Trump takes part in Club World Cup ceremony, stays front and center for Chelsea's trophy lift
Trump, who was booed by a significant number of fans here at MetLife Stadium as he walked onstage for the postgame ceremony, initially carried the trophy to James alongside FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
Advertisement
Then, in a departure from previous soccer tournaments, Trump remained standing next to James. After a brief exchange of words between the two and Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez — and with others, including Cole Palmer, confused behind them — James lifted the trophy with Trump still front and center, and Infantino a few places away.
"Before, they told me he was going to present the trophy, and then exit the stage," James said of Trump afterward. "I thought that he was gonna exit the stage. But I think he wanted to stay."
Palmer, speaking at a postgame news conference, said: "I knew [Trump] was going to be here, but I didn't know he was going to be on the stand where we lift the trophy, so I was a bit confused."
Advertisement
Trump clapped and smiled, then hugged and shook hands with Infantino, as Chelsea players jumped up and down. The two presidents then moved to the back of the stage, and eventually exited, as Chelsea players lifted the trophy again and again, with a fireworks show continuing behind them.
It is standard for the head of state of a World Cup host country to be involved in trophy presentations. But typically, they give victorious players the stage to themselves for the trophy lift.
In Qatar, for example, Infantino and Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Qatari Emir, presented the World Cup trophy to Lionel Messi. They then stayed off to the side as Messi carried the trophy to a place in front of his Argentina teammates, and lifted it.
FIFA drew criticism that night for allowing Al Thani to drape a traditional Qatari cloak around Messi, and having Messi wear the cloak during the first part of the celebrations.
President Donald Trump lingers during Chelsea's trophy lift. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
At the Club World Cup, though, Infantino and Trump went a step further — a sign of their friendship, and the lengths to which Infantino will go to appease Trump, theoretically in exchange for help from the U.S. government in organizing this Club World Cup and next year's 2026 World Cup.
Advertisement
Infantino has called the relationship "absolutely crucial." He has visited the Oval Office several times, including for the first meeting of the White House's 2026 World Cup Task Force, an inter-agency group that Trump established in March to assist with World Cup planning.
Other members of the task force, and of Trump's cabinet — including U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem — were also in attendance at MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
Vice President J.D. Vance attended an earlier Club World Cup match in Cincinnati, but Sunday's game was the first that Trump attended. Security measures were tightened, with Secret Service agents stationed around the stadium grounds.
Trump arrived in the hour before kickoff. He watched the game from a midfield suite next to Infantino. He was shown briefly on in-stadium video boards prior to the U.S. national anthem — which was played about 10 minutes before kickoff, a departure from previous games — but most fans didn't notice him. There was only a smattering of boos and whistles.
Advertisement
Trump was then more visible during the trophy ceremony. Boos erupted when he was first shown on the field, and drowned out any cheers. A few more rounds of boos and whistles greeted his image the next few times it was shown on video boards.
Chelsea players and coach Enzo Maresca mostly gave apolitical, basic answers when asked about Trump's involvement in the postgame proceedings.
"It probably highlights how important the tournament is," James said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
23 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Cuomo Plans to Compete in NYC Mayoral Race to Challenge Mamdani
Andrew Cuomo plans to remain in the race for New York City mayor, brushing off calls to step aside after his shocking loss to upstart Zohran Mamdani in the Democratic primary, according to people familiar with the matter. Cuomo, who secured a position on the ballot as an independent, will announce his plans sometime early this week, the people said. New York's former governor will also pledge to drop out of the race if polls show that he isn't the highest-polling opponent for Mamdani by early September, according to one of the people.
CNN
24 minutes ago
- CNN
Blue states sue Trump administration in bid to undo freeze on billions in public education funds
A slew of Democratic-led states asked a federal court on Monday to lift the Trump administration's freeze on nearly $7 billion in public education money, accusing the Department of Education of unlawfully locking up critical funds Congress set aside to help low-income and immigrant students, among others. The new suit represents the latest clash between states and the federal government over the Trump administration's decision to pause or claw back federal aid. In other cases dating back to the opening weeks of President Donald Trump's second term, federal courts have at times sided against the administration's efforts to freeze federal funds, though the administration scored a key win at the Supreme Court in April. In the case at hand, more than 20 Democratic state attorneys general and two Democratic governors are challenging the administration's decision late last month to pause disbursement of education funds for six programs pending a review of how consistent the programs are with Trump's own priorities. Among the targeted initiatives are ones that help immigrant students attain English proficiency, fund after-school and summer programs, and support the hiring and retention of teachers in low-income areas. The administration's withholding of the funds, the states say in the suit, runs afoul of Congress' decision over the years to provide the federal aid and the government's requirement to spend the money. Historically, the money has been made available to states starting around July 1. 'Defendants' actions now jeopardize these critical programs – the loss of which has irreparably harmed and will irreparably harm the Plaintiff States, their schools, and the students and families they serve,' the suit states. The states and attorneys general are asking a federal court in Rhode Island to rule that the funding freeze is unconstitutional and order the administration to stop implementing its plans. CNN has reached out to the Department of Education for comment on the lawsuit.
Forbes
24 minutes ago
- Forbes
3 Rookie WRs To Draft In Your Fantasy Football League
HENDERSON, NEVADA - JUNE 10: Jack Bech #18 of the Las Vegas Raiders runs with the ball during ... More mandatory minicamp at the Las Vegas Raiders Headquarters/Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center on June 10, 2025 in Henderson, Nevada. (Photo by) After talking about three rookies to draft in your fantasy football league in my last article, let's narrow it down to wide receivers specifically. For this exercise, we'll be avoiding players that I've already talked about in-depth. That excludes Tetairoa McMillan, Jayden Higgins, and Kyle Williams from this list. You can find my thoughts on them in the linked articles. For this article, we'll talk about wide receiver sleepers specifically, as all three players are drafted later than the WR40 using ADP from FantasyPros. Let's dive right into it! 3 Rookie WRs To Draft In Your Fantasy Football League Let's not forget that Matthew Golden was a 1st round draft pick this past season. Being selected 23rd overall by the Green Bay Packers, the exception is that Golden will go out there and contribute from day one. Golden is stepping into a wide receiver room that is in need of a WR1. Last season, Jayden Reed had the most receiving yards with 857, but he played in the slot for 76.5% of his snaps (per PFF). This signals that Reed is set up to be a complementary wide receiver as opposed to being an outside X receiver that could dominate that team's target share. The next closest wide receiver was Christian Watson, who tore his ACL last year. Golden plays with extreme fluidity, strong hands, and overall crisp route running. Getting the potential WR1 on an offense with Jordan Love, who had 4,159 yards in 2023, is a great value. CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS - OCTOBER 12: Pat Bryant #13 of the Illinois Fighting Illini runs the ball ... More against the Purdue Boilermakers at Memorial Stadium on October 12, 2024 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by) Not many people know about Pat Bryant, and you can use that to your advantage. Bryant was a day two draft pick by the Denver Broncos, whom I was able to watch play at Illinois. While Bryant has below-average NFL speed, he runs his route smoothly, and he's a monster in contested catch situations. Bryant won't blow by any defenders, but he does just about everything else at a high level. The situation for Bryant is very advantageous as well. Bo Nix led all rookies in passing yards, and he's set for a big year two. Not only is Nix a good quarterback who can get Bryant the ball efficiently, but there's little target competition. Outside of Courtland Sutton, the Broncos didn't have another receiver with over 550 yards. Bryant has a chance to step into this offense on day one and be fantasy productive. The last player on this list for fantasy football is Jack Bech. In the NFL Draft, Bech went in the 2nd round as the Las Vegas Raiders selected him. While the Raiders are going to be run-heavy following the selection of Ashton Jeanty, they got a big quarterback upgrade. Geno Smith is much better than what the Raiders have had in the past, and in 2024, he threw for 4,320 passing yards. Bech played his final college season at TCU, where he showed off elite route running, great toughness, and the ability to finish catches through contact. Brock Bowers is the clear number one receiving threat, but there's a chance that Bech could have a better season than Jakobi Meyers. While it's not super likely, Bech is extremely talented, and he should be the WR3 at the very least. If that's the case, there's a world where Bech could be a solid FLEX option on your fantasy football team if Smith is able to throw for over 4,000 yards even with Jeanty in town.
