Bad Bunny will headline the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show in 2026, a choice that has ignited celebration across pop culture and sharp political criticism. This report compiles the confirmed dates, names, numbers, and on-the-record quotes tied to the announcement and the reaction.
Bad Bunny to headline Super Bowl LX: the announcement and the timeline
On September 28, 2025, during Sunday Night Football, the NFL named Bad Bunny, 31, the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show performer. The Puerto Rican star—born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio—shared an official statement that read, “What I’m feeling goes beyond myself,” and continued, “It’s for those who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown … this is for my people, my culture, and our history. Ve y dile a tu abuela, que seremos el HALFTIME SHOW DEL SUPER BOWL.” (statement published the week of the announcement).
The headliner confirmation landed amid a huge 2025 for the artist. A feature package published on October 4, 2025 (4:30 p.m. EDT) highlighted that he had “one of the top 5 best-selling albums of 2025, to date, with DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS,” usually abbreviated as DTMF, which “was released on Jan. 5, 2025.” The same overview placed the Super Bowl news within a year that also included a world tour and a Puerto Rican residency.
That residency—titled No Me Quiero Ir de Aquí (“I Don’t Want to Leave Here”)—kicked off in July 2025 at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico. Advance demand was massive: there were “more than 2.5 million people” registered for the pre-sale, with Move Concerts (the promoter run by Bad Bunny’s manager Noah Assad) “calculating that 400,000 tickets were sold online and in person.” The residency ran from mid-July through mid-September, with Friday-to-Sunday shows each weekend.
Why Bad Bunny? The case and the business strategy
Bad Bunny’s mainstream reach has been building for years. He broke into many English-speaking listeners’ rotations via the 2018 hits “I Like It” with J Balvin and Cardi B and “Mia” with Drake, then stacked chart achievements and global streaming records. He appeared three times on Saturday Night Live since 2021, most recently during the show’s milestone Season 50 finale, and has done multiple sketches in addition to performing. The pop-culture ubiquity also stretched to a Calvin Klein campaign and a summer turn in Happy Gilmore 2 alongside Adam Sandler, where the musician played an enthusiastic caddy. On set, he “palled around with Travis Kelce,” while fans speculated about possible intersections with Taylor Swift—buzz that tracked alongside the pop star’s own album cycle.
One political explainer framed the league’s approach as intentional. As summarized there, picking Bad Bunny aligns with a broader Roc Nation partnership that began in 2019 under Jay-Z, designed to “inject cultural relevance” and “rejuvenate and diversify” the audience. That piece cited how Kendrick Lamar’s 2024 halftime set signaled the NFL’s willingness to take calculated risks for “cultural relevance and global conversation.”
The backlash: dates, names, and direct quotes
The pushback arrived quickly and was led by high-profile political figures. On October 6, 2025, during Newsmax’s Greg Kelly Reports, Donald Trump was asked to react. He said, “I’ve never heard of him,” and later called the choice “absolutely ridiculous.” The exchange included host Greg Kelly referring to “the Bad Bunny rabbit” while questioning whether viewers should “blow off the NFL.” The next day—October 7, 2025—coverage reiterated those quotes and presented Spotify metrics to counter the “never heard of him” claim, noting he ranked among the platform’s most-streamed artists despite not releasing a new album the previous year.
Also on October 7, 2025, House Speaker Mike Johnson said, “I didn’t even know who Bad Bunny was,” and argued it “sounds like a terrible decision.” He posited that the show should feature an older, traditional choice like Lee Greenwood. The same cycle collected reaction snippets and social clips from political reporters, including Aaron Rupar and Pablo Manríquez.
Within the administration, a security-tinged message emerged. On October 1, 2025, Corey Lewandowski, a senior adviser at the Department of Homeland Security, asserted on Benny Johnson’s podcast, “There is nowhere you can provide safe haven,” adding, “We will find you and apprehend you.” Days later, Kristi Noem, identified in the same cycle as the Homeland Security secretary, said immigration enforcement would be “all over” the event and urged attendance by “law-abiding Americans who love this country.”
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Context: language, identity, and how the rumor mill spun up
Another prong of the online reaction centered on identity and language. Commentators on a Fox News-adjacent podcast clip sparred over whether Bad Bunny was an “American” artist. Tomi Lahren said, “He’s not an American artist,” while guest Krystal Ball replied, “He’s Puerto Rican. That’s part of America, dear.” Maria Cardona later mocked the exchange on social media.
Separate rumor cycles claimed that the NFL had canceled Bad Bunny’s halftime appearance and that Coca-Cola “pulled” sponsorship. Those claims were flagged as false; the brand “hasn’t advertised at the game since 2020.” The same explainer tracked Bad Bunny’s recent schedule: a three-month, 30-show San Juan run that was estimated to bring $400 million to Puerto Rico’s economy during a typically “slow” season, followed by an eight-month world tour starting in December with “no stops in the continental U.S.” The piece also recapped how, earlier in September, the artist told i-D that U.S. dates raised concerns about immigration raids, adding in Spanish on X, “estuve pensando en estos días … creo que haré una sola fecha en Estados Unidos,” posted on September 29, 2025.
Who’s in the Super Bowl halftime show conversation (names, titles, affiliations)
- Bad Bunny (Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio), Super Bowl LX halftime headliner.
- Jay-Z and Roc Nation, NFL halftime programming partner since 2019.
- Donald Trump, quoted on October 6, 2025; appearance on Greg Kelly Reports (Newsmax).
- Mike Johnson, House Speaker; quotes dated October 7, 2025.
- Corey Lewandowski, DHS senior adviser; quotes dated October 1, 2025, on Benny Johnson’s podcast.
- Kristi Noem, identified as Homeland Security secretary in reaction coverage; enforcement comments.
- Tomi Lahren, Krystal Ball, Maria Cardona: language/identity exchange.
- Aaron Rupar, Pablo Manríquez: shared interview clips on October 7, 2025.
- J Balvin, Cardi B, “I Like It” collaborators named in context.
- Drake (rumored cameo chatter in the wider discourse).
- Adam Sandler and Happy Gilmore 2 (summer 2025 credit); Saturday Night Live Season 50 finale.
- Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift: pop-sports crossover names included in 2025 coverage.
- Monica Schipper/Getty; Kevin Mazur/WireImage: photo credits cited in the 2025 feature coverage.
- Kendrick Lamar (2024 halftime set referenced in the business rationale).
- Lee Greenwood (suggested alternative by Mike Johnson).
- Coca-Cola (not advertised at the game since 2020, per rumor check).
Reporting notes: who picks the performer and how that affects the discourse
One news report clarified that the league itself is not solely responsible for selecting the halftime artist. For the seventh straight year, the NFL has teamed with Roc Nation to program the show and “enhance the NFL’s live game experiences” while amplifying social initiatives. That context helps explain both the choice and the response: the NFL is managing a long-term culture and audience strategy, not just filling a single slot.
Bad Bunny’s own words, onstage and on TV
On October 4, 2025, Bad Bunny addressed the Super Bowl chatter during an SNL monologue. He said he was “very happy,” and joked that “even Fox News” was thrilled in a spoofed clip. He added in Spanish: “Especially all the Latinos and Latinas … It’s more than an achievement for myself, it’s an achievement for all of us … our contribution to this country, that no one will ever be able to take away,” before quipping, “And if you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn.”
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What’s confirmed vs. unconfirmed
- Confirmed: Bad Bunny is the Super Bowl LX halftime headliner (announced September 28, 2025).
- Confirmed: Quotations and reaction dates on October 1, 4, 6, and 7, 2025, are on the record as cited above.
- Confirmed: Residency and touring facts from mid-2025, including pre-sale registration and ticket sales figures from Move Concerts and manager Noah Assad.
- Unconfirmed/rumor: Any specific guest act (e.g., Drake) remains unverified in official materials.
- False claims flagged: Show “canceled”; Coca-Cola “pulled” sponsorship (brand not a Super Bowl advertiser since 2020).
Super Bowl halftime show — takeaway
The Super Bowl halftime show now doubles as a referendum on who the NFL wants watching in 2026. Bad Bunny’s booking sits at the intersection of data-driven strategy and identity politics. The year-long run-up—DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS on January 5, 2025, the sold-out Coliseo de Puerto Rico residency, and a global pop footprint from Saturday Night Live to Happy Gilmore 2—explains why many in the industry framed him as “the only choice.” The backlash is equally part of the story, captured in quotes like “I’ve never heard of him” and “absolutely ridiculous,” and in calls for a different era’s safe picks. The facts, names, numbers, and dates above are the current scoreboard.
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