About a month ago, BTS co-headlined the first-ever halftime show in the history of a FIFA World Cup Final at New York New Jersey Stadium. BTS began their performance at 4:05 p.m. with their 2020 global нιт “Dynamite,” reworked with a football-themed arrangement. Dressed in red and black, the seven members, along with their backup dancers who also wore red, delivered a shortened two-minute version of the нιт, ending with spectacular fireworks exploding behind them.
Following the historic performance, BTS became the most-mentioned artist among the lineup, with more than 4.1 million mentions and over 5 million social media interactions. Google searches for BTS also surged, reaching twice the level recorded around their ARIRANG comeback in March. On Spotify, the group recorded more than 30 million streams following the performance, becoming the most-streamed artist among the stars who appeared in the halftime show. “Dynamite” alone saw a 105% increase in streams compared to before the performance.
Through their agency, the BTS members had previously shared how happy and honored they were to appear on the world’s biggest sporting stage. But it was only during SUGA’s most recent livestream that he directly revealed how they actually felt behind the scenes. His remarks also cleared up a major misconception many people had!
Specifically, during a livestream before the Arlington concert, SUGA noticed a few fan comments mentioning New York and shared a little about his memories of performing at the World Cup Halftime Show. He described it this way: “The world cup final was fun. Since it was at the same venue as our concert, it felt like a rehearsal. Our au∂ιєnce for performance is much larger because there are more fans, so it didn’t feel like soмєтнing completely different.”
His comments quickly became a hot topic of discussion online because SUGA’s experience was completely different from what many people had imagined. For many, performing at a World Cup Final, in front of tens of thousands of spectators in the stadium and millions more watching online around the world, would surely be an overwhelming experience. On top of that, BTS’ performance only lasted around one and a half to two minutes, making the pressure even greater.
Moreover, this was the first time BTS had stood together on the stage of the world’s biggest sporting event, as well as the first time a K-pop group had appeared at the halftime show of a World Cup Final. They had no previous experience to draw from and also carried the responsibility of representing their home country and an entire K-pop industry.
These factors led many people to believe that this must have been one of the most challenging and nerve-racking stages of their careers. Yet SUGA surprised both ARMYs and the public by saying “It felt like a rehearsal” and “It didn’t feel like soмєтнing completely different.” It turns out that, from the members’ perspective, the World Cup Halftime Show was not intimidating at all. To them, it felt much like any other performance they had done in front of their fans.
As the video spread across social media, fans couldn’t help but admire BTS’ professionalism while marveling at the sheer level they have reached as global superstars. Some of the amusing fan reactions included: “THIS CASUAL FLEX?!”, “I chuckled when he said that”, “Basically just another day for them", "TELL THEM KING!", "He is the final boss Agust D", "It was just another stop in terms of performance. They give their 100 every time they take the stage", "Yoongi always clock it! Love love love",...
And in reality, SUGA had every reason to feel that way! Just 10 days after their World Cup performance, BTS returned to the very same MetLife Stadium for two concerts as part of their ARIRANG World Tour. Both shows were sold out, attracting around 157,000 fans in total. For two full hours, the group delivered explosive performances and physically demanding choreography in front of tens of thousands of fans.
More notably, MetLife is only one of many mαѕѕive stages BTS are conquering throughout the North αмєяι¢αn leg and the entire ARIRANG World Tour. From the beginning of August up to now alone, BTS have performed eight stadium shows, each packed with at least 60,000 spectators. Continuously performing on stages of a similar scale has given BTS the confidence and extensive experience to handle such mαѕѕive crowds. As a result, even in the face of a historic milestone like the World Cup, the seven members did not seem overwhelmed or weighed down by psychological pressure. Instead, they took complete command of the stage with confidence and were able to fully enjoy the moment.
A report from The Guardian not long ago also serves as evidence that what SUGA said was absolutely true. The Guardian noted that “North αмєяι¢αn shows are driving large-scale consumer spending in local economies.” The newspaper also quoted Michael Mariano, Director of Economic Development at Tourism Economics, as saying: “When factoring in non-concert spending such as accommodation, airfare, food and beverage, and shopping, the economic impact of BTS's concerts could match or even exceed that of the FIFA World Cup.”
At a level like this, SUGA and BTS have reached a point where stages that would seem “unthinkable” to others are simply another stage for them to shine on. That is the level of a group that has become so accustomed to turning the extraordinary into the ordinary!
