The halftime show of the National Football League (NFL) 'Super Bowl', featuring Puerto Rican rapper 'Bad Bunny', was watched by an average of 128.2 million viewers on Sunday, making it the fourth largest audience in history, according to data from the Nielsen rating system 'Big Data + Panel', LETA reports citing AP.
'Bad Bunny', whose real name is Benito Antonio Martinez-Ocasio, ranks behind only Kendrick Lamar in viewership for halftime shows, whose 15-minute performance during last year's 'Super Bowl' averaged 133.5 million viewers, Michael Jackson's show, which averaged 133.4 million viewers in 1993, and R&B artist Usher's performance in 2024, which was watched by 129.3 million viewers.
The 60th 'Super Bowl', in which the Seattle Seahawks defeated the New England Patriots 29-13 (3-0, 6-0, 3-0, 17-13), averaged 124.9 million viewers. Last year's 'Super Bowl', when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the two-time defending champions Kansas City Chiefs 40-22, averaged 127.7 million viewers.
For the fifth consecutive year, the 'Super Bowl' audience averaged over 100 million viewers.
Additionally, the 60th 'Super Bowl' became the most-watched broadcast in the century-long history of NBC.
The 'Bad Bunny' show was largely conducted in Spanish, paying tribute to the heritage and culture of Puerto Rico, which also drew criticism.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/G6FuWd4wNd8?si=aGdzI5JubG-UENmu" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>In protest against the NFL's decision to entrust the halftime show to a Puerto Rican artist, the conservative organization 'Turning Point USA' organized its own halftime show called the 'All American Halftime Show', featuring rock musician Kid Rock, with the live stream on YouTube reaching five million viewers.
YouTube data indicates that since Sunday, the 'Turning Point USA' show has garnered over 21 million views on the platform, while the 'Bad Bunny' show, which also featured Ricky Martin, Lady Gaga, Cardi B, Jessica Alba, and Pedro Pascal, has exceeded 61 million views.
The 'Bad Bunny' show was criticized by U.S. President Donald Trump, who stated that the musician's performance was 'absolutely terrible' and a 'slap in the face' to the country.
'It makes no sense, it is an insult to the greatness of America and does not reflect our standards of success, creativity, or excellence,' Trump wrote. 'This 'show' is just a 'slap in the face' to our country, which achieves new standards and records every day,' insisted the U.S. President.
