President Donald Trump hosted players from the Juventus soccer team at the White House on Wednesday, asking their opinions on transgender women in sports and discussing the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran.
The match comes ahead of the Italian club’s first Club World Cup match against Emirati side Al-Ain, which they ultimately won 5-0. The tournament takes place across the United States, with the final is played at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on July 13.
While speaking with reporters about the issue of trans athletes, Trump turned to the players and asked, “Could a woman be on your team, guys?” In response, Juventus teammates, including American players Timothy Weah and Weston McKennie, smiled awkwardly and shrugged their shoulders without giving a response.
The President then addressed the club’s general manager, Damien Comolli, asking him the same question. In response, Comolli said: “We have a very good women’s team.” The team won the last Italian Championship.
In February, Trump signed a Executive Order ban transgender athletes from playing women’s sports.
Weah spoke about the interaction then, saying he was surprised by the “bizarre” moment. “I was kind of like, I just want to play football… They just told us we had to go, and I had no choice but to go. So I guess it was a cool experience, obviously being in the White House for the first time… But I’m not the political type, so it wasn’t that exciting,” he said.
The American forward addressed Trump’s comments on the conflict between Israel and Iran, which also occurred during the visit.
The president also spoke to reporters about his feud with Tucker Carlson and their latest disagreements over the conflict. With the Juventus players behind him, Trump said: “I asked Tucker, ‘Do you agree with nuclear weapons being in the hands of Iran?’ and he didn’t like it.
“Maybe (the conflict) will end very quickly, but there is no way you can allow, whether you fight or not, to allow Iran to get nuclear weapons, because the whole world would explode,” Trump continued.
Juventus news livea fan-run site for updates on the team, reacted to the meeting by writing on social networks: “The Juventus team in the background while Trump answers questions about Iran… what a time to be alive.”
Trump has been regularly involved in Club World Cup engagements. In March, the president revealed the new tournament trophy alongside FIFA President Gianni Infantino. Trump also announced the creation of a special task force to 2026 World Cupwhich will be hosted by the United States alongside Mexico and Canada.
Since then, the trophy was exposed repeatedly during press conferences and rallies in the Oval Office, including Elon Musk’s last day working at the Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE).
