doem The 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show is already in crisis. The Latin star just fired back at critics demanding English songs with a bold ultimatum: “If you didn’t understand me, you’ve got four months to learn.” No English. No apologies. Just a promise to break Michael Jackson’s record — and a nation divided over who gets to represent America. You thought this was just a concert? Think again.
In the annals of the Super Bowl Halftime Show, the event has long served as an unofficial annual declaration of American cultural dominance, a showcase where global music icons cement their legend before a billion eyes. From Michael Jackson’s career-defining spectacle to Prince’s masterful rain-soaked performance, the stage is reserved for musical royalty. Now, for Super Bowl LX in 2026, the crown has been passed to Bad Bunny (Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio), a Puerto Rican artist whose selection has not only heralded a new era for Latin music but has ignited a global cultural firestorm of politics, language, and national identity.
The controversy is simple yet profound: Bad Bunny, one of the most streamed artists on the planet, is an unapologetically Spanish-language artist. His selection, therefore, serves as a direct, high-stakes challenge to the long-assumed requirement that the Super Bowl stage must cater primarily to the English-speaking U.S. audience. It is this fundamental challenge that has drawn the ire of political figures and traditionalists, escalating a typical entertainment announcement into a cultural crisis.
The situation was further charged by Bad Bunny’s own audacious promise—an unspoken vow that he could not only handle the most prestigious musical stage in the world but could deliver a performance that would be remembered alongside the legendary record-setters, all while adhering strictly to his native tongue. His ambition is to create a show so iconic it shatters the bar set by the performance often cited as the gold standard of Halftime Shows: Michael Jackson’s 1993 spectacle. The underlying message is that global influence and American cultural domination no longer require a single word of English.
The Political Backlash: ‘Absolutely Ridiculous’
The backlash was swift and highly politicized, reflecting the deep cultural rifts currently running through the country. Leading the charge of criticism was former President Donald Trump, who wasted no time attacking the decision, calling the NFL’s choice “absolutely ridiculous.”
Speaking on NewsMax, the former President claimed ignorance of the star’s massive global fame, stating plainly, “I never heard of him.” Trump added to the conservative chorus of doubt by stating he didn’t know why the NFL was moving forward with the performance, concluding, “I don’t know who he is, I don’t know why they’re doing it, it’s like, crazy.”
Trump’s comments amplified the broader conservative criticism: that an artist who does not cater to traditional U.S. sensibilities—and who has been outspoken on issues like immigrant rights—is an unsuitable choice for an event meant to unify the nation. Other conservative commentators and politicians quickly piled on, questioning his patriotism and even falsely suggesting that the artist, who is from the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, was “not an American artist.” The political rhetoric attempted to frame the choice not as a celebration of global artistry, but as a deliberate rejection of core American values and language.
The criticism also specifically targeted the artist’s political record. Bad Bunny had previously canceled U.S. dates on his world tour, citing genuine fear that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents might raid his venues or station officers outside, given the current political climate and crackdown on immigration. As he told i-D magazine, “ICE [the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency] could be outside my concert venue.”
This history of political activism immediately raised the stakes for the Super Bowl Halftime Show.
The Gauntlet Thrown: “You Have Four Months to Learn”
Bad Bunny did not ignore the criticism. Instead, he met it with a dramatic, televised act of defiance that turned the culture war on its head. During his appearance on Saturday Night Live (SNL), he used his monologue to address his critics and the controversy head-on.
He began by acknowledging the global significance of the performance, stating, “I’m really excited to be doing the Super Bowl, I know that people all around the world who love my music are also happy.” Then, in a moment that thrilled his massive Latin fanbase, he switched seamlessly to his native Spanish for a powerful statement that transcended the bounds of television entertainment.
In Spanish, Bad Bunny delivered a pointed message of cultural victory and recognition: “Especially all of the Latinos and Latinas in the world here in the United States who have worked to open doors. It’s more than a win for myself, it’s a win for all of us. Our footprints and our contribution in this country, no one will ever be able to take away or erase it.”
It was his final, sharp turn back to English, however, that became the rallying cry of the entire controversy, an audacious challenge that directly answered the critics demanding English accessibility:
“If you didn’t understand what I just said. You have four months to learn.”
This quote became the definitive soundbite, a viral declaration of cultural sovereignty. It was a clear, unfiltered rejection of the notion that non-English speaking global culture must assimilate to be legitimate on the American stage. Instead, Bad Bunny suggested that the audience must meet him where he is, turning a language barrier into a mirror reflecting America’s changing demographics and its place in the global music scene.
The NFL Stage as a Political Battleground
The tension escalated far beyond simple social media debate when political figures responded to Bad Bunny’s comments by turning the Super Bowl itself into a political pressure cooker. The Trump administration officials and allies warned that they plan to counter Bad Bunny’s political statement with an aggressive show of force.
The threats included Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem warning that she plans to station ICE agents at the game in Santa Clara, California, with the intent of catching anyone who is not a “law-abiding American who love[s] this country.” Trump’s advisor, Corey Lewandowski, was equally defiant, stating: “There is nowhere you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else.”
This political posturing means that the 2026 Halftime Show risks becoming a dual spectacle: a dazzling display of Latin trap and Reggaeton music on one side of the stadium, and a highly visible demonstration of federal immigration enforcement on the other. It’s an unprecedented blending of entertainment and political confrontation on the world’s most-watched stage.
For the NFL, Roc Nation, and Apple Music, the show’s producers, the selection of Bad Bunny is undeniably a bold strategic move. It is a calculated effort to embrace the sheer economic and cultural power of the global Latino audience, a market that has made Bad Bunny an absolute streaming titan, boasting over 107 billion streams on Spotify and 49.5 million Instagram followers.
As Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter, the curator of the show, commented: “What Benito has done and continues to do for Puerto Rico is truly inspiring. We are honored to have him on the world’s biggest stage.”
The NFL’s Jon Barker positioned the choice as a recognition of the new global landscape: “Bad Bunny represents the global energy and cultural vibrancy that define today’s music scene. As one of the most influential and streamed artists in the world, his unique ability to bridge genres, languages, and audiences makes him an exciting and natural choice to take the Super Bowl halftime stage.”
However, history shows that the NFL’s desire for control often clashes with the rebellious instincts of their performers. In the past, the league has attempted to censure artists over political gestures, only to have stars like Jennifer Lopez and Eminem defy their guardrails.
Bad Bunny, with his audacious promise to break records with zero English songs and his “four months to learn” challenge, is setting the stage for a performance that will be interpreted not merely as music, but as a defining cultural statement. The performance will be the most significant test yet of whether the Super Bowl can truly remain a unifying American event or if it has irrevocably become the ultimate battleground in a hyper-politicized, globally conscious world. For millions of viewers, the drama may lie not just in the football game or the performance, but in the dangerous political tension surrounding the stage itself.
The full details of the performance and the political fallout are still unfolding.
The question remains: Can a show performed entirely in Spanish truly break the record set by the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, or will the cultural war surrounding the event overshadow the music itself? The answer will be delivered under the lights of Levi’s Stadium in 2026.
The news that Bad Bunny will be the Super Bowl Halftime performer has created a stir, including strong reactions from conservatives as shown in this video, Conservatives react after Bad Bunny picked for Super Bowl halftime show.
