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Here are the biggest nonsport moments from Super Bowl LIX.

1. That dazzling halftime show

Fresh off his big win at the Grammys, Lamar鈥檚 halftime show was a predictably thoughtful meditation on 鈥渢he American game,鈥� all red, white and blue and packed with social commentary, featuring Samuel L. Jackson as 鈥測our Uncle Sam,鈥� interjecting throughout: 鈥淒o you really know how to play the game, Mr. Lamar? Tighten up鈥�; 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what the people want.鈥�

On a stripped-down stage, with dancers dressed in the colours of the American flag, it was a minimalist spectacle, showcasing some of Lamar鈥檚 best-known songs, including 鈥淗umble,鈥� 鈥淒NA鈥� and 鈥淭V Off.鈥� He was also joined by SZA for their two hit songs together, 鈥淟uther鈥� and 鈥淎ll the Stars.鈥澛�

But the question on everyone’s mind was whether Lamar would play “Not Like Us,” his massive, controversial and Grammy-winning聽diss track聽against 海角社区官网rapper Drake. Lamar teased the song several times throughout the performance聽鈥� at one point making a sly reference to Drake’s ongoing defamation lawsuit against his record label Universal Music Group: “I want to perform their favourite song, but you know they love to sue,” Lamar joked midway through the set.

Inevitably, Lamar concluded his set with a raucous rendition of “Not Like Us,” during which he brought out his collaborator Mustard. In what must have been a difficult moment for Drake, wherever he was, the audience in the stadium could be heard loudly singing along to the infamous 鈥淎 minor鈥� line, a lyrical takedown that accuses Drake of alleged pedophilia.

In what may have also been a reference to that feud, 鈥淕AME OVER鈥� was projected in lights as Lamar鈥檚 performance concluded.

2. Serena Williams’s jaw-dropping surprise appearance

Prior to the halftime show, Lamar promised fans ” but no one could have predicted the brief but impactful appearance by tennis superstar Serena Williams, who was among the dancers during the “Not Like Us” finale.聽

Williams’s appearance was notable for three reasons.

First, she’s Serena Williams, and looked cool as hell.

Second, she used her brief moment on camera to do the Crip Walk, a dance that originated in Compton, where both Lamar and Williams grew up. Many observers were quick to note that Williams also did a Crip Walk during the聽2012 Summer Olympics, after defeating Maria Sharapova in the gold-medal match in Wimbledon. At the time, Williams faced an onslaught of criticism, due to the dance’s association with California gang culture. “Man, I did not Crip Walk like that at Wimbledon,” . “I would’ve been fined!鈥�

Third, Williams’s appearance worked as yet another subtle (or not-so-subtle) shot at Drake, who was briefly romantically involved with the tennis star a decade ago. In “Not Like Us,” Lamar warns Drake that he “better not speak on Serena,” likely a reference to a Drake song from 2022

3. Kendrick Lamar’s jeans

Another major talking point from the halftime show was Lamar’s decision to wear flared, bootcut jeans by Celine.

“can鈥檛 believe kendrick did all that in the most hannah montana lookin bootcut jeans i鈥檝e seen in years,”

“Kendrick鈥檚 jeans are 90s teen/ elder millennial representation,”

4. The Sudanese-Palestinian flag

A performer in Lamar’s halftime show was detained on the field聽after unfurling a combination Sudanese-Palestinian flag with 鈥淪udan鈥� and 鈥淕aza鈥� written on it.聽The protester was not arrested,

Since the outbreak of wars in Sudan and Gaza, liberation movements in both regions have expressed solidarity with each other,聽calling the conflicts deeply linked and interwoven.

Though it wasn’t captured by television cameras, footage from inside the stadium showed the performer, who was part of Lamar’s 400-member field cast, holding up the flag while standing atop Lamar’s Buick Regal GNX.

Roc Nation, the entertainment company that produced the show, said that the act 鈥渨as neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal.鈥�

5. President Trump’s appearance

Flanked by two of his children, Ivanka and Don Jr., and met with a mixture of cheers and boos when he popped up on the jumbotron saluting during Jon Batiste鈥檚 jazz-inflected national anthem performance, U.S. President Donald Trump was at the game 鈥� the first sitting president ever to attend a Super Bowl.

Before he left Mar-a-Lago for Louisiana, Trump released a statement that said, in part, 鈥淭he coaches, players, and team staff on the field tonight represent the best of the best in professional football, but they also embody the best of the American dream.鈥�

Trump, who recently signed an executive order banning biological males from women鈥檚 sports, also said that the two teams “represent the hopes and dreams of our nation’s young athletes as we restore safety and fairness in sports and equal opportunities among their teams.”

The attendance of a president who has also signed an executive order 鈥渢erminating radical DEI鈥� coincided with a change in the words written in the end zone: 鈥淐hoose love鈥� now replaces 鈥淓nd racism,鈥� an inscription that had been in place since the 2020 protests against the death of George Floyd, a black man killed by a white police officer.

6. Taylor Swift’s reception

One year after Taylor Swift kissed Travis Kelce on the field as his team celebrated their win, Swift was back at the Super Bowl to support her man. This time, however, she was greeted with boos by some in the crowd when she popped up on the jumbotron early in the game.

In footage shared by the NFL, Swift looks a little perplexed when she hears the crowd reaction. She seemed to shake it off, side-eyeing briefly before laughing a little uncomfortably, and possibly saying, 鈥淲hat is going on?鈥� Serena Williams quickly tweeted her support, writing, 鈥淚 love you 鈥� don鈥檛 listen to those boooo!![sic]鈥�

Otherwise, Swift鈥檚 furrow-browed attention seems to have been firmly on the game, which was not going her boyfriend鈥檚 way: At halftime, the Chiefs were down 24 points to the Eagles, with Kelce not catching any passes.

It鈥檚 estimated that Swift has single-handedly made the NFL $1 billion in brand equity and boosted ticket and merch sales, particularly among younger women, since she and Kelce started dating in 2023.

Her game day style for the occasion? A white Saint Laurent blazer, bedazzled shorts by Monday DNM, and boots by Paris Texas, accessorized by a Givenchy bag in Chiefs red. She also wore the 鈥淭鈥� necklace she sported at the Grammys last weekend, now almost certainly standing for 鈥淭ravis,鈥� not 鈥淭aylor.鈥�

While some speculated that Swift might invite her friend Blake Lively, currently embroiled in a lawsuit with Justin Baldoni that has divided public opinion, to join her at the game in a show of support, she was actually joined by rapper Ice Spice, who guested on her single 鈥淜arma鈥� in 2023. (There鈥檚 lore here, too: Ice Spice was the subject of racist remarks by Matty Healy, the 1975 frontman and Swift鈥檚 former love interest.) Swift’s long-time friend, stylist and designer Ashley Avignone, was on her other side.

Other celebs in the crowd included Jon Hamm, who introduced the Chiefs as they ran on field; Bradley Cooper, who did the same for the Eagles; Lady Gaga with rapper Doechi; Paul Rudd; Jay-Z; and Tom Cruise, who narrated the opening montage on television.

7. The tribute to the victims of the Bourbon Street terrorist attack

Before kickoff 鈥� and after a moment of silence for football matriarch Virginia McCaskey, who recently died at 102 鈥� there was a pause to remember the 14 people killed in a terror attack in New Orleans on New Year鈥檚 Day. Photographs of the victims, which included a New Orleans Saints football team member who had been scheduled to work the Super Bowl, were held by some of the first responders who had been on scene.

Trump also met with some of the families of those killed.