Sports
Nobel aside, Trump dominates stage with FIFA Peace Prize at World Cup 2026 draw
- Trump awarded prize for promoting dialogue and de-escalation.
- Event held at Washington’s Kennedy Centre at Trump’s urging.
- Trump says he has settled eight wars in last 10 months.
US President Donald Trump walked into Washington’s Kennedy Centre on Friday, insisting he wasn’t there to collect any honours — yet he still ended up walking away with one.
He was handed FIFA’s first-ever peace prize, a surprising twist for a president who has spent the year openly chasing a Nobel nod while casting himself as a dealmaker in some of the world’s most volatile regions.
The former TV reality show host dominated the scene at Washington’s Kennedy Centre on Friday, placing himself squarely at the centre of one of the biggest events in the sporting world in a glitzy, celebrity-studded affair that bore the unmistakable stamp of the president.
The United States, along with Canada and Mexico, will host the soccer tournament next year. The prime minister of Canada, Mark Carney, and the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, were there, too, but it was Trump’s show from start to finish.
In a nod to Trump’s love of spectacle, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who served as master of ceremonies, had the three leaders stand behind brightly colored podiums – game-show style – to draw their teams.
After the draw, they all posed for a selfie with Infantino.
“This will be unique, this will be stellar, this will be spectacular,” Infantino said at the outset of the ceremony, referring to next year’s games.
But he could also have been talking about the Kennedy Centre event itself, which was located in Washington at Trump’s urging.
Last month, FIFA announced that a new annual award called the FIFA Peace Prize would be presented at the draw to “reward individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace.”
A video before the presentation celebrated Trump for resolving the war in Gaza and trying to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The trophy, a gold-plated globe carried by upraised hands, was considerably larger than the Nobel, which is just a simple medal.
Trump was given a medal as well and donned it as Infantino lauded him. The president deserved the award for “promoting peace and unity around the world,” he said.
“This is truly one of the great honours of my life – and beyond,” Trump said.
He took a moment to congratulate himself. The United States, he said, was “not doing too well” before he took office, but now “we’re the hottest country anywhere in the world.”
Earlier, Trump told reporters he did not care about the prize, but noted that he had “settled eight wars” in his 10 months in office.
“I don’t need prizes. I need to save lives,” Trump said. “I saved millions and millions of lives, and that’s really what I want to do.”
The claim that Trump has ended eight wars this year is widely disputed. Much work remains before most of the conflicts the president claims to have ended, including the Israel-Hamas conflict, can actually be considered resolved.
Trump received the award the same week his administration froze immigration applications from 19 countries after last week’s shooting of two National Guard members in Washington.
It also came days after the president demeaned Somali immigrants in the United States as “garbage” – sparking an outcry both at home and abroad.
Trump has frequently made the trappings of the presidency a part of major sporting and cultural events this year. He attended the Super Bowl in February, to a mix of cheers and boos from the crowd, and on Sunday, he plans to attend the Kennedy Centre Honours, which he eschewed during his first term.
The FIFA event – where 48 teams learned their group stage opponents – opened with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli singing “Nessun Dorma,” a favourite of Trump’s and a staple at his campaign rallies.
Later, British pop star Robbie Williams and American Broadway chanteuse Nicole Scherzinger sang FIFA’s 2026 World Cup anthem with highlights from past tournaments playing on a large video screen behind them.
American sports stars Tom Brady, Shaquille O’Neal and Aaron Judge – none of them soccer players – also took part. Also on hand was Canadian hockey great Wayne Gretzky.
The World Cup will be held from June 11 to July 19, 2026, with a record 104 matches in 16 host cities.
The spectacle ended with a live performance of the song “YMCA” by the Village People, the crowning touch for yet another event that the president made his own.
The BMF legacy is used to a certain type of fight that Holloway vs. Oliveira just didn’t bring.
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CORALVILLE, Iowa — Yu Sakamoto beat Riley Rayome of North Central (IL) 4-3 to win the 117-pound crown and clinch the team title for McKendree on Saturday night at the inaugural NCAA women’s wrestling championships.
After a wild scramble in the final seconds, a challenge by North Central and a review, Sakamoto’s win gave McKendree a 167-166 lead over Iowa — which finished with three individual champions and a runner-up but had no remaining competitors with two matches remaining. The Bearcats finished with 171 points and third-place North Central had 123.5.
Grand Valley State’s Katerina Lange, the No. 1 seed, beat second-seeded Claire DiCugno of North Central 4-1 to claim the 138-pound title and become the first women’s wrestling national champion.
North Central’s Bella Mir won at 145 pounds, beating No. 1 seed and former teammate Reese Larramendy of Iowa in the first round to avenge her only regular-season loss. The second-seeded Mir — an Iowa transfer and the daughter of former UFC heavyweight champion, Frank Mir — reversed a takedown attempt, immediately rolled and pinned Larramendy with 34 seconds left.
Iowa’s Valarie Solorio, the No. 2 seed, beat fourth-seeded Rayana Sahagun of Grand Valley State by technical fall in the second round to win the 103-pound title. Sahagun beat No. 1 seed Heather Crull on criteria (7-7) in the semifinals.
Lehigh’s Audrey Jimenez pinned Sage Mortimer of Grand Valley State just 1:19 into the first round to claim the crown at 110 pounds.
Quincy’s Xochitl Mota-Pettis won at 124 pounds, beating Shelby Moore of McKendree by technical fall (10-0) in the second round.
Cameron Guerin of McKendree beat Alexis Janlak of Aurora on criteria (5-5) to win the championship at 131 pounds in the final match of the night.
Iowa’s Kennedy Blades, the No. 1 seed, pinned third-seeded Tiffani Baublitz of East Stroudsburg in 1:19 to claim the 160-pound crown.
Iowa’s Kylie Welker outscored Destiny Rodriguez of McKendree 11-0 in the first round to win the 180-pound title by technical fall.
McKendree’s Tristan Kelly beat Sabrina Nauss of Grand Valley State by technical fall (11-0) in the second round to secure the national championship at 207 pounds.
WASHINGTON: An Ultimate Fighting Championship event to be staged on the White House’s South Lawn in June will be headlined by Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje, the UFC announced Saturday.
The lightweight championship clash will top a bill of six fights set to take place on the US Flag Day holiday and the 80th birthday of President Donald Trump, who is an avowed UFC fan.
The June 14 event has been dubbed “UFC Freedom 250,” in reference to the United States’ 250th anniversary celebrations this summer.
Topuria is one of the UFC’s top-rated fighters and a double-weight champion who has won all 17 of his fights.
A former featherweight champion, he earned the lightweight belt last year by knocking out Brazil’s Charles Oliveira before temporarily stepping away from the sport for personal reasons.
Born in Germany to Georgian refugee parents, Topuria moved to Spain as a teenager, and has both Georgian and Spanish citizenship.
In Topuria’s UFC absence, Arizona native Gaethje won an interim lightweight title, but will now have a chance to capture the undisputed championship.
The 37-year-old American has a 27-5 record in UFC.
Trump has said a stadium for more than 100,000 people would be constructed in front of the White House for the fight, although organisers have since said the event is expected to host some 3,000 to 4,000 people at the heart of Washington DC.
Large screens to view the event are expected to be raised in other places near the White House for larger crowds to watch the show.
The event was originally announced for July 4, which is Independence Day in the US, before being moved to Trump’s birthday.
The Republican president has also unveiled plans for an IndyCar race on the streets of Washington to mark the 250th anniversary of the country’s independence.
UFC is the largest and most successful organisation in the burgeoning world of MMA, a blend of martial arts disciplines like jiu-jitsu, kickboxing, boxing and wrestling.
Bouts take place in an eight-sided ring — dubbed “The Octagon” — bounded by a chainlink fence.
With few exceptions — such as eye-gouging — male and female fighters are allowed to employ almost any technique to attack their opponent.
The sport’s popularity with young men — a key demographic in the 2024 US election — and Trump’s long association with the UFC have made the president a regular fixture at some of its more high-profile events, where he is greeted like a rock star.
Its brutal nature and high injury rate mean the sport is controversial, with doctors decrying the potential for brain damage amongst fighters who are repeatedly hit in the head, though it has gained increasing mainstream acceptance in recent years.
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