NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has addressed concerns about Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance after the artist blasted ICE at the 2026 Grammy Awards. Goodell addressed the matter Monday night, February 2, while speaking with reporters, saying he does not expect Bad Bunny’s performance to take a political turn despite his comments against ICE during his Grammy speech.
Goodell said he believes Bad Bunny will unite the crowd and not divide them when he performs at Levi’s Stadium.
“Bad Bunny, and I think that was demonstrated last night, is one of the great artists in the world,” Goodell said. “That’s one of the reasons we chose him. But the other reason is he understood the platform he was on and that this platform is used to unite people and to be able to bring people together with their creativity, with their talents and to be able to use this moment to do that.
“I think artists in the past have done that. I think Bad Bunny understands it and I think he’ll have a great performance,” he added.
Bad Bunny’s remarks at 2026 Grammy Awards
Bad Bunny opened his album of the year speech at the Grammys by criticizing ICE, saying “ICE out” and that “we are not savages, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens.”
“We are humans and we are Americans. I know it’s tough not to hate these days,” he added. “The hate gets more powerful with more hate. The only thing that is more powerful than hate is love. So please, we need to be different. If we fight, we have to do it with love.”
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The NFL faced widespread criticism from conservatives for choosing Bad Bunny as the Super Bowl Halftime performer. Conservative organization Turning Point USA even promised a different halftime show featuring English-speaking stars.
President Donald Trump, who will skip this year’s Super Bowl, told the New York Post in an Oval Office interview that he cannot stand the performers selected for the halftime show. Trump specifically mentioned Bad Bunny and Green Day, saying he was not pleased that they had been selected to perform. Both are critics of the US president.
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“I’m anti-them. I think it’s a terrible choice. All it does is sow hatred. Terrible,” Trump said.
However, Trump clarified that the musicians are not his reason for not attending the game. “It’s just too far away. I would. I’ve [gotten] great hands [at] the Super Bowl. They like me,” the US President said.
“I would go if, you know, it was a little bit shorter,” he added.