White House confirms Trump will attend World Cup final in New Jersey: ‘A fitting conclusion’
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced Thursday that President Donald Trump will attend Sunday’s FIFA World Cup final at MetLife Stadium.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino first said last month on “Fox & Friends” that Trump would attend the contest, but it is now official.
Leavitt said Trump’s attendance will be “a fitting conclusion to a tournament that showcased America’s ability to host the world on the grandest stage.”
Infantino said he and Trump will deliver the FIFA World Cup trophy to the winning team’s captain on the field.
“We will be together with the president enjoying the final and handing the trophy to the winner, of course, together,” Infantino said.
Trump and Infantino did the same last year for the FIFA Club World Cup final, also at the New Jersey stadium, when Chelsea defeated Paris Saint-Germain 3-0. The appearance came one year after an assassination attempt on President Trump in Pennsylvania.
The president participated in the trophy presentation and handed out awards to the players and referees after Chelsea won the match. Trump remained on stage for the celebration, causing some confusion.
“I knew he was going to be here, but I didn’t know he was going to be on the stand when we lifted the trophy, so I was a bit confused,” Chelsea’s Cole Palmer said after the match.
Trump got involved in one of the World Cup’s biggest controversies, calling Infantino and requesting a review of Folarin Balogun’s red card. Balogun was promptly suspended for Team USA’s round-of-16 match, but he was later ruled eligible for the game.
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“All I did was, I asked for a review, because I didn’t think it was a foul,” Trump said. “And again, I’m good at this stuff. I didn’t think it was a foul. I thought it was two great athletes who crashed into each other and got entangled. That was not a guy punching somebody in the face or anything, that would be different.
“I think it’s a terrible… if they wouldn’t allow a top player, maybe the best, maybe among the best on the team, to play, I think it would have had a big stain. I relayed it. I didn’t tell him what to do. I don’t believe he made the decision. I think it was a committee that made the decision, and they made the right decision because, No. 1, it wasn’t a foul, and you want to see a game with your best players.”
Balogun admitted to CBS that he “could almost see within my teammates a bit of nerves” as the controversy brewed further.
Trump has yet to attend a World Cup match, but Secretary of State Marco Rubio was spotted at the U.S. Men’s National Team’s opener against Paraguay, a 4-1 win, on June 12.
The president was awarded the first FIFA Peace Prize at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., during the World Cup final draw in December.
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Trump recently attended Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden, while the White House played host to UFC Freedom 250 last month. An IndyCar race will take place in Washington, D.C. next month.
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos, Paulina Dedaj and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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