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Rihanna Declined Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show Offer in Support of Colin Kaepernick (Exclusive)

Rihanna Declined Super Bowl Halftime Show Colin Kaepernick Support
Rihanna attends the 'Ocean's 8' premiere at Cineworld Leicester Square in London on June 13, 2018.Mike Marsland/WireImage.com

Rihanna stands with Kap. The “Work” singer declined an offer to headline the Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show because she “supports Colin Kaepernick,” a source tells Us Weekly exclusively.

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“The NFL and CBS really wanted Rihanna to be next year’s performer in Atlanta,” the insider reveals. “They offered it to her, but she said no because of the kneeling controversy. She doesn’t agree with the NFL’s stance.”

Rihanna Declined Super Bowl Halftime Show Colin Kaepernick Support
Colin Kaepernick speaks on stage at ACLU SoCal’s annual Bill of Rights dinner at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills on December 3, 2017. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Kaepernick, who once admitted to having a crush on Rihanna, was the first NFL player to kneel during the national anthem in a peaceful protest of police brutality and racial inequality. The former San Fransisco 49ers quarterback, 30, has not played since stirring controversy during the 2016 season. He filed a grievance against the league and its owners in November 2017, accusing them of colluding to keep him off the field.

Related: Rihanna’s Red Carpet Style Evolution

After Rihanna, 30, rebuffed the halftime offer, the NFL extended it to Maroon 5. Us Weekly broke the news in September that the Adam Levine-fronted pop-rock group gleefully accepted.

Multiple sources later told Us that Cardi B may be a special guest during Maroon 5’s set at the 2019 championship game at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

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“She is definitely being considered, but it’s obviously way too early to say for sure,” one insider revealed. Another source said, “Pepsi, the NFL and Cardi are all interested in her performing more than just her ‘Girls Like You’ verse.”

Reporting by Jennifer Peros

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