BTS make history at 2026 MTV VMAs with three wins, ‘Swim’ takes Song of the Year

BTS once again stamped their name on one of music's biggest stages, taking home three major awards at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, including Song of the Year for “Swim”. The global superstars also won Best K-Pop and Best Group, underlining their continued dominance at the VMAs.

The three victories added another historic chapter to BTS' VMA legacy. “Swim” gave the group a landmark Song of the Year win, while their Best Group and Best K-Pop victories further extended their record-setting run in the two categories. The wins were celebrated by fans as another major milestone for the South Korean group, which has established itself as one of the most decorated acts in VMA history.

The South Korean group faced some of the biggest names in music in the Song of the Year category, with “Swim” competing against tracks by Taylor Swift, Madonna and Sabrina Carpenter, HUNTR/X, Olivia Dean, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson, and RAYE. BTS ultimately took the top prize for the song.

“Swim” also secured BTS the Best K-Pop award, where the group was up against BLACKPINK, CORTIS, KATSEYE, LISA and LE SSERAFIM, the latter nominated for “SPAGHETTI” featuring BTS member j-hope.

The group's third victory came in the Best Group category. BTS beat a field that included BLACKPINK, CORTIS, FLO, Fuerza Regida, Geese, KATSEYE and Twenty One Pilots.

BTS' three-award haul placed the group firmly among the biggest names celebrated at the ceremony, which brought together leading artists from across pop, hip-hop, R&B, K-pop, Latin and country music at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday night (September 27).

While BTS dominated the awards from the K-pop and group categories, Madonna had the biggest overall haul of the night, taking home seven trophies. The veteran pop star entered the ceremony as the leading nominee with 13 nominations and went on to win Artist of the Year, Best Dance for “Confessions II – The Film” and Best Collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter for “Bring Your Love”.

Madonna's winning run continued in the technical and long-form categories. “Confessions II – The Film” won Best Cinematography and Best Choreography, while the film also took Best Long Form Video. Her album Confessions II was named Best Album.

Taylor Swift, who entered the ceremony with 11 nominations, also had a major night. She won Video of the Year for “The Fate of Ophelia” and Best Direction for “Opalite”. Swift also received the first-ever Artist Director Honors before premiering the video for her new track “Patient Zero”.

LISA opened the awards tally by winning Best Pop for “Dream” featuring Kentaro Sakaguchi. Sienna Spiro won Best New Artist following fan voting during the show.

Elsewhere, Cardi B featuring Kehlani won Best Hip-Hop for “Safe”, while Bruno Mars took Best R&B for “I Just Might”. Olivia Rodrigo won Best Alternative for “the cure”, and Bad Bunny took Best Latin for “NUEVAYoL”. Ella Langley won Best Country for “Choosin’ Texas”.

The technical awards recognised several other major artists. PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson won Best Art Direction for “Stateside”, Sabrina Carpenter took Best Editing for “House Tour”, and Ariana Grande won Best Visual Effects for “hate that i made you love me”.

Ariana Grande also won Song of Summer for “Hate That I Made You Love Me”.

Hosted by Snoop Dogg, the ceremony featured performances and special appearances from several major artists. Madonna opened the show, Kacey Musgraves paid tribute to Dolly Parton, and RAYE, SOMBR and Teddy Swims honoured George Michael. LISA, RAYE, Sienna Spiro, Shaboozey, Gunna, GENER8ION and Yung Lean also performed, while Nirvana received the Video Vanguard Award.

But for BTS, the night belonged to “Swim”. With wins for Song of the Year, Best K-Pop and Best Group, the group walked away from the 2026 VMAs with three trophies, adding another major awards-night chapter to their global career.