NFL 2026 Super Bowl Viewership and Bad Bunny Halftime Breaks Social Media Records
The numbers have finally arrived. Millions were part of the massive NFL 2026 Super Bowl viewership ratings and the reason behind Bad Bunny Halftime breaking social media records. Nielsen has revealed that Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime performance drew in an average of 128.2 million viewers during his show window of 8:15 to 8:30 p.m. ET. However, what about the actual game?
Super Bowl LIX in 2025 (Eagles vs. Chiefs) drew a record-breaking average of
127.7 million U.S. viewers across television and streaming platforms. According to Nielsen data, this made it the most-watched Super Bowl in history. The audience peaked at 137.7 million viewers during the game.
Super Bowl LX (2026) averaged 124.9 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, and Telemundo, making it the second-most-watched U.S. television event in history. While slightly down from the 2025 record, viewership peaked at 137.8 million. Therefore, NBC Sports’ presentation of Super Bowl LX still set an all-time media record as 137.8 million viewers watched in the second quarter.
Nonetheless, after Bad Bunny left the field on Sunday, Apple Music was kind enough to provide some details regarding the highly viewed halftime show; and the musical impact it created. Apple Music reveals,
“Bad Bunny took center stage at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, for the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show. The historic performance featuring Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin generated unprecedented engagement from fans around the globe, according to real-time listening data on Apple Music. The number of simultaneous Bad Bunny listeners spiked immediately after halftime, cementing the global superstar’s set as one of the most buzzworthy music moments of the year.
Immediately after the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show, Bad Bunny listens on Apple Music were up 7x. “DtMF,” “BAILE INoLVIDABLE,” and “Tití Me Preguntó” were the most streamed songs immediately after the show.”
However, even before the Super Bowl there were strong indications that many would tune into the game and halftime show. Apple Music’s Halftime Show press conference shattered records. Apple mentioned,
“Within the first 48 hours, the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show Press Conference with Bad Bunny became the most watched in Super Bowl history with more than 63 million views across an array of related content, including the live stream and social clips.”
Bad Bunny’s show included a lot of elements such as:
- A tribute to his uncle
- An actual wedding
- Showcase of a Los Angeles based restaurant (Villa’s Tacos)
- Young boy holding Grammy representing Bad Bunny dreaming big as a kid
- Paying tribute to his homeland, the field was filled with palm trees and other vegetation native to Puerto Rico.
- Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin also made surprise performances during the show. Other celebrity cameos included Pedro Pascal, Jessica Alba, Cardi B and Karol G.
NFL 2026 Super Bowl Viewership and Bad Bunny Halftime Breaks Social Media Records
Speaking of the special tribute to Bad Bunny’s uncle; the artist used his clothes for this moment. He explains,
“I always dreamed of taking my uncle to a Super Bowl one year, but I couldn’t; his death was sudden and without warning. So I decided to bring him on my shirt when I performed at the Super Bowl: OCASIO, his last name, the same as my mom, along with his birth year, ’64. I dedicated my show before I began; I am sure he saw it, he was present, and he felt proud of his nephew. Now all we need is for the 49ers to one day win the Super Bowl again.”
Huge numbers of viewers witnessed the tribute and even more discussed several details of the show online. Apple Music reports that the Super Bowl LX Halftime Show featuring global superstar Bad Bunny generated over 4 billion social views in the first 24 hours! Making it the most-consumed halftime show of all-time on NFL social platforms.
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