Donald Trump is reportedly not planning to attend the United States' opening 2026 World Cup match against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday. The White House is instead sending a delegation that includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin. Meanwhile, USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino has delivered a sharp assessment of how American football perceives itself -- and it is not flattering.
Is Donald Trump going to the USMNT's World Cup opener against Paraguay?
Trump has attended the Super Bowl, the Ryder Cup, and this year's NBA Finals during his second term, but multiple reports suggest he will skip arguably the biggest sporting event of them all -- the United States' first World Cup game on home soil.
As of now, he is expected to be in Washington D.C. this weekend for a UFC event at the White House, though both sets of plans remain subject to change.
The decision is puzzling given how prominently Trump has featured himself in the tournament's build-up, repeatedly parroting FIFA president Gianni Infantino's line that it will be "like three Super Bowls a day for a month." His absence from the opening ceremony would be conspicuous to say the least.
The crowd's reaction at Madison Square Garden this week may offer a clue. Trump attended Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs, and was loudly booed when shown on the big screen during the national anthem. California, much like New York, is not Trump country. Los Angeles at a World Cup opener is a harder room to read, but the political calculus is not entirely different.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino addressed Trump's role in the tournament during a press conference on Wednesday, where he also fielded questions about Somali referee Omar Artan being denied entry to the US and ongoing visa complications for Iranian players.
What did Pochettino say about arrogance in US soccer?
While the political sideshow continues, Pochettino is focused on the football and he has not been shy about naming what he sees as a structural problem in the American game.
In an interview with El Pais, the Argentine coach drew a pointed distinction between earned and unearned swagger. "I accept the arrogance of Spain, Argentina, England, France...," said Pochettino. "But when I see arrogance in the United States I think there's a bit of confusion. I think in soccer there's a mismatch between what they think they are and what they are."
It is a remarkably direct line from a coach who has managed Lionel Messi, Harry Kane, and Kylian Mbappe in club football. He has previously said the team must be "a little more arrogant" in belief -- but what he is drawing a line against here is something different: a sense of entitlement that has not been earned through results on the pitch.
Pochettino has maintained that the USMNT must aspire to win the tournament outright, citing Morocco's 2022 run to the semi-finals as a model for what belief can produce. But belief built on thin air is not the same thing. The US has not reached the World Cup quarter-finals since 2002, and the gap between self-perception and performance has been visible for years.
Friday's match against Paraguay -- a side the Americans beat 2-1 in a November friendly -- is a winnable game on paper. Whether Pochettino's squad can back up its host nation confidence with actual football is where the real story of this World Cup begins.
