WHAT HAPPENED?
In what was at times an awkward 16-minute appearance in the Oval Office, Juventus players – including Americans Weston McKennie and Tim Weah – and an entourage of others stood behind Donald Trump in a media briefing Wednesday, with the U.S. President discussing everything from the Club World Cup to the conflict in Middle East to his administration’s travel bans.
Juventus were in Washington D.C. for a Club World Cup match against Al Ain – which Juve won 5-0 Wednesday night – but according to The Athletic, they were surprisingly invited by the White House to visit during the afternoon.
“It was all a surprise to me, honestly – they told us that we have to go and I had no choice but to go,” Weah said after Juventus’ win. “I was caught by surprise, honestly. It was a bit weird. When he started talking about the politics with Iran and everything, it’s kind of like, I just want to play football man.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE
FIFA President Gianni Infantino also attended, along with Carlos Cordeiro, former U.S. Soccer Federation president. Trump created and chairs the White House Task Force for the 2026 World Cup, which the U.S. will co-host with Canada and Mexico. That meant Infantino missed Real Madrid’s opening match of the tournament against Al Hilal, a game he was expected to attend.
At one point, Trump noted the presence of McKennie and Weah, saying “We have two great American players. Where are you, my American players?”
“Fantastic, so good luck,” he said, shaking their hands. “I hope you’re going to be the best two players on the field.”
During the briefing, Trump was asked whether travel bans, which threaten to exclude supporters from attending matches in the U.S. next year, are a concern. Trump looked at Infantino and said: “Gianni, go ahead.”
Infantino then replied, “No, it is not a concern for us. For the games now in the Club World Cup, everything has been done in a very smooth way. We have an excellent, excellent collaboration of course with the president and the Task Force, in particular.”