Dressed in the signature red, black and white of Korea’s “Red Devils” soccer supporters, BTS took the stage at the FIFA World Cup final on Sunday as featured performers in the tournament’s first-ever halftime show.
Held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey during the final between Spain and Argentina, BTS’ 11-minute performance was part of an extended interval introduced for this year’s championship match.
Following an orchestral rendition of The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army” conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, the septet emerged one by one in black, red and white outfits inspired by the colors of Korea’s “Red Devils” supporters. As each member took the stage one by one, the crowd erupted into cheers.
Produced in partnership with Global Citizen and curated by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, the halftime show also featured performances by Madonna, Justin Bieber, Shakira and Burna Boy.
BTS performed a shortened version of “Dynamite,” the all-English single that became the group’s first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 in 2020. For the occasion, BTS reworked portions of the lyrics with soccer-themed references, replacing “kick the drum” with “kick the ball” and “a game of ping pong” with “a game of football.”
The performance concluded with a collaborative finale featuring BTS alongside the other performers, Martin and New York City’s PS22 Chorus — a choir from a public elementary school on Staten Island — performing “We Dance,” a song written by Coldplay for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Characters from the Muppets and Sesame Street also joined the closing performance.
The halftime show also highlighted the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, which supports access to education and sports opportunities for children in underserved communities around the world.
“It was an honor to perform at the first-ever halftime show at a World Cup final,” said BTS through Big Hit Music after the performance.
“The World Cup has been something we’ve enjoyed watching since we were young and it feels like a dream to stand on this stage alongside incredible artists. We believe we were able to be here thanks to the support of Army (BTS’ fandom) around the world.”
The appearance marked another milestone for BTS. Four years after member Jungkook performed “Dreamers” at the opening ceremony of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the group returned to the tournament as a full seven-member act for the final match’s halftime show.
The performance also came just one day after BTS wrapped up the European leg of its “Arirang” world tour, which drew approximately 717,000 attendees across 10 concerts in five cities including Madrid, Brussels, London, Munich and Paris.
