Does Rihanna’s Super Bowl Halftime Performance Mean a Tour Is Coming? 

The last time Rihanna fans could buy tickets to see her in concert was 2016 when she hadn’t even launched her lingerie brand Savage X Fenty that catapulted her to billionaire status and Travis Scott was still a support act. Now, more than six years later, RiRi’s set to return to the stage on Feb. 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium outside Phoenix for the Super Bowl LVII halftime show — and possibly kicking off more performances to follow. 

With more than 100 million viewers tuning into the halftime show and its reputation for world-class artistry and production, Rihanna’s next gig is easily the biggest platform available for superstar artists looking to announce mega world tours and sell millions of tickets.  

In 2012, Madonna was the first modern act to use `a Super Bowl performance to help a major global tour, announcing her 88-show MDNA tour immediately after her performance at Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium. The MDNA tour went on to generate more than $300 million in ticket sales, making it the highest grossing tour ever by a female solo artist — a record that still stands today. 

Beyonce has twice used the Super Bowl to announce global tours, including the 2013 Mrs. Carter Show would tour and the 2016 Formation Tour, which grossed $235 million, following her appearance during Coldplay’s headlining set at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Lady Gaga (2017), Shakira (2020) and the Weeknd (2021) have also used their appearances at the Super Bowl halftime show to announce or promote upcoming global tours.    

Measuring how much Rihanna could make if she were to tour in 2023 is a bit difficult considering her dated touring history, but she has all the elements in place for a wildly successful run — a massive catalog of hit music including 14 No. 1s on the Billboard Hot 100, hundreds of millions of followers across social media and enormous pent-up demand. Her 2016 Anti arena tour averaged $1.2 million per show, according to Billboard Boxscore, and grossed more than $110 million. Rihanna could generate as much as $2 million per arena show in 2023 Billboard estimates, thanks to dynamic pricing and yield management techniques which price tickets closer to demand.   

And while Rihanna probably doesn’t need the Super Bowl to sell out a world tour in 2023, there are few better ways to make such a splashy promotional announcement for what would likely be one of the biggest tours of the year, if it were to happen. 

Reps for Rihanna at her management company Roc Nation and respond to requests for comment.