How to watch Beyoncé's NFL halftime performance this Christmas
Everything you need to know about Beyoncé's halftime performance at the Baltimore Ravens vs. Houston Texans NFL game streaming on Netflix on Christmas.
Giddy up! Beyoncé is gearing up for a Cowboy Carter Christmas in her hometown of Houston this Christmas Day.
The singer will headline the Baltimore Ravens vs. Houston Texans NFL halftime show at the Texans’ NRG Stadium. The game is set to stream live on Netflix as part of the streaming service’s recent foray into live sports. It’s one of two NFL games Netflix will host for the first time; the other is the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Pittsburgh Steelers matchup featuring a prerecorded performance from Mariah Carey.
The performance marks Beyoncé's first time performing songs from her album, Cowboy Carter, which dropped in March and her first live performance this year. Her Renaissance World Tour wrapped in late 2023.
Here’s what we know about the Cowboy Carter performance and how to watch it.
How can I watch Beyoncé's halftime show?
The Ravens vs. Texans game — including Beyoncé's halftime performance — will be exclusively streamed on Netflix. Netflix plans start at $6.99 per month and can be canceled at any time.
The game will also be aired in the teams’ respective local markets, on WJZ in Baltimore and KHOU in Houston. NFL+ users will also be able to watch on their mobile devices.
But it’s unclear if any platforms aside from Netflix will show the Beyoncé halftime show in the same capacity since the performance is produced by Netflix.
What time does halftime start?
The Ravens vs. Texans game kicks off at 4:30 p.m. Eastern. When halftime starts will depend on how long the first half of the game lasts — sorry, non-footballers, there’s no set time.
That said, the first half of an NFL game has two 15-minute quarters of play. But factoring in other features, delays, and stoppages, like pregame performances and ad breaks, Queen Bey will probably go on around 6 p.m.
We’d recommend tuning in closer to 5:45 p.m. so as to not be blamed for missing anything. If the game is running late, at least you’ll be set and ready with snacks for the performance.
What songs will Beyoncé perform?
Details are scarce, but we know Beyoncé will perform songs from Cowboy Carter. She’s also expected to bring along some special guests who were featured on the album, according to Netflix.
That list of options is long — Bey featured a number of collaborators, from Willie Nelson to Linda Martell. Likely options could be Shaboozey (who recently performed at the Thanksgiving halftime show for the Detroit Lions-Chicago Bears game), Post Malone, Dolly Parton (who performed at a 2023 NFL Thanksgiving halftime show), or Miley Cyrus.
Who else is performing during the NFL Christmas Day games?
Mariah Carey will kick off the day of football and music with a new prerecorded rendition of “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” At the Chiefs-Steelers game, the Voices of Service quartet, which features retired military veterans, will sing the national anthem.
In Houston, Pentatonix will perform its version of the national anthem. And Beyoncé will close things off with her “Cowboy Carter” halftime experience.
When was the last time Beyoncé performed at an NFL game?
Beyoncé has a history with the NFL dating back more than two decades.
In 2003, she performed with Santana and Michelle Branch as part of the Super Bowl pregame show. A year later, she’d perform the national anthem at the Super Bowl in Houston.
In 2013, she’d go on to be the headlining halftime performance, reuniting with Destiny’s Child and performing a medley of hits. Three years later, she’d coheadline with Coldplay and Bruno Mars for the Super Bowl 50 halftime show, where she performed “Formation.”
Will there be buffering issues?
Netflix knows not to mess with the BeyHive, Beyoncé's dedicated super fans.
The streaming platform’s previous efforts with live-streamed events — like the infamous 2023 Love is Blind season finale that was riddled with delays and glitches or the Jake Paul-Mike Tyson fight in November, which presented a glitchy viewing experience for millions of viewers — haven’t been perfect.
In turn, both NFL and Beyoncé fans have expressed concerns on social media that there will be glitches for the Christmas Day games. A Netflix spokesperson told CNN that the recent Paul-Tyson fight informed their preparation for the NFL streams and that the platform has made system optimizations to better handle the anticipated large-scale viewership.
Still, even Beyoncé seems to be in on the joke.
In a new promotional video for her halftime performance posted Tuesday, Beyoncé takes off her sunglasses and the screen appears to freeze. A Netflix red buffering logo appears before the singer lets out a giggle, the screen resumes, and she winks to the camera.
“That glitch,” one user commented. “Bey did you talk to them?! We don’t want no problems!!”
A representative for Netflix told CNN they have made additional optimizations to improve the viewing quality and better handle the large-scale viewership that the NFL games are expected to draw.