No Verified Evidence That Shakira and Burna Boy Performed the 2026 FIFA World Cup Opening Song

A claim has been circulating that Shakira performed the opening song for the 2026 FIFA World Cup alongside Nigerian artist Burna Boy. The verdict is simple: this is unverifiable, and there is no credible evidence it happened.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is scheduled to take place across the United States, Canada, and Mexico in the summer of 2026. As of early 2025, FIFA's official website had made no announcement about opening ceremony performers. That means the event the claim describes had not yet occurred when the story started spreading.

Reuters and AP News — two of the most reliable sports news outlets in the world — have no reporting confirming this pairing. When a major FIFA announcement like this happens, it gets covered widely and immediately. The silence from credible sources is itself a strong signal.

To be fair to the claim: Shakira does have a real and famous connection to World Cup music. Her 2010 anthem "Waka Waka" is one of the most recognized songs in the tournament's history. And Burna Boy is a globally celebrated artist who would be a plausible choice. That combination makes the claim feel believable — but feeling plausible is not the same as being true.

This kind of misinformation is worth watching for as major sporting events approach. Fake announcements about performers, lineups, and ceremonies tend to spike in the months before big events, often designed to get shares from excited fans before anyone stops to check. If you see a claim like this, look for an official FIFA statement or coverage from a wire service like Reuters or AP before passing it on.