If you expected President Donald Trump to be nothing but effusive in his praise for Russia’s hosting of the 2018 World Cup, you are going to be sorely disappointed.
As the possibility of a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin looms for Trump even as a special counsel investigates the role of Russian meddling in the 2016 election, the U.S. President was asked Wednesday during a pool session at the White House what he thought of the World Cup so far.
“It’s exciting,” Trump said. “My son loves soccer and he loves watching the World Cup and they have really done a fantastic job. It’s exciting even if you are not a soccer fan.”
With the United States out of the World Cup, we don’t know if Trump’s 12-year-old son Barron has a favorite team at the 2018 World Cup. He’s been photographed wearing Arsenal gear previously.
Trump himself doesn’t seem like much of a soccer fan and said he has no favorite team.
“I’m rooting for everybody to do well,” he said. “The venue is fantastic. I fought very hard to get it in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. We are very honored to be chosen”.
That last quote contains a reference to the 2026 World Cup, which was awarded to North America in June. Trump not only took credit for the bid on Wednesday, but right after it was announced as well. How hard he actually fought for that bid to be successful is up for some serious debate.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
Follow @NickBromberg on Twitter
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