Amid protests and scrutiny over the tactics of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE), the choices for entertainment at the Super Bowl were not well received in the White House.
When Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny was announced as the half-time act in September, right-wing media circles noted he had criticised the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
The subsequent decision to give vocal Trump critics Green Day a slot in the pre-game entertainment went down equally well.
Last week, when Bad Bunny picked up his Grammy for Album of the Year, he began his acceptance speech with the words: “ICE out.”
It prompted one conservative group to organise an alternative half-time show, fronted by Trump ally Kid Rock and the president to label the selection “absolutely ridiculous”.
On the way in, anti-ICE protestors offered towels bearing political messaging to Super Bowl supporters.
Bad Bunny’s unapologetically Latino set, performed across a temporary jungle in the middle of Levi’s Stadium, did not douse Republican ire but provided plenty of entertainment for the 70,000 fans.
The most-streamed artist of 2025 was all bouncing energy, flanked by a myriad of dancers and through a whirlwind of movement and rapid lyrics, he became the first performer to conduct the half-time show fully in Spanish.
There was time to squeeze in some special guests, including compatriot Ricky Martin and pop royalty Lady Gaga, who performed an extract from her song ‘Die With A Smile’. In English.
Finally, as fireworks signalled the end of a high-octane set, Bad Bunny brandished the football he had been carrying to show the words ‘Together, we are America’, before disappearing from the field.
President Trump, who became the first incumbent to attend the Super Bowl last year in New Orleans, was not there in person but labelled the show “an affront to America” and “a slap in the face to our country”.