President Donald Trump will miss the FIFA World Cup opening match against Paraguay in Inglewood, California, according to Andrew Giuliani, chief executive of the World Cup task force. He is expected to host a UFC event at the White House on Sunday, coinciding with his 80th birthday.
President Donald Trump will not attend the United States’ opening World Cup match against Paraguay on Friday in Inglewood, California, confirmed by Andrew Giuliani, chief executive of the World Cup task force, during an interview with a radio station in the United Kingdom.
While speaking to TalkSport on Thursday, Giuliani stated, “He’s not going to end up attending the opening game. As we’ve said, his scheduling is tight. But I know he’s going to be engaged throughout this World Cup.
He is expected to be in Washington, DC, later in the weekend to host UFC Freedom 250 at the White House on Sunday, which also coincides with his 80th birthday, according to Reuters.
Quick answers to key questions
Donald Trump is skipping the USA’s opening match against Paraguay due to a tight schedule, as confirmed by Andrew Giuliani, who stated Trump would be engaged throughout the tournament.
In Trump’s absence, the US delegation at the match will be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin.
For the FIFA World Cup 2026 matches, extensive security measures have been implemented, including crowd management and anti-drone systems, as authorities seek to ensure a very secure environment across all host cities.
It is unusual for a head of state from a host nation to miss the opening World Cup match, but it has happened before, such as with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s absence in her country’s match.
Andrew Giuliani suggested that, given his history, Trump might engage more with the World Cup as the tournament progresses, despite his initial absence from the opening game.
Although it is unusual for a head of state from a host nation to miss the country’s opening World Cup match, it has happened before. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum did not attend her country’s 2-0 win over South Africa on Thursday, with the Mexican government instead organising a contest to allocate her reserved seat.
The United States delegation at the match will be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin. Their participation was confirmed by the State Department in a statement earlier this week.
Giuliani, the son of former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, said he was uncertain about when Trump might attend an event.
“Having known President Trump for now 30 years, what I can tell you is: expect the unexpected. Always expect a cliffhanger with him. Throughout the course of this tournament, it wouldn’t surprise me if we see him engage more and more with the World Cup,” Giuliani stated.
A sports enthusiast, Trump has taken part in many major events during his presidency, including Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden earlier this week, where he was met with loud boos from sections of the crowd.
US security officials take extensive measures for FIFA World Cup
Officials have said that World Cup matches in the United States have been secured as they “can possibly be”, with extensive measures in place ranging from crowd management to anti-drone systems at every venue. However, authorities continue to express concern over potential lone-wolf attacks, as per AFP.
As the tournament began its largest-ever edition, jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, Department of Homeland Security chief Markwayne Mullin said fans could expect a “very secure” environment across the 11 US host cities hosting matches.
Mullin told “Fox and Friends” on Thursday, hours before the nearly six-week tournament opened, “We feel like we’re as safe as we can possibly be. But we can’t control, you know, the lone wolf. You have the issue with what we call the soft area, which is before you get into the security ring, that we’re very concerned about.”
Mullin further said that local and state law enforcement agencies will be “flexing” their presence in the host areas to maintain crowd safety, adding “the games are going to be very secure”.
About the Author
Garvit Bhirani
Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on accuracy and compelling storytelling for readers.
With a total of six years of experience in journalism, he has previously worked with Vaco Binary Semantics for Google, taking on the role of news curation lead, and reported from the field on health, education, and agriculture stories for 101reporters and News9. He has also served as a content editor for entertainment and news media organisations.
Garvit holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and mass communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and Gurugram University, respectively. During college days, he joined India’s only non-profit student journalism network, where he anchored daily news updates and produced his own weekly show called ‘Data Fix’.
He was selected for the YES Foundation Media for Social Change Fellowship in Delhi, the Talking Data to the Fourth Pillar residential workshop, and the VOICE Fellowship in Pune.
He holds certificates in COVID-19-verification reporting, data journalism, food & agriculture, tech policy, media literacy and countering misinformation, and tackling election disinformation courses from Thomson Foundation, IndiaSpend, The Dialogue, US Mission in India, and AFP.
He can be reached on LinkedIn or on @garvitbhirani on X
Read More
Lawanda Latson