U.S. President Donald Trump said that he won’t be attending this year’s Super Bowl on Feb. 8 in California.
He told the New York Post that the game is “just too far away” while voicing his opinions about performers Bad Bunny, who will lead the halftime festivities, and Green Day, who are scheduled to kick off the big game with an opening ceremony.
“I’m anti-them. I think it’s a terrible choice. All it does is sow hatred. Terrible,” Trump said.
Trump, 79, said he might have attended the 60th Super Bowl, being played at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., if the distance was closer.
Trump made history last year by being the first sitting president to attend the Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny previously explained that part of the reason he did a Puerto Rico residency and didn’t tour in the U.S. last year was because “f—ing ICE could be outside (my concert). And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”
“There were many reasons why I didn’t show up in the U.S., and none of them were out of hate — I’ve performed there many times,” he said in an interview with I-D.
“All of (the shows) have been successful. All of them have been magnificent. I’ve enjoyed connecting with Latinos who have been living in the U.S. But specifically, for a residency here in Puerto Rico, when we are an unincorporated territory of the U.S. … people from the U.S. could come here to see the show,” he added.
In October, longtime Trump adviser Corey Lewandowski warned that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents would be present at the 2026 Super Bowl and the three-time Grammy Award-winning rapper’s halftime show.
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During an appearance on The Benny Show, Lewandowski was asked by podcast host Benny Johnson if “ICE will have enforcement at the Super Bowl for the Bad Bunny halftime show.”
“There is nowhere you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you. We will apprehend you. We will put you in a detention facility and we will deport you,” Lewandowski said.
Lewandowski went on to criticize the NFL for selecting Bad Bunny as the halftime show performer.
“It’s so shameful they’ve decided to pick somebody who seems to hate America so much to represent them at the halftime show,” Lewandowski said of the performer.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said there was “no tangible plan” to deploy ICE agents at the Super Bowl following Lewandowski’s comments.
“As far as ICE being at the Super Bowl, as far as I’m aware there’s no tangible plan for that in store right now,” Leavitt said on Oct. 3. “However, of course, this administration is always going to arrest and deport illegal immigrants when we find them if they are criminals. We’re going to do the right thing by our country.”
In October 2025, Bad Bunny addressed the backlash he’s received after being announced as the halftime performer while hosting Saturday Night Live (SNL).
“You may not know this but I’m doing the Super Bowl halftime show,” Bad Bunny said at the time. “I’m very happy and I think everyone is very happy about it! Even Fox News.”
SNL played a montage of clips of news coverage that were critical of his upcoming performance but it was edited to say: “Bad Bunny is my favourite musician and he should be the next president.”
“Really, I’m very excited to be doing the Super Bowl and I know people all around the world who love my music are also happy,” he said.
The Mia rapper spoke in Spanish before switching back to English and telling the audience, “If you didn’t understand now what I just said, you have four months to learn.”
As for Green Day, the band recently took a jab at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller during a show in California while speaking up for the people of Minnesota.
While performing their iconic 2004 chart-topper American Idiot in the Kia Forum last week, frontman Billie Joe Armstrong continued his tradition of trading the line “I’m not a part of a redneck agenda” to “I’m not a part of the MAGA agenda,” referring to Trump and his “Make America Great Again” slogan.
The band then performed Holiday and Know Your Enemy as Armstrong told the crowd: “This song is anti-fascism. This song is anti-war. We stand up for our brothers and sisters in Minnesota … Ladies and gentlemen, Stephen Miller now has the floor.”
Armstrong was referring to the ongoing anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis following the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent on Jan. 7. The Trump administration has repeatedly defended the ICE agent who shot Good, a mother of three, saying he acted in self-defence.
In addition to Green Day and Bad Bunny, Charlie Puth will perform the national anthem at the Super Bowl, while Brandi Carlile will sing America the Beautiful and Coco Jones will perform Lift Every Voice and Sing.
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