As sports fans watch Spain take the field against Argentina in the World Cup final, fans of international politics will be looking to the V.I.P. boxes at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium for a possible interaction between President Trump and his European nemesis, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain.
The game comes after months of tension between Mr. Trump, a leader to the far right around the world, and Mr. Sánchez, a progressive icon. Mr. Trump, who could possibly be handing the Spanish team a trophy at the end of the night, has repeatedly insulted and threatened Spain, calling its leaders “bad people” and the country a “horror show.”
Mr. Sánchez, who is perhaps more likely to team up with Mayor Zohran Mamdani of New York at the stadium, has championed liberal positions on immigration, renewable energy and civil rights. He has also stood up to Mr. Trump on tariffs, the U.S. capture of President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela in January, and the war in Iran, for which Mr. Sánchez denied use of Spain’s military bases and airspace. In what seemed a pointed comment at Mr. Trump, Mr. Sánchez, after the United States reached an initial truce with Iran in April, said Spain wouldn’t applaud those who “set the world on fire.”
Mr. Sánchez has mostly shrugged off Mr. Trump’s threats of punitive economic measures against his country. He has noted that, as a member of the European Union’s trading bloc, Spain was shielded from isolated trade policy; that private companies conducted its international business; and that it had a trade deficit with the United States, importing more than it exported.
In many ways, Mr. Trump, and the quarrels he brings, has helped Mr. Sánchez at a perilous political time back home. Mr. Trump’s threats have allowed the Spanish leader to distract and rile up his liberal base, as his inner circle, including his wife and brother, face a barrage of corruption accusations.
Mr. Trump and Mr. Sánchez most recently met at this month’s NATO summit in Turkey, which did not start out well. Mr. Trump took advantage of the forum to again complain about Spain. “Cut off all trade with Spain, including visits,” he said.
But after some small talk with Mr. Sánchez, including, the Spanish leader said, about the World Cup, Mr. Trump seemed to reverse himself. He said Spain had honored a request for increased spending on defense, as he demanded from NATO partners, and had been “very generous.”
Mr. Sánchez will squeeze the game in before a planned trip to Algeria; he is expected to leave directly after it. Members of the Spanish royal family, who wore their names on Spanish jerseys as they watched the semifinal against France, are also expected to be in attendance.
President Javier Milei of Argentina is much more politically aligned with Mr. Trump but said he would not come to the game out of “superstition,” instead adhering to his ritual of watching at home while wearing a jacket from the state-owned energy company YPF and keeping the heat turned off.
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