How to watch Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime show live in UK
Rihanna will take to the stage for the Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show on Sunday 12 February (John Shearer/Getty)
After years of fans begging Rihanna to make a return to music, the iconic Barbadian singer is set to return to the stage when she headlines the US Super Bowl LVII halftime show on Sunday 12 February.
The eagerly-anticipated performance, which is set to live air on ITV in the early hours of Monday 12 February in the UK, takes place at the half-way point of the annual American Football (NFL) finals, and will arguably be the most-watched performance of Rihanna’s career to date.
The news of her booking was hinted at back in September 2022, when Rihanna tweeted a photo of herself holding an American football.
NFL then confirmed the show, describing the singer as a “once in a generation artist who has been a cultural force throughout her career”.
With previous Super Bowl halftime show acts including Diana Ross, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera, Katy Perry, Beyoncé and Coldplay playing on the famous Super Bowl stage, pop fans often look forward to the show more than the football itself.
Rihanna has even released a Savage X Fenty range to celebrate the iconic show, with t-shirts reading: “Rihanna concert interrupted by a football game, weird but whatever”.
Ahead of Rihanna’s Super Bowl debut, here’s everything you need to know about the halftime show including where you can watch it in the UK and what time we can expect it to air.
How can UK viewers watch Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime show and what time will it be on?
The famous Super Bowl halftime show will take place on Sunday 12 February this year.
The game’s kick-off time will be at around 11.30pm GMT in the UK, and with the halftime show taking place mid-way, fans can expect to see Rihanna at around 1.15am to 1.30am GMT on Monday 13 February.
The American football players usually take a break for about 20 to 30 minutes during the game, which means the halftime act typically performs for around 12 to 13 minutes to accommodate the stage being put up and taken down.
Fans in the UK will be able to watch the Super Bowl LVII and Rihanna’s halftime show on ITV, which will be televising the final live from Glendale, Arizona.
For those who don’t want to stay awake that late, the show will be uploaded to the NFL’s YouTube channel the next day. Last year’s performance, featuring Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar and 50 Cent, is also available to watch.
What can we expect from the show?
From drag performers as back-up dancers to bringing on Tom Holland to reproduce his iconic lip-sync performance to “Umbrella”, there are plenty of things fans have called for from Rih-Rih’s halftime show.
With only 12 to 14 minutes in the middle of the football tournament to wow the crowds, however, the 34-year-old singer will likely perform a mash-up of her greatest hits.
Fans have begged the singer to play hits including “S&M” and “Umbrella”, as well as “Diamonds”, “Rude Boy”, “Only Girl (in the World)” and “We Found Love” on the Super Bowl stage, with a few likely to feature in the short set.
Rihanna mega-fans have also wondered if a guest artist will be joining her on stage, with boyfriend A$AP Rocky high on the list of potential performers.
One thing’s for sure though, after Fenty Beauty trolled fans with a poster of Rihanna’s hand clutching a lip gloss, their worst nightmare would be no music at all.
One commenter quipped: “I’m really starting to think Rihanna’s not actually performing at the Super Bowl and it’s just a big Fenty beauty advertisement.”
Will Rihanna be releasing any new music?
Rihanna has taken so long to release new music after her eighth studio album Anti was released in 2016 that it’s become something of a running joke.
During the seven long years since Anti, she has repeatedly hinted at new music, telling fans in December 2021 it would be arriving “soon, soon, soon”.
News that Rihanna will headline the Super Bowl’s halftime show has reignited hopes she could release a new album ahead of – or perhaps shortly after – the 12 February 2023 slot… but unfortunately it still doesn’t look like that will happen.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Rihanna claimed that her Super Bowl performance is unrelated to any plans for new music.
“That’s not true,” she said of the rumours that a new album will drop after her halftime Show. “Super Bowl is one thing. New music is another thing. Do you hear that, fans?”
She added: “The second that I announced this, I said, ‘Oh, my God, they’re going to think my album is coming. I need to get to work.’”
The pop icon teased a musical return with two songs for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack titled “Born Again” and “Lift Me Up”, however fans were left disappointed when they discovered that both songs were ballads.
Given that Wakanda Forever is essentially a love letter to the late Chadwick Boseman, it makes sense for the two singles to have a more melancholy tone, however fans are hoping that she releases some more upbeat songs to coincide with the Super Bowl… we can only hope.
The Super Bowl LVII airs on Sunday 12 February from 11.30pm GMT on ITV in the UK.
