Trump to attend Club World Cup final, FIFA opens office in Trump Tower
The expanded tournament featuring many of the world's best club teams has been widely seen as a dry run for the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico with a record 48 national teams taking part.
Sunday's Club World Cup final at MetLife Stadium will be a preview of next year's championship match, with the home of the NFL's New York Jets and Giants also hosting the 2026 finale.
"I'll be going to the game," Trump told reporters.
The news came a day after FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced the opening of a representative office at Trump Tower, where the Club World Cup trophy will be on display until the final.
"We have received such a big support from the government and from the President with the White House Task Force for the FIFA Club World Cup (now) and for the FIFA World Cup next year," Infantino said.
Trump has not shied away from sport's super-sized spotlight during his second term, becoming the first sitting president to attend a Super Bowl in February, and in May announcing D.C. as the host for the 2027 NFL Draft from the Oval Office.
His immigration crackdown and travel ban on 12 countries have prompted concerns ahead of the 2026 World Cup, however, even as Infantino offered assurances that the world will be welcomed in the U.S. for the quadrennial global showpiece event.
A memo obtained by Reuters last month showed that the Trump administration was considering significantly expanding its travel restrictions by potentially banning citizens of 36 additional countries from entering the U.S.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
31 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS $90m Yankees star DJ LeMahieu left furious as he is ousted from the team after struggling with the 'physical demands' of MLB
Veteran Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu looks set to leave New York after being designated for assignment in a stunning decision by the team. LeMahieu, 36, has struggled with injuries over the past few seasons in the wake of signing a huge $90million, six-year contract in the Covid-affected 2020 season. And now it looks as though he won't play another game for the team after Aaron Boone and GM Brian Cashman ousted him from the team on Wednesday, calling up Jorbit Vivas in his place. The Yanks now have seven days to either trade him or place him on outright or unconditional release waivers, a decision that is complicated by his huge wages - he is due $15m this season. It is expected that the Yankees will lose around $22m on LeMahieu's contract after making the decision to designate him for assignment. In a bombshell tweet from Yankees reporter Brian Hoch, it was revealed that LeMahieu had told the team he was willing to begin working at third base again, but the position had become 'too physically demanding' for him. LeMahieu, the report continues, is said to be furious with the DFA decision after lengthy discussions were held between him and the team's front office on Tuesday. It would now be a surprise to see LeMahieu ever pull on the pinstripes again, and the decision comes just a day after he was transitioned to a bench role. The infielder - who is a two-time batting champion and previous fans' favorite - is hitting just .574 OPS from 142 plate appearances this season, and has seemed a shadow of his former self. Back in 2020, he became the first player in modern history to win the battling title in both the American and National Leagues, first with the Rockies in 2016 and then with the Yankees in 2020.
The Independent
35 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump keeps claiming places are selling gas for $1.99. There is no proof to back that up
President Donald Trump has been gassing up low gasoline prices, repeatedly asserting that they're as low as $1.99, but there's little proof to support his claims. 'There's two states, three states that were selling gasoline at $1.99. You haven't seen that for a long time,' the president said at a press conference on Wednesday. It's not immediately clear which states he was referring to as nowhere seemed to have such low prices. The Independent has reached out to the White House for comment. Mississippi currently boasts the lowest gas prices in the country with an average of $2.69 per gallon. In the city of Gulfport, gas goes for $2.35, according to GasBuddy, a firm that tracks gas prices across the country. Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Alabama also have an average under $2.80, as of Wednesday, GasBuddy found. Gas is going for $2.31 a gallon at one station in Fort McLellan, Alabama, GasBuddy found. The national average was $3.16 a gallon as of Wednesday afternoon, according to AAA. While those prices are low, it's still a far cry from the $1.99 that Trump has been touting. Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told CNN that the last time he's seen states with average prices below $2 per gallon was in January 2021, following the Covid-19 pandemic, when people were driving less. Trump made similar remarks last week, when he declared: 'We have no inflation.' He then claimed multiple states boasted gas prices under $2: 'The gasoline just hit $1.99 today in 5 states.' In May, the president once again claimed gas prices were under $2 in some places. 'Gasoline just broke $1.98 a Gallon, lowest in years,' he wrote on Truth Social. One day before his social media post, RBOB Gasoline futures hit $1.98 per gallon, CNBC reported, perhaps explaining why Trump has been relying on that figure. Gas prices have fallen in recent weeks. The nation's average price of gasoline has declined for the second week in a row, according to GasBuddy data compiled from more than 12 million individual price reports covering more than 150,000 gas stations across the country. 'Nearly every state saw average gas prices decline for the second straight week, even as the nation celebrated July 4 with the lowest national average for Independence Day since 2020,' De Haan said in a statement.
The Independent
35 minutes ago
- The Independent
Paris St Germain set up final against Chelsea by brushing aside Real Madrid
European champions Paris St Germain produced a blistering performance to power into the Club World Cup final with a 4-0 rout of Real Madrid. A one-sided semi-final in New York on Wednesday was effectively settled inside the opening 24 minutes as Fabian Ruiz struck twice either side of an Ousmane Dembele effort. Spanish giants Real had no answer to the rampant Champions League winners, who added a fourth goal at the MetLife Stadium late on through Goncalo Ramos. PSG – who will play Chelsea in Sunday's final – were every bit as hot as the temperature, which reached 32C during the game. Luis Enrique named a side featuring 10 of the players that started the Champions League final hammering of Inter Milan including, for the first time in the tournament, Dembele. They seemed every bit as determined to reprise that famous victory as they tore into Europe's most storied team, who were without Trent Alexander-Arnold through injury. Real had sensed the need to make a quick start and Aurelien Tchouameni had a shot deflected wide after flicks from Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe sparked an early attack but PSG were quickly into their stride. It took just six minutes for them to take the lead but already by then Kvicha Kvaratskhelia had gone close and Thibaut Courtois had saved from Ruiz and Dembele. The opener came after Raul Asencio dithered in front of goal and Dembele seized possession. It seemed he may have been brought down by Courtois but it did not matter as the ball rolled to Ruiz and the Spain international tucked home. Dembele doubled the lead just three minutes later, this time after a miskick by Antonio Rudiger allowed him to race through on goal. He gave Courtois no chance with a low finish. Real found no response and PSG made it 3-0 after 24 minutes as Achraf Hakimi played in Ruiz and he wrong-footed Federico Valverde before slotting past Courtois. It could have been more before the break as Kvaratskhelia put an opportunity wide and Courtois clawed away another effort from Dembele. Desire Doue put the ball in the net after the restart but was flagged offside. Real finally began to apply some pressure as the second half wore on with PSG easing off the gas. Yet they could find no way through a well-organised defence and Mbappe, making his first start of the competition against his former side, fired one effort into the crowd. Substitute Ramos wrapped up the scoring with three minutes remaining, turning to fire home from a Bradley Barcola lay-off after Real had failed to combat a quick counter-attack.
