Rihanna delivers soaring Super Bowl halftime performance

Rihanna began her Super Bowl halftime show hanging high above the field.

She wore a puffy, bright red jumpsuit as she stood on a transparent square that moved her up and down as she hovered in the air over the turf at State Farm Stadium and belted out the lyrics to Bitch Better Have My Money.

Dancers wearing what looked like white ski suits moved in sync on their own suspended platforms and several danced on a stage on the field.

She and her dancers were lowered to stage that matched her outfit, and moved in sync as she sped through two other hits, Where Have You Been, and Only Girl, belting out " Want you to make me feel like I'm the only girl in the world."

There were none of the instant costume changes, scene shifts or guest appearances that have been a constant at other Super Bowl halftimes.

The theme -- and the colour scheme -- stayed the same throughout her set, with red lights bathing the long stage.

More of the dancers in white flooded and filled the field as the performance went on.

Fireworks went off and lights sparkled from the stand as she was raised alone back into the air and sang Diamond -- with its refrain of "shine bright like a diamond" -- as the set closed.

The performance was her first live event in seven years, and her first since becoming a mother nine months ago.