For all the pomp and excess of Madonna’s Super Bowl halftime extravaganza a single rude gesture by guest singer M.I.A. is likely to be the most remembered piece of the show.

The gesture, accompanied by a barely disguised expletive, came during a performance of Madonna’s new single, “Give Me All Your Luvin.’’’ At the end of her lines, British singer M.I.A. appeared to sing “I don’t give a (expletive),’’ although it was hard to hear clearly.

The incident was reminiscent of Janet Jackson’s infamous “wardrobe malfunction’’ eight years ago ― a surprise risque moment in front of tens of millions of unsuspecting viewers. The brief exposure of Jackson’s nipple during the 2004 halftime show raised a storm of controversy and put then-broadcaster CBS in hot water with the Federal Communications Commission.

The Super Bowl, shown on NBC this year, is routinely viewed by more than 100 million people, the biggest TV event of the year. The screen briefly went blurred after M.I.A.’s gesture in what was a late attempt ― by less than a second ― to cut out the camera shot.

“The NFL hired the talent and produced the halftime show,’’ NBC spokesman Christopher McCloskey said. “Our system was late to obscure the inappropriate gesture and we apologize to our viewers,’’

The NFL blamed a failure in NBC’s delay system for allowing the gesture to be seen. Spokesman Brian McCarthy said M.I.A. did not do anything similar during rehearsals and the league had no reason to believe she would pull something like that during the actual show.

“The obscene gesture in the performance was completely inappropriate, very disappointing, and we apologize to our fans,’’ McCarthy said.

The British singer M.I.A. is best known for her 2007 hit “Paper Planes,’’ a Grammy nominee for record of the year that memorably features a sample of the Clash song, “Straight to Hell.’’ It was featured on the soundtrack to the movie “Slumdog Millionaire.’’

Madonna had admittedly been nervous about her performance, hoping to position herself as the queen of a new generation of pop stars with an opulent show and a sharp performance that mixed her new release with more familiar songs. 

(AP)