Jennifer Hudson opened the biggest match in soccer with the song that's been called the hardest in the American songbook - and she made it look easy.
The EGOT winner delivered a powerhouse rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" moments before kickoff at the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final between Spain and Argentina, Sunday, July 19, at New York New Jersey Stadium. FIFA billed it as a "special rendition" ahead of what became the largest sporting event finale in history, with hundreds of millions watching worldwide. Her performance came just before Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger and Laura Pausini closed out the pregame ceremony with FIFA's official anthem, "Desire."
For Hudson, the moment added another major stage to a résumé that already includes Grammy, Oscar, Emmy and Tony wins. But those who've followed her career know her voice was shaped somewhere much smaller than a sold-out stadium - in church, under the direction of her grandmother, a choir director in Chicago.
Hudson has spoken openly about leaning on her faith through the hardest seasons of her life, including the 2008 murders of her mother, brother and nephew. "That's what my grandmother and my mother would always say," she once said of turning to God in crisis. "And Aretha said it."
That same steadiness carried into Sunday's performance, delivered in front of a global audience with the same commanding clarity Hudson brings to every stage - gospel roots and all.
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