Katy Perry, Tius Luka captivate fans with ‘Wonder’ at FIFA World Cup 2026 opening ceremony in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES: Pop star Katy Perry delivered a memorable performance at the FIFA World Cup 2026 opening ceremony at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, captivating thousands of fans with an emotional rendition of her song ‘Wonder’ ahead of the United States’ campaign opener against Paraguay.

The ceremony marked the start of the US leg of the FIFA World Cup 2026, which is being jointly hosted by Mexico and Canada.

Taking the stage around 10 minutes before kickoff, Perry delivered a memorable performance of ‘Wonder’ alongside Tius Luka, who recorded the song with her in 2021 when he was five years old. The performance drew enthusiastic applause from spectators and quickly generated attention on social media platforms.

The performance began with Perry holding Luka’s hand as the youngster sang the opening line of the song. Perry moved across a specially designed platform positioned at the centre of the pitch, performing the uplifting track before thousands of fans gathered at the stadium.

The official Instagram handle of the FIFA World Cup shared a video of the performance, which soon attracted significant engagement from football and music fans worldwide.
Check out
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZgd7VBI3k0/?igsh=ODhuanNqbXJrNmdu
In addition to her performance, Perry also garnered attention online for her striking silver outfit. The sparkly dress featured a dramatic design that flared out at the waist

Ahead of the performance, Perry had shared her excitement on social media. “Tune in early to Friday’s USA vs Paraguay match to see Tius and I perform “Wonder” at the Protocol Ceremony @fifaworldcup,” she wrote.

Fans quickly flooded the comments section with messages of support. “My favourite song!!” one user wrote, while another commented, “Let’s go queen.”

The performance comes as the FIFA World Cup 2026 gets underway across North America. The tournament officially began on June 11 (local time) with the opening match between Mexico and South Africa in Mexico City.

The first opening ceremony in Mexico City featured performances by Shakira and Burna Boy, who delivered the first live performance of “Dai Dai,” the official song of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Several other artists also performed during the Mexico City ceremony, including Alejandro Fernandez, Belinda, Danny Ocean, J Balvin, Lila Downs, Los Angeles Azules and Mana.

Meanwhile, a second opening ceremony was held in Toronto, Canada, featuring performances by Alanis Morissette, Alessia Cara, Elyanna, Jessie Reyez, Michael Buble, Nora Fatehi, Sanjoy, Vegedream and William Prince.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is the largest edition of the tournament to date, featuring 48 teams competing across the United States, Canada and Mexico. The competition is scheduled to conclude with the final on July 19. (ANI)