NBC and the NFL announced last night that Madonna will perform at the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show.

In a statement, Madonna said she's partnered with a creative team from Cirque du Soleil, choreographer Jamie King and multimedia artists from Moment Factory, "to create a signature performance for the Super Bowl's Halftime Show, which will be broadcast worldwide."

Super Bowl XLVI will take place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Sunday February 5. The live halftime show is the most-watched television musical event of the year: More than 162 million viewers in the U.S. watched last year's show featuring The Black Eyed Peas performing with Slash and Usher.

After last month's halftime performance by the Who, the Super Bowl has apparently run out of sixtysomething classic rockers suitable for the year's most watched musical showcase. Following a long stretch of such senior rockers as Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones and relative youngsters Prince and U2, next year's halftime act will be someone younger, twangier and female.

So says Fox Sports president David Hill. Asked by the Los Angeles Times if he could promise that next year's halftime act would be someone under 60, Hill said, "Oh, please God yes." He said that, while he's a fan of the Who, the aging rockers did neither themselves nor the game any favors with this year's performance on the CBS telecast.

Okay, I couldn't resist the nod to Abbott and Costello's Who's On First. But the fact is that Sports Illustrated has spread the word that The Who will star in the Super Bowl big, overblown half-time pageant. This follows the safe pattern the NFL has been employing since the Janet Jackson-Justin Timberlake costume malfunction; that is, stick with classic rock stars who are guaranteed to do their hits and not disrobe. That's why we've had Prince, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and now The Who. All superstar acts, no controversy.