Every year, the Super Bowl halftime show does more than just fill fifteen minutes between football plays. It sends a message of who gets to be seen, heard and celebrated on one of the biggest stages in the world. That’s why the controversy surrounding Bad Bunny’s 2026 halftime show being performed in Spanish says less about the halftime show itself and more about where Americans are as a culture right now.
For some viewers, the idea of the first ever Spanish halftime show may feel unfamiliar or “un-American.” Critics argue that since American football is an American sport, the halftime show should reflect that culture, which is English-speaking. However, that argument ignores a key fact: America has never been one culture or one language. Spanish has been spoken on American lands longer than English in many regions, and millions of Americans speak it daily, whether at home, school or work. Treating Spanish as “foreign” should not reflect the county we live in.
“I think Bad Bunny is, you know, celebrated in a lot of different cultures,” senior and songwriter Violet Von Buskirk said. “I think what’s cool about him as an artist is that even English speakers like his music.”
Music is a universal language and is one of the strongest tools for connections across borders. Not every lyric needs to be understood to feel the emotion of a song, which is what music is all about. People have danced to songs in languages they don’t understand for decades, whether it’s K-pop, Afrobeats, EDM or Spanish music. Thinking that a halftime show needs to be understood word-for-word to be meaningful misses the point of music entirely and promotes monoculturalism.
What makes the 2026 Super Bowl especially symbolic and important is the timing of it. As the new year begins, the world feels extremely divided in politics, culture and social issues. A global event like the Super Bowl has the power to put a pause on those divisions and unite over a hundred million people watching from around the world. Choosing to highlight a non-English language and culture isn’t unpatriotic or “un-American”; it’s bringing together a nation struggling with discrimination and cultural ignorance.
Rather than asking “Why is this in Spanish?” we could ask “What can I learn from this?” Being exposed to a different culture doesn’t erase one’s own identity, it just expands it. Seeing Spanish being celebrated on national television not only shows millions of people their culture is valued and belongs, but it teaches the younger generation to respect and learn about cultures different from their own. Multiculturalism is not threatening, it is vital for diversity and encouraging peace throughout the world. The Super Bowl halftime show being sung in Spanish is a huge way to see through other’s lenses.
“The Super Bowl can be different every year, so having the halftime show in Spanish is something cool. Something different,” Von Buskirk said.
The Super Bowl halftime show isn’t just about entertainment or hyping up football players, it’s about storytelling. It is a way to reflect where we’ve been and where we could go. The 2026 Super Bowl being performed in the Spanish language does not take anything away from the event; rather, it adds depth and history to it.
As we move into the new year, maybe the most “American” thing we can do is listen, even if the language is different than ours. Unity does not come from everyone being the same, it comes from choosing to celebrate each other anyways.
