U2 to Headline NFL's First Thanksgiving Eve Halftime Show

U2 will play the 50-yard line at SoFi Stadium on Nov. 25. The NFL is billing the Thanksgiving Eve halftime show as "a new NFL holiday tradition," streamed on Netflix the night before turkey day.

The Los Angeles-area stadium hosts the hometown Rams against the Green Bay Packers, with kickoff set for 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET. Being Irish, the members of U2 presumably have no family Thanksgiving dinners pulling them back to Dublin. Convenient timing.

What's the backdrop for the show?

U2 has halftime pedigree. The band performed at the Super Bowl in February 2002, a set that remains a reference point for the format.

The gig lands shortly after the release of "Carnaval De Luz," the band's first album of new material in nine years. The NFL and Netflix have spent two years trying to make non-Super Bowl halftimes matter:

• Christmas Day halftime shows in each of the previous two years
• 2025's Snoop's Holiday Halftime Party with Snoop Dogg, Lainey Wilson, Huntr/X and Andrea Bocelli at Minneapolis' U.S. Bank Stadium on Dec. 25
• The previous year's "Beyoncé Bowl," headlined by Beyoncé

No plans for a 2026 Christmas halftime show have been announced.

Who said what?

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos delivered the statement, in full corporate bloom: "There's a reason U2 has headlined stadiums for decades: they don't just perform, they deliver iconic moments audiences remember forever." He added: "We're thrilled that they'll bring that same magic to the NFL stage on Netflix. It's going to be an unforgettable night for football fans and Netflix members worldwide."

Jesse Collins Entertainment produces the U2 show for Netflix and the NFL. The company is the same shop behind the league's growing slate of streaming halftime spectacles.

Does a new 'holiday' stick?

The league is effectively inventing a second marquee halftime slot, then handing the inaugural edition to a band with a 2002 Super Bowl on its résumé and a nine-years-in-the-making album to sell. Whether audiences treat Thanksgiving Eve as a tradition or just a Wednesday with better music will be decided, one ratings report at a time, when the Rams and Packers kick off on Nov. 25.