2026 World Cup, Spain vs. Argentina: Donald Trump with his “enemy” Pedro Sánchez—a notable absence
Spain vs. Argentina, the highly anticipated 2026 World Cup final, kicked off at 9:00 p.m. Italian time on Sunday, July 19, at MetLife Stadium in New York, and featured a spectacular opening ceremony (which also included a notable Italian presence, as the FIFA anthem was also sung by Laura Pausini) as well as the inevitable official greetings. Among these, the hospitality shown by U.S. President Donald Trump to the Spanish royal family—King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia—as well as to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stood out. However, this moment was marked by a highly notable absence.
The handshake between Trump and Sánchez—two political figures divided by an extremely turbulent relationship—was, in fact, widely photographed. FIFA President Gianni Infantino was also present to seal the moment. Argentina, however, did not bring its president, Javier Milei, to the VIP section, despite his decidedly closer rapport with the current occupant of the White House. No diplomatic incident, though: according to a live report on ‘Rai,’ his absence was due purely to superstition.
Political tension surrounding the final had, after all, been in the air for days. Trump had called Spain “a lost cause” and “a terrible NATO partner” just eleven days ago, during the NATO summit in Ankara, going so far as to call for a halt to all trade with the Iberian country. The prospect of having to present the World Cup trophy to the Spanish national team had already sparked mockery from his critics in the United States, with former Senior Director of the National Security Council Thomas J. Wright commenting on X: “It’ll be pretty funny if Trump has to present the World Cup trophy to Spain on Sunday.”
The presentation of the trophy itself represents another first for the competition: it will in fact be Donald Trump, and not Infantino, who will present the World Cup to the winners. This decision was announced by the FIFA president himself, who chose to share the tournament’s most symbolic moment with the host country. This isn’t the first time Trump has carved out a starring role for himself at a major soccer event: during the Club World Cup final between Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, he remained on stage even after the trophy was presented, drawing the attention of the cameras amid the embarrassment of some players and boos from part of the crowd.
The opening ceremony featured Laura Pausini performing alongside Robbie Williams and Nicole Scherzinger to the tune of “Desire,” the official FIFA anthem that combines English and Spanish. The singer-songwriter from Romagna, who had already enchanted the world last February by singing the Italian national anthem at the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics at San Siro, had shared her excitement about the moment on social media: “A year ago, Robbie Williams invited me to join him in singing ‘Desire,’ FIFA’s first official anthem, and it was a true honor to share this song with such an iconic artist.”
On the field, Luis de la Fuente lined up Spain in a 4-2-3-1 formation that relies on the precision of a midfield that has been flawless so far, with Rodri and Fabian Ruiz pulling the strings, Lamine Yamal, Dani Olmo, and Alex Baena in the attacking midfield, and Oyarzabal as the lone striker. Lionel Scaloni responded with a 4-4-2 formation that, compared to the semifinal against England, left out Paredes and Giuliano Simeone, opting instead for Nico Gonzalez and Rodrigo De Paul to facilitate ball movement; up front, as is tradition, the Messi-Alvarez duo. The two national teams were supposed to have faced off earlier in the “Finalissima”—a match between the winners of the Copa América and the European Championship—initially scheduled for 2025 and then postponed to March 2026, before CONMEBOL and UEFA definitively called off the event. Fate, however, decreed that they would meet on an even bigger stage.
