MetLife Stadium, normally alive with the roar of football fans, became the stage for a different kind of showdown last July.
Chelsea’s Premier League squad was cruising toward a shutout in the Club World Cup final, but high above the field, in a luxury box, President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino were not discussing goals or tactics.
Instead, they were plotting the 2026 World Cup draw – deciding which nations would face off in football’s most prestigious tournament and how the globe would watch the drama unfold.
While Las Vegas, home to the 1994 U.S. World Cup draw, had been the expected backdrop, discussions had quietly shifted months earlier.
Washington, D.C., offered a politically charged stage, where Trump’s flair for spectacle could dominate, much like his favorite arenas of golf and American football.
“During that Club World Cup final, there was a real seriousness... if we’re going to do this, we’ve got to do it now,” recalled Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House FIFA task force. “That’s when talks heated up between the president and Mr. Infantino.”
By the end of that evening, the plan was clear: the 2026 draw would be held at the Kennedy Center, a cultural landmark reshaped, in Trump’s mind, to suit a high-profile, star-studded production.
Tickets went on sale and the world began to focus on the spectacle.
But even as the White House promised openness, questions linger about the reception of international visitors, given U.S. immigration policies and whether Trump might arbitrarily shift host cities, creating uncertainty for organizers and fans alike.
Trump’s interest in football has historically been modest, overshadowed by his ties to golf and American football.
Yet Barron Trump’s passion for the sport sparked his curiosity, turning casual awareness into active engagement after the U.S. secured hosting rights in 2018.
Giuliani recalls the almost wistful excitement among Trump aides that he might not be in the White House when the tournament arrived.
But that did not diminish Trump’s enthusiasm for hosting major events.
Infantino and Trump’s relationship blossomed quickly.
Their first White House meeting featured playful exchanges: Infantino handed Trump red and yellow penalty cards for the press.
By 2020, at the Davos economic summit, Infantino publicly called Trump “my great friend,” prompting an invitation to a White House ceremony signing the Abraham Accords.
Both men demonstrated a penchant for high-profile alliances with powerful figures – Infantino aligning with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Russia in his professional path mirrored Trump’s own political theater.
The Biden presidency temporarily cooled this dynamic.
Infantino’s interactions with Washington became cautious and discreet, largely limited to a brief G20 sideline meeting and security-focused sessions with U.S. officials.
Biden aides emphasized operational priorities: host cities’ benefits, human rights compliance and pandemic-era safety concerns.
Trump’s return to office last year reignited their partnership with vigor.
Infantino congratulated him immediately after Election Day, attended the January inauguration and has since been a near-constant presence alongside the president, including a controversial moment gifting Trump a gold World Cup trophy – a gesture unseen in FIFA history and interpreted by some as a symbolic breach of tradition.
The upcoming draw, potentially branded the “MAGA-FIFA World Cup draw,” will be a high-stakes affair.
Giuliani likens it to a grand opera, promising drama and spectacle, but the logistical and legal challenges loom large.
Trump has hinted at moving games from cities he deems unsafe, a reminder of the unpredictability facing FIFA.
Yet for organizers, the stakes are unprecedented: a successful U.S. World Cup is not only a sporting triumph but a demonstration that America can host mega-events on the global stage – from football in 2026 to the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.
“This needs to go well in order to show the world that if you want to have the best sports and entertainment events, you want to have them in the United States,” said Alex Lasry, CEO of the New York/New Jersey host committee.
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