Trump asked FIFA, the Olympics and the NCAA to line up. For the most part, they complied

It was not at all unusual for the host nation’s leader to appear at one of the biggest moments of the FIFA World Cup – the ceremony in which the team pairings are revealed.

What made President Donald Trump’s appearance this month different was the FIFA Peace Prize. The newly created IBF honor was not surprising, as it was presented to Trump, who was seeking a much more prestigious award – the Nobel Peace Prize.

Trump’s hovering on the international football scene was an opportune moment in a cycle that shifted into full gear in 2025: the US president, with the help of some US politicians and many of the sport’s leaders, took unprecedented steps to link the sport to his own worldview.

“I think sports is one of the prime examples of Trump believing he’s in charge of everything,” said David Niven, who teaches a course on “Sports and Politics” at the University of Cincinnati.

Although the Trump administration’s policies on immigration, transgender issues, and more have ramifications in many areas, all of them have skewed down to the games people play and watch in 2025.

Next year’s World Cup and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics — sporting events that tout their ability to bring the world together — will be scrutinized to see if they will achieve that goal in a country that has become less welcoming.

In one example, an executive order Trump signed shortly after taking office seeks to reduce opportunities for transgender athletes.

In another case, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has ramped up its activity, resulting in the deportation of more than 605,000 people since Trump’s first day in office, according to the administration.

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“Fans, when you have a big football event, they will come and support their team,” said Louis Moore, a professor at Michigan State who teaches community sports. He said he suspected ICE would be in some places “and I just hope FIFA has the backbone to come up with something where you can protect players and fans.”

Whether ICE will appear in World Cup matches is an open question. But the White House has been sending mixed messages that could have an impact on athletes and fans coming to America for these international sporting events.

On the one hand, the administration promoted the creation of a “FIFA Card” designed to allow ticket holders to obtain expedited appointments for their visas. On the other hand, it recently announced expanded travel bans and immigration restrictions – some targeting countries participating in the World Cup – in response to the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington last month.

Trump’s policies on transgender sports apply to the NCAA and the Olympics

The controversy over transgender athletes was a cultural touchstone issue that helped Trump win last year’s election.

Early in his term, Trump signed an executive order titled “Keep Men Out of Women’s Sports,” enabling federal agencies to ensure that schools receiving federal funding comply with the administration’s reading of Title IX, which interprets “sex” as the sex a person was assigned at birth.

The day after Trump signed his order, the NCAA amended its own rules to adhere to the administration’s guidance.

“President Trump’s order provides a clear national standard,” said NCAA President Charlie Baker, a former Massachusetts governor.

Several months later, and without much fanfare, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) changed its policy to align with Trump’s. It was a move that Olympic legal expert Gil Pilgrim said was backed by a “justified set of arguments”.

“But I would be very shocked if this wasn’t challenged” in court, Pilgrim said.

Sports leaders have Trump’s support

Meanwhile, key leaders did their best to stay by Trump’s side.

Although some believed it violated FIFA’s requirement to be politically neutral, the FIFA Peace Prize provided an excuse for its president, Gianni Infantino, to praise Trump, who has the potential to make life incredibly easy or difficult for the sport when it comes to the United States next year.

While soccer awarded Trump a trophy, US Olympic leaders took advantage of a ceremony at the White House this summer to present him with a set of medals from the 1984 Olympics — the last time the Olympics were held in Los Angeles.

It was part of an event attended by LA28 and USOPC leaders Casey Wasserman and Gene Sykes, where Trump signed an executive order creating an Olympic “task force.”

Although the task force is charged with overseeing functions the government typically provides for the Olympics anyway — such as security and visa processing — this gave Trump a chance to take credit for it while bringing Wasserman and Sykes to the White House to thank him.

It sparked some embarrassment when Trump asked for a silent room to applaud after thanking Sykes for the USOPC’s action on transgender policy.

“Some of this almost verges on parody,” said Nevin, the University of Cincinnati professor. “They’re just shiny things that are in front of him at a given moment.”

Golf brings Trump back into the fold

Also over the summer, Trump was a specially invited guest by the PGA of America at one of its largest events, the Ryder Cup – a European-US golf tournament held outside New York.

The call came about three years after the PGA removed the 2022 PGA Championship from one of Trump’s golf courses, saying hosting it there would “damage the brand” in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on Congress.

In addition to his feud with the PGA, Trump has backed LIV Golf — the Saudi-backed league that has caused a rupture in the sport after it suspended nine-figure salaries to lure many of its best players. In early 2025, Trump held a meeting at the White House to try to make peace.

Although nothing came of that meeting, his Ryder Cup appearance marked his symbolic return to the fold of the sport he cares about most.

If there was lingering dissatisfaction among the players during the emotionally charged week at the Ryder Cup, it wasn’t palpable — they took pains to describe it as an honor to have Trump there, while not getting anywhere near politics.

Trump is turning to college sports, but the impact may be limited

College sports are one area that tests the limits of Trump’s influence, though that hasn’t stopped him from trying.

The “Save College Sports” executive order that Trump signed in July was a comprehensive document that, among other things, ordered labor officials to clarify whether college athletes could be considered employees of their schools.

For the NCAA, the answer is no. It also seeks to provide antitrust protection to prevent it from being sued.

Ultimately, Congress has the decision-making authority on both issues. But Republicans and Democrats envision very different treatments for an industry in flux. Neither side has issued significant legislation on the issue.

“It’s one of the thorniest issues, and it defies a simple solution,” Nevin said of the college dilemma. “That’s not exactly an appropriate description for Congress to contribute.”

All of this could leave an opportunity for Trump — who has not intervened much since the executive order — to try again in 2026.

“Something has to be done, and I’m willing to put the federal government behind it,” he said last week. “But if not, colleges will be wiped out. They will be wiped out, including colleges that do well in football.”