NFL commissioner reacts to Bad Bunny’s ICE out speech at the Grammys

The commissioner’s comments come ahead of the Puerto Rican rapper’s Super Bowl halftime show

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has further issued his support for Bad Bunny headlining the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show after using his Grammys acceptance speech to speak out against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

During Monday’s press conference, Goodell addressed the Puerto Rican rapper and singer’s three Grammy wins for Album of the Year, Best Música Urbana Album and Best Global Music Performance.

“Listen, Bad Bunny is, and I think that was demonstrated last night, one of the great artists in the world. That’s one of the reasons we chose him,” Goodell said. “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 talent, 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 that, and I think he’ll have a great performance.”

Goodell’s comments came after the musician (real name Benito Martínez Ocasio) was very direct in calling out the Trump administration’s ongoing crackdown on immigrants in the U.S.

The NFL commissioner praised Bad Bunny’s Grammy acceptance speech, explaining that it was why he is ‘one of the great artists in the world’ (AP)

“Before I say thanks to God, I’m going to say ICE out,” he said in one of his acceptance speeches before an impassioned call to remember that “hatred will only breed more hate.”

“The only thing that's more powerful than hate is love,” he said. “So, please, we need to be different. If we fight, we have to do it with love. We don’t hate them. We love our people. We love our family and there's a way to do it, with love, and don't forget that.”

Bad Bunny’s choice as Super Bowl halftime show headliner has ignited backlash from prominent MAGA figures, with many of them labeling the “Dákiti” singer a “massive Trump hater” and an “anti-ICE activist.” Some also slammed him for having “no songs in English.”

Green Day has also been tapped to perform at the Super Bowl this year, sparking further outrage as the band, comprised of Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool, has a long history of publicly criticizing Trump.

ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

Green Day will kick off Super Bowl festivities with a performance honoring decades of the game's MVPs (Getty Images)

Weeks later, Turning Point USA — the right-wing political organization founded by late conservative activist Charlie Kirk — announced it would be holding a rival show in protest called The All-American Halftime Show featuring country singers Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett.

The rival show is scheduled to take place the same night as the 2026 Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks— February 8.

It’s still unknown where the event will be held, though it will broadcast across four conservative networks: Charge!, DailyWire+, TBN and Real America’s Voice. It will also stream on Turning Point USA’s social media channels, including YouTube, X and Rumble.

While the Super Bowl halftime happens midway through the game, typically between 8 and 8:30 p.m. E.T., it’s expected that Turning Point USA will air its rival show within that same window.