In what some are calling the latest move to Americanize the 2026 World Cup, FIFA announced on Thursday that the winners of Sunday’s final between Spain and Argentina will receive “bespoke” Super Bowl-style championship rings for the first time in the competition’s history.
President Trump will also attend the match at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., and present the victors with the FIFA World Cup trophy, as the leaders of host countries often do. (The president has not attended any other World Cup matches this summer.)
“We look forward to the final match on Sunday, and I know the president looks forward to attending,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday. “This is a fitting conclusion to a tournament that showcased America’s ability to host the world on the grandest stage.”
Meanwhile, FIFA’s new golden, jewel-encrusted rings — which it said will be “customized to reflect the identity of the winning team” — are just the latest example of what some see as its willingness to bend the global game to American tastes in pursuit of the first $10 billion sporting event in history.
NFL players receive similar baubles when they win the Super Bowl. The same goes for baseball players who win the World Series and basketball players who win the NBA Finals. But soccer players? Not until now.
In its announcement on Thursday, FIFA said it had produced a total of 2,026 rings — 30 for the World Cup champions, and 1,996 that will be made available for worldwide purchase as an “Official Licensed Product.”
“Because of course,” one Guardian writer quipped on social media.
The stars-and-stripesification doesn’t seem to stop there. Sunday’s trophy ceremony will come approximately 45 minutes — assuming no extra time or penalty kicks — after a halftime show that has also drawn eye rolls from some longtime soccer fans.
Curated by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin with performances by Madonna, Shakira, BTS and Justin Bieber, the multimedia spectacle — another Super Bowl-style innovation — could extend the break between halves to 30 minutes due to production, setup and teardown requirements, according to the Times of London.
Critics have noted that the Laws of the Game, which are governed by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), say such breaks should “not [exceed] 15 minutes.” Why? Because of the “potential negative impact on player welfare and safety resulting from a longer period of inactivity,” IFAB explained in 2021, when it rejected calls to lengthen halftime to 25 minutes.
Sunday’s final will also be interrupted by three-minute hydration breaks midway through each half — a controversial change that has effectively chopped this year’s matches into NFL-style quarters and allowed Fox to air more commercials, putting it on pace to generate an estimated $450 million in total revenue.
It remains to be seen whether Trump will simply present the trophy on Sunday or also participate in the winning team’s trophy lift celebration, as he did after the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final at MetLife Stadium — aka New York New Jersey Stadium.
Last year, Trump kept a Club World Cup winner’s medal as well as the competition’s original Tiffany & Co. trophy, leaving Chelsea to take a replica back to England. He has also played a prominent role in this year’s competition, intervening to overturn U.S. striker Folarin Balogun’s one-game red-card suspension before the Americans’ Round of 16 match against Belgium.
