The first half-time show in football history stretched the World Cup final interval to roughly 27 minutes on Saturday, well beyond the 15-minute limit set by the sport's regulations, after months of planning for a Super Bowl-style spectacle.
Curated by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin on behalf of FIFA and Global Citizen to raise funds for children's education worldwide, the show opened with Madonna rolling into the stadium alongside Brazilian football legends Ronaldo and Ronaldinho. Justin Bieber performed "Everything Hallelujah" with an altered lyric referencing the World Cup, while the Muppets joined an orchestra for a rendition of "Seven Nation Army." Gustavo Dudamel conducted Coldplay and a New York elementary school choir, with Elmo on drums, before Shakira and Burna Boy closed with the tournament's anthem "Dai dai."
A pre-match closing ceremony featured Post Malone and IShowSpeed, and Tom Cruise delivered a brief address to the crowd. Celebrities spotted in attendance included Rihanna, Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet.