A performer in Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl halftime show has been banned from all NFL events for displaying a Sudanese-Palestinian flag during the performance.
An NFL spokesperson confirmed the man, part of the 400 performers in Kendrick Lamar's Feb. 9 show, hid the flag — marked with "Sudan" and "Gaza" — until the halftime segment, according to Variety.
Fan footage captured the performer briefly holding up the flag on a car prop during Lamar's "TV Off" performance. The flag was not broadcast, but appeared in the background. The performer was swiftly removed from the car and tackled by security.
"No one involved with the production was aware of the individual's intent," Brian McCarthy, the NFL's vice president of communications, said. "The individual will [be] banned for life from all NFL stadiums and events."
The performer does not face any additional or criminal charges.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, ZĂĽl-Qarnain Nantambu identified himself as the performer removed from Lamar's Super Bowl halftime show.
Nantambu, who discusses politics and his life as a Muslim in the U.S. on his YouTube channel, "Open Book Platform," revealed he was hired for Lamar's performance about two weeks before the Super Bowl.
He added Lamar was unaware of his plan to display the flag, which he intended as a gesture of solidarity with those affected by ongoing conflicts in Sudan and Gaza.
"We have a life of luxury in comparison to what they're going through," Nantambu said.
The "individual hid the item on his person and unveiled it late in the show," according to McCarthy in The Guardian.
"No one involved with the production was aware of the individual's intent," McCarthy said.
Roc Nation, the entertainment company that produced the show, said the act "was neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.