President Trump, Spain's prime minister and king to attend FIFA World Cup final
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez plans to attend Sunday's World Cup final against Argentina, his office said Friday.
Spanish King Felipe VI is also expected to watch the game in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
U.S. President Donald Trump will also be at the final. Sánchez and Mr. Trump have repeatedly clashed on the world diplomatic stage, including over the Iran war, Spain's spending on NATO, and U.S. support for Israel's military response in Gaza to the 2023 Hamas attacks.
Argentine President Javier Milei, an ally of Mr. Trump, is not going to attend the final, citing superstition. Milei said he will watch from home as three-time winner Argentina tries to defend its world crown against 2010 champion Spain.
"We united the world"
Mr. Trump hosted a reception at Trump Tower in Manhattan for FIFA President Gianni Infantino and international soccer stars. Mr. Trump and Infantino spoke next to the golden trophy the U.S. president plans to award to the winner of Sunday's final between Argentina and Spain.
"The American dream, Mr. President, came to reality," Infantino said as he stood alongside Mr. Trump in New York on Friday. "We united the world."
Mr. Trump called this World Cup "one of the all-time greatest sporting events in history," adding that the tournament galvanized more than just the sporting world.
"So good luck to Spain and Argentina on Sunday and may the best team win," he said.
Largest World Cup in history
This was the largest World Cup in history, with 48 teams qualifying and matches spread out over the U.S., Canada and Mexico. FIFA has said stadiums have been basically full for each of the 102 matches played to date — there are two remaining, the France-England game for third place in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Saturday, and then Sunday's final in New Jersey.
Total attendance for the tournament will end up somewhere around 6.7 million — a World Cup record, despite concerns months ago that high ticket prices and immigration issues would deter fans from coming to North America for the matches.
"We have seen millions of people coming together in the last month and a half to the United States, to Canada and to Mexico, but in every corner of the world, coming together in a peaceful way, in a joyful way, wanting to spend time together and wanting to celebrate a moment of community," Infantino said. "This is the strongest message ever and this is the message on which we have to build our future — a future of community and a future of unity."