 "US President Donald Trump holds the FIFA World Cup trophy in the presence of Vice President JD Vance and FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the Oval Office. Reuters")
US President Donald Trump announced that the draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be taking place in Washington DC in December. Las Vegas was reportedly scheduled to host the draw for the 48-team tournament that the United States will be co-hosting with Canada and Mexico. Trump, however, announced in the presence of FIFA president Gianni Infantino that it will now be held at the Kennedy Center in the national capital.
“It’s the biggest, probably the biggest event in sports,” said the 79-year-old president, who wore a red hat with the words “Trump Was Right About Everything” during the announcement at the Oval Office in the White House.
President Trump, who had recently courted controversy in the FIFA Club World Cup final for refusing to leave the podium after handing winners Chelsea the trophy, also got to touch the coveted trophy that is awarded to the world champions every four years.
Trump asks if he can keep the World Cup, presented with special ticket
“Only the FIFA president, presidents of countries, and then those who win can touch it, because it’s for winners only. And since you are a winner, of course you can as well touch it,” Infantino told Trump, who had won a second term in the White House in the 2024 presidential election.
“Can I keep it?” Trump quipped in reply, before adding, “That’s a beautiful piece of gold. That’s beautiful.”
Infantino also took the opportunity to present Trump with a special giant ticket – Row 1 Seat 1 – for the World Cup final on July 19 at the MetLife stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, just outside New York.
Trump added that Russian president Vladimir Putin, whom he held a face-to-face meeting with in Alaska last week , may attend the World Cup as well, adding that he “wants to be there very badly,” but that he “may be coming and he may not”, depending on the situation of the war in Ukraine.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup, which sees an expansion of the number of teams from 32 to 48, will take place in North America from 11 June to 19 July across 16 venues, with the US hosting a majority of the games including all four quarter-finals and beyond.