Wayne Rooney Critiques World Cup Half-Time Show: A Dazzling Disappointment

Wayne Rooney didn’t bother dressing it up. On the night Spain and Argentina paused for the first World Cup final half-time show, the former England captain’s verdict cut straight through the fireworks, the celebrity cameos and the television gloss.

“I’ll be honest, mine was when it finished,” he said on BBC, when asked for his highlight of the 11‑minute spectacle at MetLife Stadium.

Rooney, sat alongside Joe Hart and Micah Richards, had watched FIFA stretch the traditional 15‑minute interval into a 27‑minute production featuring Madonna, Shakira, Justin Bieber and a roll call of global stars. It was billed as a historic moment, a Super Bowl-style step into American-style entertainment. He thought it was “crap”.

“I like a lot of them artists but I thought it was crap,” the 40‑year‑old continued. “It just didn’t get me going and I wanted the football to come back on. I like Burna Boy, I like Bieber, I like Shakira, but that was too flat.”

Richards, more forgiving and clearly more entertained, picked out Shakira and Nigerian star Burna Boy as his standout acts and couldn’t resist a jab at his former Manchester City and England team-mate, labelling Rooney “miserable” on air. Presenter Gabby Logan, coming out of a BBC promotional clip, leaned into the moment: “I’ll tell you what else you get on the BBC: honest reviews.”

Honest was one word for it. Brutal was another.

This was the show FIFA president Gianni Infantino had trailed back in March of last year, curated by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and sold as a global cultural event. On paper, it had everything. Madonna driven onto the pitch by Brazil icons Ronaldo and Ronaldinho. South Korean giants BTS on stage. Characters from the Muppets and Sesame Street sharing the turf with some of the world’s biggest recording artists.

Inside the stadium, it felt like a festival had been dropped into the middle of the biggest football match on the planet. For the players, though, it meant a long, elongated wait in the dressing rooms as the clock ticked far beyond the usual rhythm of a half-time reset.

In the United States, this kind of break is part of the sporting fabric. The Super Bowl half-time show has become as famous as the game itself, a cultural touchstone that often dwarfs the sport in global conversation. FIFA clearly wanted a slice of that spectacle for its showpiece.

Not everyone in the pundit chairs bought it.

On ITV, Roy Keane delivered his own cold splash of water on the hype. “It was a bit of an anti-climax, but I think the people in the stadium probably enjoyed it more than us,” he said, before allowing himself one concession: “But it’s always nice to see Shakira.”

Keane’s line captured the mood of many watching at home: dazzled by the cast list, underwhelmed by the execution.

Behind the glitz sat a serious purpose. The half-time show was staged in support of the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, an initiative aiming to raise 100 million US dollars to expand access to education and football for children worldwide. It was football’s governing body trying to marry charity, culture and sport in one global broadcast.

The build-up to kick-off had already hinted at the scale of FIFA’s ambition. The closing ceremony read like a Hollywood call sheet. Tom Cruise appeared, alongside Robbie Williams and Jennifer Hudson. Nicole Scherzinger took her turn, as did Italian singer-songwriter Laura Pausini. Streamer IShowSpeed, Post Malone and rapper Swae Lee also performed before a ball had even been kicked.

By the time the referee finally blew for half-time, the stage was set for something unprecedented in a World Cup final. Instead, it became a flashpoint in an old argument: how much showbusiness can football absorb before it starts to feel like something else?

For FIFA, the images will live on: Ronaldo and Ronaldinho escorting Madonna, BTS on a World Cup pitch, children’s TV icons sharing space with world champions. For some of the game’s most recognisable voices, the memory will be very different.

Rooney just wanted the football back.