Disney CEO Bob Iger's dramatic move following LA protests that will be sure to infuriate Trump

Daily Mail​

4 hours ago

Disney CEO Bob Iger is fighting Donald Trump through his women's soccer team, who have publicly protested the ICE raids on Los Angeles and the president's response to riots.
Iger - along with his wife and dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism Willow Bay - is the majority shareholder of Angel City FC, who represent Los Angeles in the National Women's Soccer League.
Amid controversy over federal law enforcement's appearances at Dodger Stadium, Angel City have been publicly and vociferously in opposition to the president in moves that Deadline reports Iger backed and was 'thoroughly consulted on.'
Ahead of their recent match against North Carolina Courage, the organization offered the first 10,000 fans - Angel City regularly leads NWSL in attendance and averaged 19,000 per match in 2024 - a t-shirt with the words 'Immigrant City FC' on the front and 'Los Angeles is for everyone' in English and Spanish.
The team has also sold shirts on their website with proceeds going to Castro Immigration Services, who 'serve the immigrant community by providing quality legal counsel on immigration matters and connecting immigrant families to available resources.'
Aside from Iger, the club has several liberal celebrities with minority shares, including Eva Longoria, Jessica Chastain and America Ferrara, putting several famous and powerful people at loggerheads with Trump.
Angel City FC - along with MLS side LAFC, with whom they share a stadium - have issued statements of support for immigrants but otherwise the city's sports franchises have refrained from commenting.
Iger and Bay have made no public statement on the protests, however it appears he not only signed off on it but was briefed on the move every step of the way.
Iger - along with his wife and dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism Willow Bay - is the majority shareholder of Angel City FC, who represent Los Angeles in the National Women's Soccer League, who gave out these pro-immigrant t-shirts at a recent match
DailyMail.com has reached out to the White House for comment.
It comes as Iger's day job at Disney has tried to make nice with the second Trump administration on multiple big occasions.
Most recently, ABC News has fired star anchor Terry Moran just days after he penned a social media post calling Donald Trump a 'world class hater' and blasting top advisor Stephen Miller as full of 'bile.'
A spokesperson for the network confirmed the firing in a statement on Tuesday that specifically cited Moran's post as a 'clear violation' of ABC's policy.
'We are at the end of our agreement with Terry Moran and based on his recent post – which was a clear violation of ABC News policies – we have made the decision to not renew,' the statement read.
'At ABC News, we hold all of our reporters to the highest standards of objectivity, fairness and professionalism, and we remain committed to delivering straightforward, trusted journalism,' the rep added.
Moran, 65, was a senior national correspondent at the network. He previously served as ABC's Chief Foreign Correspondent from 2013 to 2018.
In May, it was reported ABC News and its parent company Disney have asked the ladies of The View to dial back their constant complaining about President Donald Trump.
Ahead of their recent match against North Carolina Courage, the organization offered the first 10,000 fans - Angel City regularly leads NWSL in attendance and averaged 19,000 per match in 2024 - a t-shirt with the words 'Immigrant City FC' on the front and 'Los Angeles is for everyone' in English and Spanish
ABC News President Almin Karamehmedovic and Iger made the requests separately, The Daily Beast reported.
The daily talk show has been filled with criticisms of the commander-in-chief and his policies, with mostly kind words for Democrats.
Iger reportedly expressed his support for the show but made clear it needed to pull back on politics.
Prior to that, Moran co-anchored the network's newsmagazine Nightline for eight years. He was ABC News' Chief White Correspondent from 1999 to 2005.
Earlier this year, the network paid President Donald Trump a $16 million settlement over his remarks about the president.
Stephanopoulos erroneously claimed on-air that the president-elect was found 'liable for rape' - rather than the correct phrasing of sexual abuse - against writer E. Jean Carroll in March.
Trump sued Stephanopoulos and the network for defamation soon after the segment aired, accusing the anchor of making the statements with 'malice' and a disregard for the truth.
As part of the settlement, Stephanopoulos was forced to issue a public apology.
Angel City FC - along with MLS side LAFC, with whom they share a stadium - have issued statements of support for immigrants but otherwise the city's sports franchises have refrained from commenting
In 2023, Iger revealed the company will 'quiet the noise' around cultural issues because it has shown to be bad for business.
Iger wants to make content that is entertaining, not issue-focused - after The House of Mouse faced backlash over pushing a ' woke agenda'.
His comments about focusing on entertainment rather than 'issues' came after a spate of recent box office busts.
Among these was the live-action version of The Little Mermaid, Guardians of the Galaxy, Strange World and Lightyear.
The Little Mermaid sparked controversy over the casting of Black actress Halle Bailey as the title character, Ariel.
Lightyear, released one year ago with a reported budget of $200 million, brought in a modest $226.7 million in worldwide ticket sales.
The film could not be shown in 14 Middle Eastern and Asian countries because of its depiction of a same-sex relationship.
Since the company has been faced with loss from the Disney+ streaming business, which is expected to become profitable only next year, they have turned to the parks business to soften the blow.