From NFL to FIFA

First Ever Halftime Show Slated for World Cup Finals

Move over NFL. The Super Bowl is no longer the only halftime show in town. Now the World Cup is planning to put on its own version of the action. They’re bringing in heavy hitters to do it and there’s even a charitable cause to top it all off.

FIFA and Global Citizen announced that a star studded halftime performance will take place at New York New Jersey Stadium during the July 19th finals. Headlining the first ever World Cup halftime show will be Justin Bieber, along with artists the likes of Madonna, Shakira and BTS.

The packed playlist will also feature Burna Boy, the Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel, and the PS22 Chorus. There will even be something for the kids, with appearances from Muppets and Sesame Street characters such as Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy.

The Staten Island elementary school choir is slated to perform alongside Coldplay – whose frontman Chris Martin is curating the show. All this is scheduled to take place during an 11-minute time frame allotted for the halftime performance.

This year’s World Cup has become the most watched by more of planet earth than any previous World Cup tournament. Opening night saw an audience of one billion viewers strong, and the 2026 competition is achieving record audiences across the US, Mexico, and India. As a host country, US viewers are showing up in numbers like never before.

While these figures sound astounding, the World Cup has long been the world’s most watched event. The 2022 finals exceeded 1.4 billion viewers, which is more than ten times the typical US audience for the Super Bowl. This means the first ever World Cup half time show is primed to have one of the biggest audiences – ever.

The charitable cause tying it all together is the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, which aims to raise $100 million to increase access to education and soccer for children around the world. Global Citizen reports the fund has already raised over $50 million toward its goal to date, and $1 of every ticket sold in this year’s tournament is donated to the cause.

Justin Bieber weighed in on the upcoming event, saying in a statement, “The FIFA World Cup brings the world together in a way nothing else can. I’m grateful to be part of this Halftime Show, and even more grateful knowing it’s already helping expand access to education for children around the world.”

Some soccer fans have objected to the addition of the halftime show, saying the performance is an “Americanization” of the global tournament. Burna Boy had a unifying sentiment to share in a statement of his own. “The FIFA World Cup is one of the few moments that truly brings the entire world together. To represent Africa on the first-ever FIFA World Cup Final Halftime Show is a privilege and a responsibility that I don’t take lightly.”