The Super Bowl halftime show is designed to stop the room. On Sunday night in Santa Clara, one influencer decided to look away — and the internet made sure she felt it.
Amanda Vance, a sports betting influencer with more than half a million TikTok and Instagram followers, posted a video from Levi’s Stadium during Super Bowl 2026 showing herself dancing in the stands, wired headphones in, eyes fixed on her phone. On the screen was Turning Point USA’s alternative halftime program. On the field below her — Bad Bunny.
“Watching the American halftime show instead of BAD bunny during the Super Bowl,” Vance wrote. “I chose America and songs I know.”
Lost 1k followers in 2 minutes on Instagram because i didn’t watch bad bunny’s halftime performance
@amandacaseyvance on Instagram if the majority wants to follow me BTW pic.twitter.com/XonjpyF8fZ
— Amanda Vance (@amandacvance) February 9, 2026
Within minutes, she says, the numbers moved — fast. “Lost 1k followers in 2 minutes on Instagram because I didn’t watch bad bunny’s halftime performance,” she posted shortly after.
The video spread quickly beyond her own page, landing on X, Reddit, and Instagram comment threads where viewers debated whether the clip was a political statement, a marketing stunt, or simply internet bait. Many landed on the last option.
Bad Bunny’s halftime show was historic. The Puerto Rican artist became the first male solo Latin performer to headline the Super Bowl, delivering a 13-minute set almost entirely in Spanish. The performance leaned heavily into Puerto Rican culture, fashion, and food, and closed with a message of unity — a football reading, “Together, we are America.” At one point, he looked directly into the camera and said, “God Bless America.”
Watching the American halftime performance at the Super Bowl instead of Bad Bunny pic.twitter.com/OroLSYgz8C
— Amanda Vance (@amandacvance) February 9, 2026
Vance, meanwhile, chose Turning Point USA’s competing livestream, which featured Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Gabby Barrett, and Lee Brice. The conservative organization billed it as an “All-American” alternative to the NFL’s official show.
The contrast didn’t go unnoticed. Kat Dunn, a television personality and influencer, publicly unfollowed Vance and explained why in a blunt post that went viral on its own.
“Puerto Rico is in America by the way,” Dunn wrote, before calling the video “performative” and accusing Vance of staging outrage for engagement. Dunn later shared screenshots of hostile messages she said she received after criticizing the clip, including one that read, “I hope ICE deports you.”
Vance later responded by saying she had received death threats “and much more” simply for choosing different music. But the broader internet reaction was unsympathetic.
Amanda Vance’s header photo has the Clemente Bridge in it.
She’s engagement farming by disparaging a Puerto Rican performer while using a header photo that features a bridge named after a Puerto Rican baseball player& humanitarian.
Simply cannot make this stuff up. pic.twitter.com/YTeVFtQbsL
— Amanda Godsey (@AmandaFGodsey) February 9, 2026
“No. It’s entirely because you’re a whiny, attention whore,” one X user wrote. Another added, “Sounds like you FAFO.” Others focused on the economics of the protest itself. “But you spent a bunch of money on the tickets,” one commenter noted. “Good job ‘boycotting’ despite giving them a bunch of money.”
Several users pointed out the visual irony of paying for a Super Bowl seat only to film yourself not watching the very thing most people paid to see. “Benito got your money, the NFL got your money, and you got a photo of yourself looking bored,” one post read. “Who exactly won here?”
Vance’s post remains live, continuing to rack up views alongside reposts and reaction clips. Whether the follower count rebounds or not, the moment has already done what Super Bowl internet moments usually do. By Monday morning, the halftime debate had moved on. The clip, however, hadn’t.
