We not only get to see the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks go head-to-head on the field this Super Bowl Sunday—we also get to witness the hiiiighly-anticipated Bad Bunny halftime show (with special guests to be announced!). It all goes down at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara on February 8, and I will be seated.
Ofc, if you’re nosy like me, you’re probably asking yourself, How much is Bad Bunny getting paid for the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show? After all, headlining the Super Bowl halftime show is a massive career milestone for any musician (see: Prince, Michael Jackson, Beyoncé, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga...you get the picture), so there must be tons of money tied to it, right? Wrong! Let’s get into the logistics.
Bad Bunny is not getting paid for the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show
Wild, but true. Historically, the NFL doesn’t pay Super Bowl halftime performers, but that’s because the coveted 13-minute slot is essentially A) a free concert right in the middle of a football game and B) a commercial for the headliner’s discography. An NFL spokesperson told Forbes in 2016, “We do not pay the artists. We cover expenses and production costs.”
Every year, the performances also have a sponsor. Pepsi has sponsored in the past, and Apple Music has taken the reigns for the last few years. Along with the NFL, sponsors cover production costs like the stage, lights, and outfits. It’s unclear whether the performers also receive a payout from sponsors, but...
Bad Bunny could make $$$ from streams and ticket sales after his performance
Benito might not receive a large check from the NFL, but he will likely see a jump in music streams, which is a primary source of income for artists aside from live performances. This year’s Super Bowl is predicted to top 100 million viewers (!!!), so a 13-minute slot to perform all the highlights from your discography is highly coveted for a reason. Per Variety, Kendrick Lamar’s 2025 halftime show earned him a 430 percent boost in Spotify streams, and the year before that, Forbes reported that Usher’s performance saw a surge of 550 percent.
“After a major live show, many fans head straight to Spotify. The same is true for the Super Bowl halftime show each year," Monica Herrera Damashek, head of label partnerships at Spotify, previously said in an exclusive statement to Cosmo.
She added, “This surge in streaming translates directly into increased revenue for artists and their teams. While each artist has their own agreement with rights holders—details that Spotify isn’t directly involved in—we do see the impact in our payouts. These cultural moments consistently drive significant boosts in both streams and earnings.”
Makes sense!!
