BTS took the field at MetLife Stadium on Sunday for FIFA's first-ever World Cup final halftime show, joining a lineup that included Madonna, Justin Bieber, Shakira, Burna Boy, the New York Philharmonic's Gustavo Dudamel, and The Muppets, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt also appeared as their characters from Ted Lasso.
The seven-member group, comprising RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook, performed during an 11-minute mega-mix set. Jung Kook, the youngest member at 28, kicked off BTS's segment following a nod to Norway's viking row celebration. All members were dressed in red, black, and white.
The group chose to modify the lyrics of "Dynamite" to fit the occasion. New lines included "King Kong, kick the ball" and "Ding-dong, call me on my phone / Ice tea, and a game of football," the latter delivered by V, whose real name is Taehyung Kim, who pretended to kick a ball as he sang the line.
The halftime show was produced by Global Citizen, with programming curated by Coldplay's Chris Martin. The non-profit has a goal of raising $100 million for the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund. Each ticket sold throughout the tournament had $1 donated to the fund.
BTS is in the middle of what the outlet described as a massive comeback year. All seven members returned to group activities last year after completing mandatory military enlistment in South Korea. They released a new album, Arirang, in March and are currently on a large-scale world tour in support of it. In May, they took a break from sold-out shows in Las Vegas to attend the American Music Awards, where they took home three awards.
The group will return to MetLife Stadium on August 1 and August 2 for two sold-out shows of their own. They are also scheduled to appear at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas in September.
