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All things considered, there is perhaps no one with an honest, honest review of the Super Bowl halftime show, its critiques and its praises more than Stephen A. Smith.
The ESPN mogul, who has been critical of President Donald Trump, said upfront that he wouldn’t give an assessment of Bad Bunny just to antagonize conservatives like “anti-Trump and anti-right” people.
“It’s not me, I don’t care. I’m just, in the middle,” Smith said on his eponymous show.
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Bad Bunny performs at the Apple Music Halftime Show during the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium on February 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, California. (Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
Smith said Bad Bunny’s performance was “a damn good show” and the “vibe was great”. However, he agreed with Trump and other conservatives that the show was almost entirely in Spanish.
“Here’s my only gripe: You’re in the United States of America and you’re doing almost an entire performance in Spanish…” Smith said, adding that Trump made a “legitimate point” about the lack of English. “If you didn’t understand Spanish, you were lost.”
“It would have been nice to see a few people celebrating Hispanic heritage, definitely,” Smith continued, naming Shakira and Jennifer Lopez. “But it would also have been nice if some of the songs were in English. That’s all. But it was still a good show.”
Bad Bunny performs during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California on February 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Julio Cortés)
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Smith teased a reaction to Bad Bunny when he posted a screenshot of Trump’s Truth Social post in which he called Bad Bunny’s performance “one of the worst EVER!”
“The Super Bowl halftime show is absolutely terrible, one of the worst ever! It makes no sense, it is an affront to the greatness of America, and does not represent our standards of achievement, creativity, or excellence. No one understands a word this guy is saying, and the dancing is disgusting, especially to young children watching from across the United States and around the world,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“This ‘Show’ is just a ‘slap in the face’ to our country, which sets new standards and records every day – including the best stock market and 401(k) in history! There is nothing inspiring about this mess of a show and halftime show, it will get great reviews from the fake media because they have no idea what is going on in the REAL WORLD – And, by the way, the NFL should immediately replace their ridiculous new kickoff rule MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president will watch Turning Point USA’s “All-American.”
Bad Bunny’s performance is considered the most-watched halftime performance of all time with over 135 million viewers, but no official figures have yet been released.
Bad Bunny performs during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl 60 football game between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, February 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, California. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
The broadcast ended with a message on the video board at Levi’s Stadium that read, “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Bad Bunny shared an embrace in the bowels of Levi’s Stadium after the performance.
