By Stephen Whyno | Associated Press<\/p>\n
NEW YORK \u2014 The NFL is not considering dropping Bad Bunny as its Super Bowl halftime headline performer<\/a>, Commissioner Roger Goodell said Wednesday, reaffirming a decision to put the Grammy-winning Puerto Rican artist on the league\u2019s biggest stage that led to criticism<\/a> from U.S. President Donald Trump and some of his supporters.<\/p>\n Goodell addressed the Bad Bunny controversy at his news conference following\u00a0the annual fall owners meeting. It is the first time he has commented on the move announced in late September that\u00a0garnered\u00a0worldwide attention,\u00a0including an increase\u00a0in streams of Bad Bunny\u2019s music, along with backlash.<\/p>\n RELATED: Trump adviser suggests ICE could be present at Super Bowl LX at Levi\u2019s Stadium<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s carefully thought through,\u201d Goodell said. \u201cI\u2019m not sure we\u2019ve ever selected an artist where we didn\u2019t have some blowback or criticism. It\u2019s pretty hard to do when you have literally hundreds of millions of people that are watching.\u201d<\/p>\n The 31-year-old born Benito Antonio Mart\u00ednez Ocasio has been vocal in his opposition to Trump and his policies. He decided to do a 31-day residency in Puerto Rico, avoiding stops in the mainland U.S., citing concerns about the mass deportation of Latinos.<\/p>\n He performs in Spanish<\/a> and is expected to do so at the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re confident it\u2019s going to be a great show,\u201d Goodell said, acknowledging there could be more talent added to the lineup along with Bad Bunny. \u201cHe understands the platform that he\u2019s on, and I think it\u2019s going to be exciting and a united moment.\u201d<\/p>\n The San Francisco 49ers are hosting the Super Bowl<\/a> on Feb. 8 at Levi\u2019s Stadium in Santa Clara. It is unclear if Trump plans to be there, though he has made appearing in person at major sporting events a significant part of his second term in the White House.<\/p>\n