President Trump attends Club World Cup final with Infantino
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday attended the FIFA Club World Cup final, a match that will offer Trump a preview of the globe’s premier soccer tournament that North America will host next year.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump travelled from their golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, to East Rutherford 40 miles (64 kilometers) away to watch the final match of the U.S.-hosted tournament between Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea at MetLife Stadium.
Chelsea claimed a dominant 3-0 win.
The president joined the players on the field after the match to congratulate the tournament’s outstanding performers, present PSG players with their runner-up medals and hand Chelsea their championship trophy.
Trump was greeted with cheers as he arrived at MetLife Stadium just ahead of the pre-match performance by musical artists Robbie Williams and Laura Pausini. And the president got a smattering of boos when he was briefly shown on the stadium’s mega-screen.
The president waved to the crowd and pumped his fist as he and his entourage arrived at the stadium luxury box, where they took in the match with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and his wife, Leena Al Ashqar.
Other guests spotted in the president’s suite included Attorney General Pam Bondi, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, NFL great Tom Brady and media mogul Rupert Murdoch.
Trump’s trip Sunday falls on the first anniversary of the assassination attempt he survived in Butler, Pennsylvania, while campaigning for president.
Sporting events have made up the bulk of Trump’s trips in the U.S. since taking office this year. In addition to his visit this weekend to the soccer tournament, he’s attended the Super Bowl in New Orleans, the Daytona 500 in Florida, UFC fights in Miami and Newark, New Jersey, and the NCAA wrestling championships in Philadelphia.
The president, who has a warm relationship with Infantino, has said he plans to attend multiple matches of the World Cup tournament next year.
Preparations for next year’s big soccer moment for North America are well underway. But it comes amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and its neighbors over proposed tariffs, immigration and Trump repeatedly saying that Canada should become the 51st state.
Trump earlier this year said the tensions will only make the tournament more “exciting.”
“Tension’s a good thing,” Trump said.