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Everybody witnessed the world’s top stars such as BTS, Justin Bieber, Shakira, and others performing at the first-ever World Cup Halftime Show. It was smooth sailing for the first-ever halftime show held during the World Cup finals.
BTS, Justin Bieber, Shakira, and Madonna were all going to be performing there.
The lead performers brought the musical act to the stadium for the FIFA World Cup’s 2026 Halftime Show, which is the first time a mid-match performance takes place at the World Cup Finals between Argentina and Spain, at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J., on July 19.
World Cup Halftime Show Opens With Madonna
Madonna opened the show by singing the 2000 smash hit “Music,” while the pop legend, fashionably dressed in mauve and pink, arrived at the stadium with Brazilian icons Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, and stole the spotlight of the whole affair.
Then, by passing the mic to Venezuela’s acclaimed conductor Gustavo Dudamel and his ensemble, the 67-year-old was able to get the whole stadium up and dancing alongside Muppets.
BTS, Justin Bieber and Shakira Light Up the World Cup Halftime Show
During the same time, a whole lot of dynamite fire was set off as BTS performed with flaming red, black, and white color outfits, their chart-busting single “Dynamite”
After that, cooling things down a little, the performers of the comedy series Ted Lasso – Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt – as their onscreen counterparts explained that the stadium needed an act that can “bring the love.”
Who is that music lover? Of course, Justin Bieber. The artist gave such a heartfelt delivery with his guitar, strumming the acoustic version of “Everything Hallelujah.”
Besides changing some words of the chorus in the song, such as from “We are the World” to “It’s the World Cup, Hallelujah,”, he did manage to get the stadium going
The show was not yet over as the crowd of Shakira and Burna Boy were dancing and clapping in the stadium while these two performed on their worldwide chart-topper, “Dai Dai”, and the beat of the song was infectious.
Talk about ending the first-half show of the World Cup and the PS22 Chorus children’s choir together with Coldplay’s Chris Martin, who came up with the idea of the performance, and the whole set was completed with a dancing cast as well as Muppets that came up singing a love-themed song that aims to unite the world.
World Cup Halftime Show Supports Global Social Projects. In late May, the three singers Shakira, BTS, and Madonna were announced as the first-ever co-headliners, while Justin became an addition to the list this month.
While the top-notch performers had a great time during their shows on the field, this star-filled evening was at the same time benefiting some causes. From the official FIFA site: “Each ticket sale for FIFA World Cup 2026 matches will give $1 for social projects globally.”
Shakira Reflects on Performing at the World Cup Halftime Show
Clearly, Shakira had a great time with the first World Cup Halftime Show. The singer said in an interview with People on June 13, “It’s a message for all the kids out there that were told, ‘ Your dream is not real.’.
“Besides that, I’ve had my own moments that were really difficult and hard, but it helped me not to give up because I found a person out there who believed in me.’
“The ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ singer, who made her World Cup debut 20 years ago, described her special relationship with the sport as “unbreakable.”
“Every World Cup is really magical, and I think this one is going to be all about bringing people together in this very sensitive moment in time, socially and politically,” she added.
Chris Martin Helped Bring the Halftime Show to Life
As for how Shakira, along with Justin, Madonna, and BTS, landed the once-in-a-lifetime gig, the “Try Everything” singer has an answer. It seems that they have Chris Martin to thank for their appearance at the first-ever World Cup halftime show.
In a YouTube video recorded on May 14, Charlie announced the following message: There is music, there is dancing, there is singing, and most importantly, there is a place to show that we, the human race, are all amazing in our own ways.
Coldplay’s lead singer, Charlie Puth, gave an interview in the same video about his idea and hopes for this show. The whole idea is that there will be not only music, but also dancing, singing, and through this we can all show the world that no matter in what ways people differ, they, all of them, are just amazing human beings,” he said.
