Donald Trump has kept a very low profile throughout the World Cup. An almost complete disinterest. He did not attend the opening ceremony in Mexico, skipped his team’s debut in Los Angeles, and has neither watched nor attended any match. Barely any comments about the qualifiers or the matchups, except for his direct intervention, with pressure from the federation, White House lawyers, and himself on FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, to get a red card revoked for one of his players for the match against Belgium.
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But Trump, a marketing and communication genius, knows better than anyone that on Sunday hundreds of millions or even billions of people will be watching the final in New Jersey. And it’s not an opportunity he will waste, especially in an election year and after suffering a hemorrhage in Latino voter intention.
His attendance, like everything involving a U.S. president, conditions everything. The coverage, the schedules, and the security measures. But also the jokes, memes, and mockery from a country that long ago labeled the Republican as a jinx. They call it the Trump effect or the Trump Jinx, associating his presence with the defeat of his favorites or the home teams.
He attended the 2025 Super Bowl and predicted a victory for the Kansas City Chiefs, who were crushed by the Eagles. He was there when the Washington Commanders hosted the Lions and lost at home. He showed up at last year’s Ryder Cup in New York where Europe defeated the U.S. team before a particularly hostile crowd. He watched from a box as Miami fell in the College Football National Championship final. And he sat in the owner’s box a few weeks ago, amid boos, to see the Knicks end their incredible playoff winning streak in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
A jinx that the Spanish hope will continue. The president has a special affinity with the Argentine Javier Milei. And a few days ago it was revealed that he played golf in 2025 with Harry Kane. Seven months ago he said our team was “clearly one of the favorites to win,” but if anything marks his recent relationship with the country (or rather with the government of Pedro Sánchez) it is criticism. Over and over since he returned to power, including at the recent NATO summit. So the intrigue is more than served at the mere possibility that Sánchez might also be in the box and that the American might have to hand the trophy to the nationals of one of the countries he has most repudiated.
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The off-field attention on Sunday will in any case be on him, since he plans to go down to the pitch to hand out the trophies, as he did last summer, in the same stadium, at the Club World Cup final. Chelsea players then showed their bewilderment at the politician staying in the center of the stage after giving out the medals, holding the trophy as if he himself were one of the winners. And it is unclear if Infantino‘s FIFA will try any protocol changes to prevent a repeat.
Security
Security will be the other key factor. Fans with tickets will have to arrive at the stadium up to four hours before the start of the match. To not miss the closing ceremony, but above all because with Trump in the area security checks will be even more thorough. If arriving at the venues is already generally complicated, with traffic jams of more than three hours due to road closures or limited parking, it will be worse for the final. No backpacks, in plain sight, no courtesies.
Additional road closures are expected around MetLife Stadium for several hours before and after the match. Much wider security perimeters than for a normal game. Serious airspace restrictions and an unprecedented deployment of anti-drone systems operated by the Department of Homeland Security, which has reported no incidents during the tournament after having prepared extraordinary measures and invested millions of dollars due to a very real fear of attacks or boycotts.
On Sunday thousands of federal, state, and local agents will be active, coordinated by the Secret Service, very nervous about the president’s public appearances at this type of mass events, after several attacks and foiled attempts. In June, shortly before the mixed martial arts mega event at the White House, the FBI arrested and prosecuted eight people who had planned to use drones and snipers to cause a massacre and incite an insurrection. That is why additional protocols and escorts for official caravans, both of the teams and VIP guests, will affect fans’ arrival and departure.
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