Bad Bunny's Super Bowl Halftime Show Resonates Across Americas
Bad Bunny's 13-minute Spanish-language Super Bowl halftime set included 'God bless América' and naming countries, drawing cheers across Mexico and Puerto Rico.
Overview
Bad Bunny delivered a 13-minute Spanish-language halftime performance at the Super Bowl and said 'God bless América' while naming countries across the Americas, prompting loud cheers in Mexico City and Puerto Rico, fans said.
The performance landed amid heightened U.S. immigration enforcement and debates over Latino visibility, and U.S. President Donald Trump criticized it on Truth Social as 'absolutely terrible,' his post shows.
Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said the on-screen phrase 'the only thing more powerful than hate is love' underscored a message of unity, she said.
Packed venues and watch parties in Mexico City, San Juan and nearby communities treated the set as a cultural milestone, and interviews with individuals including Laura Gilda Mejía, 51, and Alexandra Núñez documented emotional reactions.
Scholars including Vanessa Díaz of Loyola Marymount University and José Manuel Valenzuela of El Colegio de la Frontera Norte offered conflicting assessments, with Díaz calling it a mainstream shift and Valenzuela warning it does not erase deeper inequalities.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl set as a culturally significant, inclusive moment that underscores Latino visibility. Through upbeat language, prioritizing Latino fans, scholars and political leaders’ reactions, selective emphasis on pride and linguistic meaning, and placement of brief counterpoints (Trump, a critical academic), the coverage builds a celebratory-but-contextual narrative.
Sources (3)
FAQ
The show included Puerto Rican symbols like sugar cane fields, a piragua stand, casita, dancers as jíbaros climbing sparking utility poles during 'El Apagón,' a 'Together, We Are America' football spiked at the end, and the message 'The only thing more powerful than hate is love.' Bad Bunny said 'God bless América' while naming countries across the Americas.
Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum praised the message of unity from 'the only thing more powerful than hate is love.' U.S. President Donald Trump criticized it on Truth Social as 'absolutely terrible.'
The 13-minute show used nearly 10,000 pyrotechnics, 400 costumed extras dressed as plants and jíbaros, 25 trucks of props to create a Puerto Rican scene at Levi's Stadium, with strict 7.5-minute setup and 6-minute teardown under time constraints.
Fans in Mexico City and Puerto Rico erupted in loud cheers, treating it as a cultural milestone with packed venues and emotional reactions documented from individuals like Laura Gilda Mejía and Alexandra Núñez.
Vanessa Díaz called it a mainstream shift for Latino visibility, while José Manuel Valenzuela warned it does not erase deeper inequalities amid U.S. immigration debates.
History
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