Did Bad Bunny Burn the Flag? Was the viral image AI? What really happened

Bad Bunny took over the Super Bowl with his exalting half- time performance, making his much anticipated act even larger and better than expectations. The Spanish on- stage performance by the Puerto Rican became one of the most watched Superbowl performances of all time, despite some online backlash for NFL's Bad Bunny bet.

Conservative group Turning Point USA even held an alternate halftime show, but it got far fewer viewers than Bad Bunny’s show, The Sporting News reported. The biggest outrage started when a picture showed Bad Bunny burning the American flag, and the image went viral on X.

Fake flag image of Bad Bunny

Bad Bunny did NOT burn the American flag, and the viral image was fake, The Sporting News confirmed. The image was AI-generated, and X’s Community Notes explained that it was edited and not real. The original picture came from a satire website and had a SynthID watermark, which shows it was made using artificial intelligence. Bad Bunny waved the Puerto Rican flag during his performance, and had recently concluded a 30- show concert in his native country.

Puerto Rico concerts

The concerts took place at Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan earlier this year. Early estimates suggest Bad Bunny’s halftime show had more viewers than Kendrick Lamar’s 2025 show, which previously held the Super Bowl record.


After the performance, Bad Bunny saw a huge jump in Apple Music streams, with listens increasing seven times. His songs “DtMF,” “BAILE INoLVIDABLE,” and “Tití Me Preguntó” became the most streamed right after the show. Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show press conference also broke records and became the most-watched ever, Apple confirmed via The Sporting News.

FAQs

Q2. Did Bad Bunny burn the American flag?

No, Bad Bunny did not burn the American flag and the viral image was fake and made using AI, according to reports.

Q2. Why was Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show controversial?

The show faced backlash because it was mostly in Spanish and a fake AI image caused confusion online.