal Night.” To date, Ilona and Alan’s scores in the competition are as follows:

DWTS Premiere — Cha Cha to “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” by Shania Twain (18/30)
“Oscars Night” — Salsa to “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” from Dirty Dancing (21/30)
“Soul Train Night” — Foxtrot to “Lady Marmalade” by Labelle (30/40)
“Hair Metal Night” — Jive to “Cum On Feel the Noize” by Quiet Riot (26/40)
“Dedications Night” — Rumba to “My Way” by Yseult (32/40)
“Disney Night” — Jazz to “Surface Pressure” from Encanto (25/30)

With “Halloween Nightmares Night” quickly approaching — where she and Alan will perform a Tango to “Psycho Killer” by Miley Cyrus — will the bronze medalist manage to last another week on Dancing With the Stars? We certainly hope so, simply because we want to see the chemistry between Ilona and Alan progress.

As mentioned previously, the pair was seen spending some one-on-one time together yesterday, attending the Los Angeles Rams vs Minnesota Vikings game and sharing some silly TikTok videos. Based on how much time they spend together outside of rehearsals, could a romance be brewing between the duo?

Well, unless either party confirms or denies, that is up to interpretation.

Sharing a video tackling her DWTS partner — as well as a video of the pair pretending to be players on the Rams and Vikings, warming up for the big game — a third video of Ilona and Alan raised some serious red flags.

In said video, Ilona is seen lip-syncing Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts,” specifically the lyrics “Fresh photos with the bomb lighting (With the bomb lighting) / New man on the Minnesota Vikings (Minnesota Vikings).” With Alan in the background in a Vikings jersey, Dancing With the Stars fans think that Ilona could be hinting at the fact he is her “new man”:

“Is this a hard launch? 😃”

“Can I please be invited to the wedding”

“I try SO dang mindfully to NOT ship DWTS partners, but there is something that makes me want to see you be besties and then fall madly in love… You both shall live happily ever after”

Others saw nothing suspicious about the video, praising Ilona and Alan’s genuine friendship instead:

“I hope you guys are friends forever”

“I pray you stay friends forever!!!! I love this friendship 🥰”

“I never want the Ilona/Alan videos to end. Besties for life please!!”

Fortunately, Ilona and Alan lived to see another week on Dancing With the Stars, so it is safe to say we will be paying closer attention to the pair this time around…

To join us in this endeavor, catch “Halloween Nightmares Night” on Tuesday (Oct. 29) at 8pm ET/PT via ABC or Disney Plus, as well as brand-new DWTS episodes every Tuesday afterwards. Fingers crossed this couple avoids elimination!