A fierce ice storm meant that NFL players from the Kansas City Chiefs – including stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce – had to spend four hours on the tarmac at the city's airport, media reports said.

The 15-1 Chiefs were flying to Denver for their final regular season game.

For the likes of Mahomes, the wait was ironic given the team is likely to play a second string given they have already secured the top seed for the playoffs in the AFC.

The ice storm had been forecast for days, but the chartered aircraft had not arrived in time and was not ready for take-off before the storm struck.

Environment and Climate Dangerous storm to unleash snow, ice, bitter cold across US

A brief pause in the blizzard later provided enough time to de-ice the aircraft, clear the runway, and allow the Chiefs to be the first to take off.

Blizzard and winter storm conditions blasted the Midwest early Sunday, as a massive weather system began tracking eastward across the US, with authorities warning of some of the heaviest snowfalls in a decade and severe impact on transport.