BLACKPINK’s Lisa Sparks Controversy Singing “Goals” at the World Cup Opening; Lyrics Slammed for Clashing With the Spirit of Sport

Updated: 2026-06-17｜Real-time information is subject to official announcements

The moment the World Cup opening-performance lineup is announced, what the online community argues about most fiercely is often not the football but that official song. This 2026 edition is no exception—after “Goals,” performed together by BLACKPINK’s Thai member Lisa, Brazilian diva Anitta, and Nigerian singer Rema, made its live debut at the opening ceremony at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on June 12, the volume of praise and of mockery was almost evenly matched. Among the friends around me who are getting ready to follow the Vancouver and Toronto matches, most of them too first came across this controversy in someone’s Stories before going back to look up the match information.

Let’s first clear up the part that tends to get muddled. “Goals” is the sixth single from the Official FIFA World Cup 2026 Album, not the only “World Cup theme song” of this edition—the official album takes a multi-single approach, and “Goals” is simply the one of them with the most buzz. The song was released on May 21, 2026 through SALXCO Records, with a production team that includes Grammy winner Cirkut, as well as Tropkillaz, Bava, and PinkSlip, blending K-pop, Latin pop, and Afrobeats. The combination of the three lead singers is itself very “World Cup”: Lisa is from Thailand, Anitta from Brazil, and Rema from Nigeria, representing the pop forces of Asia, South America, and Africa respectively.

Whether or not the song is good to listen to, this performance did carry milestone significance for Lisa personally. According to reports from multiple outlets, she became the first female K-pop girl-group artist ever to perform at a FIFA World Cup opening ceremony, and at the same time the first Thai artist to stand on this stage. For anyone who has long followed how Asian pop culture squeezes its way into global mainstream occasions, the sight itself is worth watching—in the past, World Cup theme songs have mostly been handled by Latin, African, or Western artists, and the last representative of K-pop to stand on a World Cup opening stage was still BTS’s Jungkook, who sang “Dreamers” at the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

One thing to point out in particular: this live debut took place at the opening ceremony in Los Angeles, USA, not in Canada. The 2026 World Cup is co-hosted by the USA, Canada, and Mexico, with the opening ceremony falling in the USA, while the Canadian matches are concentrated at BC Place in Vancouver and BMO Field in Toronto—so fans in Canada mostly saw this performance through a broadcast or online clips rather than being there in person.

The backlash that “Goals” provoked actually centers not on Lisa’s stage presence but on the lyrics. Quite a few critics and fans feel that the song puts its emphasis on physique, looks, nightlife, and indulgence, lacking the “unity” and “passion” sort of emotion commonly found in World Cup theme songs. The words singled out most often are “body goals,” “fit,” “friends,” “whip” and the like in the chorus—critics feel these words don’t really fit with football or with the atmosphere of the three-nation co-hosting, and online some have even described it outright as “nothing to do with football” or “self-satisfied,” while the “dislikes” on YouTube also skewed high, making it one of the most polarizing official songs this edition. Many people went on to compare it to Shakira’s “Waka Waka” from 2010, feeling that song truly conveyed the infectious appeal of football; Jungkook’s “Dreamers” was also dug back up by netizens and lifted up as “what a World Cup song should be,” and within K-pop circles it even escalated into a long-distance crossfire between BLINK and ARMY fans on both sides.

To be fair, the reactions are polarized rather than one-sided. Lisa’s segment of the performance at the opening venue itself also received mixed reviews of praise and mockery: some lavished praise on her stage charisma and dance skills, while others questioned her live showing or even claimed she was lip-syncing; some other netizens discussed changes in her appearance based on recent photos. Those on the supporting side, meanwhile, feel that being able to stand on a global-level stage like this is an achievement in itself, and that the blended arrangement of artists from three nations also signals that World Cup music is shifting from “tear-jerking stadium sing-alongs” toward a more experimental, more globally fused style. The commercial numbers likewise stand on the song’s side: even amid the bashing, “Goals” still racked up considerable views after going live, riding on the core global fan bases of the three sets of artists.

If you’re treating it purely as entertainment news, then just enjoy the spectacle. But if you’re planning your match-watching itinerary here in Canada, there are two things worth jotting down along the way: the opening-ceremony performance was in the USA and does not affect the Canadian fixtures—admission and broadcasts in Vancouver and Toronto are governed by their respective venues and the Canadian broadcasters; the theme song is part of the tournament’s atmosphere, but it is not a source of schedule information, and the ticket prices, kick-off times, and matchups that will actually affect your itinerary should be taken from FIFA’s official announcements—however heated the controversy on social media gets, don’t use it to guess at the schedule. For the practical know-how of watching the games here in Canada, you can refer to our compiled guide to where to watch and how to stream in Canada, or first check the World Cup group-stage schedule roundup to confirm the matches you’re following; all the complete World Cup content is gathered in the World Cup section.