Has Rihanna ever performed at the Super Bowl?

Rihanna has been confirmed to perform at the Super Bowl 2023 halftime show. It will be her first performance at the halftime show, but this is not the first time she has been approached to perform.

In 2019, she was asked to perform for the halftime show, but she declined, citing the NFL's treatment of Colin Kaepernick. She essentially agreed with the interpretation that the quarterback was blackballed by the NFL due to his protests during the national anthem.

Speaking to Vogue in 2019, she said:

“I couldn’t dare do that. For what? Who gains from that? Not my people. I just couldn’t be a sellout. I couldn’t be an enabler. There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.”

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It begs the question then, though, why has Rihanna now changed her tune and agreed to perform for the Super Bowl? There have been certain changes to the situation which may explain why she will perform the halftime show.

Rihanna will perform in a changed NFL

There have been two primary changes that have happened since Rihanna declined to perform in 2019. The first is that in the same year, the NFL settled with Colin Kaepernick regarding his grievances. That at least could be construed as the first step to reconciliation.

The second were the steps the NFL took after the murder of George Floyd. It caused a wider reckoning in society and the league was not far behind in recognizing the moment. Commissioner Roger Goodell came and said up front that they recognized the value of black lives. This was a forthright position for the league to take in the climate at the time.

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The NFL went as far as to apologize for its previous stances. This could have allowed performances a degree of assurance that the league had learnt from its past missteps. In getting her to perform for the halftime show, the Super Bowl has snagged one of the top global artists in the world for the halftime show. The Super Bowl is slated to be held at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on February 12, 2023.

If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Vogue and H/T Sportskeeda.

About the author

Rit Nanda is a sports journalist at Sportskeeda with over 4 years of experience. A PhD holder, he is passionate about a host of sports, including NFL, CFL, Rugby Union, Rugby League, and Soccer. He lives and breathes the Green Bay Packers, St Helens RFC, Harlequins, and Liverpool.

Rit’s all-time favorite NFL players are Packers’ very own Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Lowe. Vince Lombardi, after whom the Super Bowl trophy is named is his favorite coach. If he ever got his hands on a time machine, he would want to witness the Packers win Super Bowl I, and unsurprisingly, his most favorite Super Bowl is the XLV edition when the Packers beat the Pittsburg Steelers 31-25 to lift the trophy.

Rit’s strengths are statistical analysis and historical deep dives, where he uses the learnings from his PhD to conduct thorough research. He verifies facts via multiple sources to maintain accuracy, and believes in being objective in his articles by adding stats wherever possible.

When not writing professionally, Rit spends time in creative writing, reading and travelling.

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