The New England Patriots are returning to the Super Bowl on 8 February for the first time since 2019 to face the NFC champion Seattle Seahawks in Santa Clara, California. As the biggest game of the season approaches, so do the debates surrounding the halftime show—now one of the most watched stages of America’s culture wars between the left and right.
This year, Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny will perform in the halftime show. The choice alone was enough for part of the MAGA base to declare they will not watch the show, as the celebrity is a vocal critic of US President Donald Trump and endorsed Kamala Harris back in 2024. Since then, Bad Bunny—real name Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio—has declared that he would not perform his latest tour in the United States to avoid ‘making his concerts a hub for ICE’ targeting Hispanic fans.
Moreover, just weeks ahead of the halftime show, rumours began circulating about another planned provocation aimed at NFL fans. According to Radar Online, multiple members of the artist’s glam team said he is ‘going to wear a dress’ to ‘honour queer icons’. One source described it as ‘a political thunderbolt disguised as couture’, adding that the dress is ‘already being sewn’.
The claim sparked outrage on the American right, with commentators denouncing the NFL’s decision to have Bad Bunny headline the halftime show. ‘I don’t know about you, but I have a deep feeling of disgust over this entire charade. I shouldn’t care too much, but I do. I don’t hate Puerto Rican music or rap music or whatever music this dude produces; I just loathe the fact that he has been given an amazing opportunity by the NFL, and he’s going to potentially turn the stage into a venue for airing his stupid political opinions,’ The Daily Caller wrote in an opinion piece on the issue.
President Trump reportedly described the lineup as a ‘terrible choice’ in an interview with The New York Post, claiming it ‘sows hatred’, and said he will not attend the game in Santa Clara.
The All American Halftime Show
As soon as it was announced that Bad Bunny would headline the halftime show, Turning Point USA, the conservative non-profit founded by Charlie Kirk, saw an opportunity to turn the controversy into a counter-message. In October 2025, TPUSA announced it would hold its own alternative event called the ‘All American Halftime Show’.
While few details are known about the initiative, it is expected to run under the themes of ‘Faith, Family & Freedom’. Aubrey Laitsch, public relations manager for TPUSA, told TMZ that the show is going ahead, but viewers will have to tune in during the Super Bowl to find out who will perform.
One of the most frequently mentioned possible headliners is rapper Nicki Minaj, who made headlines earlier in 2025 for siding with the Trump administration on the issue of persecuted Nigerian Christians, as well as delivering harsh jabs at California’s Democrat governor Gavin Newsom. Minaj appeared on stage at TPUSA’s AmericaFest in December, where she was interviewed by Erika Kirk. ‘I have the utmost respect and admiration for our president. I don’t even know if he knows this, but he has given so many people hope that there’s a chance to beat the bad guys and win and do it with your head held high and your integrity intact,’ Minaj said at the event.
Another possible performer is the rock band Creed, whose song ‘Higher’ was played as a walkout track for Vice President JD Vance at AmericaFest. As Arizona Central noted, musician Andrew Kolvet fuelled speculation about Creed appearing in the alternative halftime show. ‘Crazier things have happened,’ Kolvet wrote in a post responding to a clip of Turning Point USA staffers discussing the possibility on The Charlie Kirk Show.
Kendrick Lamar’s DEI Show
Last year, Donald Trump made history by becoming the first sitting president to attend a Super Bowl. The game coincided with the Trump administration’s efforts to reverse years of woke indoctrination in the world of sports, including in the NFL. Super Bowl LIX was also the first game to see DEI messaging removed from end zones.
Despite Trump’s presence, the 2025 halftime show sparked outrage among MAGA voters and politicians, with rapper Kendrick Lamar reportedly targeting Trump and his executive order cancelling DEI programmes. The performance was narrated by American actor Samuel L Jackson, a vocal critic of Trump, with one moment widely interpreted as a swipe at the president. In one interlude, Jackson told Lamar he was ‘too ghetto’, before switching tone and saying: ‘Yes! America wants slow, chill music.’ The camera then cut to Lamar’s all-black backup dancers arranged in the formation of an American flag.
‘The halftime show you just watched is clearly the regime’s response to Trump’s historic gains with black men,’ Matt Gaetz, former US Representative for Florida and Trump’s first pick for attorney general after his 2024 November victory, wrote. Right-wing commentator Jack Posobiec went further, labelling Lamar’s show the ‘DEI Halftime Show’.
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