Spain's PM heads to World Cup final, setting up awkward encounter with Trump

Pedro Sanchez, Spain's prime minister and one of Europe's most prominent anti-Trump voices, will travel to the United States to watch the 2026 North and Central America World Cup final in person.

US President Donald Trump is also expected to attend the match, drawing global attention to whether the two leaders — who have traded sharp words of late — will come face to face.

A Spanish government spokesperson officially announced that Sanchez will visit MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday afternoon for the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina.

The visit has drawn attention because of the deeply strained relationship between Sanchez and Trump. Sanchez has positioned himself at the forefront of Europe's anti-Trump bloc, clashing repeatedly with the Trump administration over NATO defense spending demands, immigration policy and the war involving Iran in the Middle East.

Trump escalated tensions earlier this month at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, calling Spain a "terrible partner" in the alliance and declaring he no longer wanted to trade with the country.

A diplomatic breakthrough during the visit, however, appears unlikely. The Spanish government spokesperson said Sanchez's stay in the United States would be extremely brief, making a bilateral meeting with US officials highly improbable. Sanchez is set to depart immediately after the final for his next engagement — a visit to Algeria in North Africa.

Meanwhile, Argentine President Javier Milei has decided against traveling to the United States and will watch the match from his official residence. The decision stems from a longstanding superstition in Argentine political circles that the national team loses whenever the president attends the game in person.

Milei's absence spares Sanchez another source of diplomatic discomfort. The left-leaning Spanish prime minister and the right-wing Argentine president have maintained what analysts have called the worst bilateral relationship in history, with ties effectively severed in 2024. The rupture came after Milei, during a visit to Madrid, publicly mocked Sanchez's wife, Begona Gomez, over corruption allegations — prompting Spain to recall its ambassador to Argentina in protest.

With diplomatic friction on two fronts — a rift with historic ally Argentina and a tense undercurrent with host nation the United States — the world's political observers are watching closely to see how Sanchez navigates this World Cup diplomatic stage.