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06/09 16:58 CDT It's not just the Knicks: Trump's attendance at big games often
spells trouble for the home team
It's not just the Knicks: Trump's attendance at big games often spells trouble
for the home team
By WILL WEISSERT
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) --- If President Donald Trump is coming to the game, bet on the
visiting team.
You'll usually be in the money --- at least if recent history holds.
The New York Knicks, after two straight wins in the finals against the San
Antonio Spurs, lost at home 115-111 on Monday night with Trump, a longtime fan
of the Big Apple's NBA team, in a luxury suite at Madison Square Garden.
He similarly may have had a jinxing role for MLB's Washington Nationals during
his first term, when the home team lost Game 5 of the World Series to the
Houston Astros 7-1.
In November, the president was on hand when the NFL's Washington Commanders
hosted the Detroit Lions, and the visitors romped 44-22. And he was front and
center at Bethpage Black when Europe topped the U.S. golf team in last fall's
Ryder Cup.
It's a glaring irony for a president fanatical about sports but also especially
obsessed with winning.
Trump frequently mentions his own election victories, even boasting of a 2020
win over Joe Biden that never happened, and touts his record of endorsing
winning Republican primary candidates. His love of sports also sometimes leads
him into hostile territory, including heavily Democratic Manhattan, where his
very presence led to sustained booing before Game 3's tipoff.
The White House called the suggestion that Trump's attendance might not bode
well for home teams "foolish" and called him "the people's president."
"President Trump is the greatest champion for sports of any president in
American history, and he loves them," spokesperson Olivia Wales said in a
statement.
To be fair, Trump's attendance doesn't guarantee the home team will lose.
Last September, the New York Yankees beat the visiting Detroit Tigers 9-3 as
the president marked the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Trump was also
there when Navy beat Army 17-16 in Baltimore last fall, when the Midshipmen
were technically the home team --- though Navy wasn't playing in its home
stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.
He's also been to plenty of sporting events where home field advantage isn't a
factor.
That was true for his attending the U.S. Open in September and the 2025 Super
Bowl in New Orleans, where the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs,
as well as that year's Daytona 500. Ditto for 2025s NCAA wrestling
championships in Philadelphia and the FIFA Club World Cup final in East
Rutherford, New Jersey.
It also won't be an issue Sunday, when the White House's South Lawn will host a
UFC show to mark Trump's 80th birthday.
If the trend holds, however, it may not be great news for the U.S. national
team in the World Cup, which opens Thursday.
The Americans have never made it past the semifinal stage in the tournament's
modern history anyway --- and they'll have to contend this time with Trump
playing an outsize role in organizing the event. He has pledged to attend the
final and award the trophy to the winning team.
Trump getting blamed for New York's loss Some Knicks fans have faulted the president for the Game 3 defeat, even though their team still leads the series. Game 4 will also be played in New York on Wednesday, though this time Trump isn't expected to attend. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a likely 2028 Democratic presidential candidate and frequent foil for the president, playfully picked up on the theme of Trump as a jinx, reposting a past White House post on X declaring "Call it the Trump effect" alongside discussion about the Knicks' loss. ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith --- himself mentioned as a possible future presidential hopeful --- suggested before Game 3 that it'd be Trump's fault if the Knicks didn't win. Afterward, he said, "What I feared would happen ended up happening." "The president disrupted our mojo," said Smith, a longtime Knicks fan, before adding, "The man messed things up." Asked after the game about Smith potentially blaming him for a Knicks loss, Trump dismissed the commentator's political aspirations and questioned his intelligence. "I think he's a nice guy. But you need a certain aptitude to run for president," Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One for his flight back to Washington early Tuesday "You need a high IQ. I'm not sure that Stephen has that," he said. "I don't think he does, actually."
Frequent booing hasn't kept Trump away
Before he was a politician, Trump, a native of the New York City borough of Queens, frequently attended Knicks games, sometimes sitting courtside. His return to the Garden nonetheless drew long and loud boos when his face was shown on the jumbotron during the national anthem. In fact, he's been roundly booed repeatedly, though it has more to do with his politics than any role he might have in jinxing the home team. Trump drew boos at the Nationals' World Series game and during the Commanders game and the U.S. Open. At some events he's cheered and the crowd reaction can also be mixed --- though Trump just as likely to simply claim a more friendly reception than he actually gets. After the Knicks game, the president tried to suggest that the boos were "I think, mostly cheers." The White House similarly attempted to spin the incident into a political show of strength, posting a photo of Trump at the game with the caption "King of New York." Offering a different assessment was New York's Daily News tabloid. It featured a cartoon of an exaggeratedly rotund Trump wearing a No. 38 Knicks jersey --- with a bubble emerging from his mouth saying "approval rating."
Trump getting blamed for New York's loss Some Knicks fans have faulted the president for the Game 3 defeat, even though their team still leads the series. Game 4 will also be played in New York on Wednesday, though this time Trump isn't expected to attend. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a likely 2028 Democratic presidential candidate and frequent foil for the president, playfully picked up on the theme of Trump as a jinx, reposting a past White House post on X declaring "Call it the Trump effect" alongside discussion about the Knicks' loss. ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith --- himself mentioned as a possible future presidential hopeful --- suggested before Game 3 that it'd be Trump's fault if the Knicks didn't win. Afterward, he said, "What I feared would happen ended up happening." "The president disrupted our mojo," said Smith, a longtime Knicks fan, before adding, "The man messed things up." Asked after the game about Smith potentially blaming him for a Knicks loss, Trump dismissed the commentator's political aspirations and questioned his intelligence. "I think he's a nice guy. But you need a certain aptitude to run for president," Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One for his flight back to Washington early Tuesday "You need a high IQ. I'm not sure that Stephen has that," he said. "I don't think he does, actually."
Frequent booing hasn't kept Trump away
Before he was a politician, Trump, a native of the New York City borough of Queens, frequently attended Knicks games, sometimes sitting courtside. His return to the Garden nonetheless drew long and loud boos when his face was shown on the jumbotron during the national anthem. In fact, he's been roundly booed repeatedly, though it has more to do with his politics than any role he might have in jinxing the home team. Trump drew boos at the Nationals' World Series game and during the Commanders game and the U.S. Open. At some events he's cheered and the crowd reaction can also be mixed --- though Trump just as likely to simply claim a more friendly reception than he actually gets. After the Knicks game, the president tried to suggest that the boos were "I think, mostly cheers." The White House similarly attempted to spin the incident into a political show of strength, posting a photo of Trump at the game with the caption "King of New York." Offering a different assessment was New York's Daily News tabloid. It featured a cartoon of an exaggeratedly rotund Trump wearing a No. 38 Knicks jersey --- with a bubble emerging from his mouth saying "approval rating."
