Roger Goodell defends NFL's choice of Bad Bunny for Super Bowl halftime show amid heavy backlash

The NFL’s decision to name global Latin American recording artist Bad Bunny as its lead halftime act in February’s Super Bowl LX caused quite the backlash from a vocal segment of the league’s diverse fanbase. That included former Los Angeles Rams running back Eric Dickerson and even U.S. President Donald Trump condemning the selection as “absolutely ridiculous.”

But despite that backlash, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has repeatedly stood behind the move, and did so again this week while attending the NFL’s annual Fall owners meetings in New York.

“He’s one of the leading and most popular entertainers in the world. That’s what we try to achieve,” Goodell said Wednesday according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. Goodell added the decision was “carefully thought through” and the NFL is “confident it’s going to be a great show and that he understands the platform that he’s on. I think it’s going to be exciting and a united moment.”

Roger Goodell on Bad Bunny: “He’s one of the leading and most popular entertainers in the world. That’s what we try to achieve.” Says the decision was “carefully thought through” and “We’re confident it’s going to be a great show and that he understands the platform that he’s on.…

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 22, 2025

Bad Bunny, whose name is Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, is originally from and still lives in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory. By most metrics, Bad Bunny remains one of the music industry’s most popular artists at the moment, including representing Spotify’s most-streamed artist between 2020-22, reaching 18.5 billion streams in 2022 alone. People from all parts of the world annually tune into the Super Bowl, one of the highest-viewed events of the year, which is a significant part of the Bad Bunny’s appeal to the NFL.

But the announcement hasn’t gone over well with many on the right side of the political spectrum, including conservative group Turning Point USA announcing its own alternative “All-American” halftime show in direct opposition.

Bad Bunny sends message to NFL fans during SNL monologue: ‘If you don’t know what I just said you have four months to learn’

For his part, Bad Bunny poked fun at the reaction from the political right during a recent appearance on NBC’s Saturday Night Live earlier this month.

“You might not know this but I’m doing the Super Bowl halftime show, and I’m very happy. I’m very happy, and I think everybody is happy about it, even FOX News,” he said in Spanish during his opening monologue as a mock clip of FOX News reactions ran from the prior week. “But, really, I’m very excited to be doing the Super Bowl, and I know that people all around the world that love my music are also happy.

“And, if you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn,” Bad Bunny said in closing, reverting back to English.