Bad Bunny set for Super Bowl halftime show: what to expect, start time, and likely songs
Bad Bunny will headline the Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, turning the league’s biggest stage into a bilingual, Caribbean-rooted pop event. The Puerto Rican star has signaled that the performance will center his culture and feel like “a huge party,” as fans race to predict the set list and whether any surprise guests will appear.
The matchup itself adds to the spectacle: the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots meet at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, with kickoff scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET.
When will Bad Bunny perform at the Super Bowl?
Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 8. Halftime usually arrives roughly 90 minutes after kickoff, but the exact timing can shift based on game flow, reviews, timeouts, and scoring pace.
A realistic viewing window for the halftime show is around 8:00–8:30 p.m. ET (approx.). If you don’t want to miss the start, being in front of the screen by 8:00 p.m. ET is the safest bet.
Why this halftime show is a milestone
Bad Bunny headlining is a major cultural marker: a global superstar who performs heavily in Spanish is now the sole top-billed act for the NFL’s signature entertainment slot. It also comes on the heels of a big awards-season moment—he recently won Album of the Year at the 2026 Grammy Awards for an all-Spanish album, further cementing his mainstream reach without changing his musical identity.
His messaging heading into Sunday has been consistent: he wants the show to feel celebratory, dance-forward, and unmistakably tied to Puerto Rico and the wider Latino diaspora.
Set list watch: the Bad Bunny songs most likely to show up
Halftime sets are built for instant recognition, quick transitions, and crowd-wide hooks. That usually favors the biggest crossover hits, plus one or two newer statements that define an “era.”
A short list of tracks that fit the halftime template especially well:
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“Tití Me Preguntó”
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“DÁKITI”
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“Yo Perreo Sola”
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“Safaera”
There’s also strong buzz around more recent, culturally specific songs that lean into Puerto Rico and New York Latino identity—tracks that could appear as a mid-show pivot or closing statement if the production aims to foreground theme as much as hits.
What the show will probably look like
Even without confirmed details, a few patterns are predictable for an artist with Bad Bunny’s catalog:
A fast-opening medley. Expect a high-BPM start to grab casual viewers within the first 30 seconds.
Hard cuts between genres. His music moves between reggaeton, dembow, trap, and pop; that makes for dramatic, TV-friendly transitions.
Dance as the core visual language. If the goal is a “huge party,” choreography and percussion-heavy breaks will likely carry the show more than extended vocals.
A cultural “flag plant.” Whether through wardrobe, staging, or a spoken moment, the performance is expected to make a clear point about Puerto Rican identity—not subtle, but celebratory.
Will there be surprise guests?
No guests have been publicly confirmed. That said, guest speculation is part of the annual Super Bowl ritual, and Bad Bunny has a long list of high-profile collaborators across Latin music and beyond.
If a guest does happen, it’s most likely to serve one of two functions:
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amplify a signature global hit for maximum mainstream recognition, or
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underline the cultural theme with a collaborator closely tied to Caribbean music traditions.
Quick game-day essentials (ET)
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Super Bowl: Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026
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Kickoff: 6:30 p.m. ET
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Halftime show window: about 8:00–8:30 p.m. ET (approx.)
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Teams: Seattle Seahawks vs New England Patriots
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Venue: Levi’s Stadium (Santa Clara, California)
What to watch for during the performance
If you’re tracking the story as it unfolds, three things will shape the post-show conversation:
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Song choices: hit-heavy crowd-pleasers vs. a more message-forward set list.
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Staging scale: festival-style spectacle vs. tighter, dance-driven production.
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Language and audience reach: how he balances authenticity with mass-TV clarity—without diluting what makes his music distinct.
Bad Bunny doesn’t need a halftime show to validate his status. But the Super Bowl is a rare moment when an artist can reshape what “mainstream” looks like in real time—one hook, one chorus, one dance break at a time.
Sources consulted: Associated Press, NFL, Apple Music Newsroom, Yahoo Sports
