Why Argentine President Javier Milay is absent from World Cup final despite Donald Trump’s attendance Football News
Argentine President Javier Milley will not be in the stands despite being invited by the US president to attend Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain Donald Trump and New Jersey FIFA President Gianni Infantino. Instead, Milai said he would remain at the presidential palace in Buenos Aires, convinced that sticking to a match-day routine would give Argentina the best chance of defending their World Cup title.The Argentine leader revealed on Thursday that superstition – known locally as cábalas – was the sole reason for his decision to miss football’s biggest game. Argentina won all seven World Cup games he watched at home during the tournament and Mire was unwilling to risk breaking the streak.“No way,” Mire said when asked by the Buenos Aires Observer radio station if he would travel to New Jersey for the final.“I will continue to watch all Olivos’ games,” he added, referring to the presidential palace.The decision means Millais will miss the opportunity to watch the final with one of his closest international allies, Trump and Infantino, both of whom are expected to attend the post-match trophy ceremony.
Lucky jacket and football ritual
Millay also revealed another ritual that has become part of Argentina’s unbeaten run.“Because it was cold and I didn’t have the heating on, I wore an oil company brand jacket. The day of the Swiss game it made me very hot. I took it off and they scored a goal against us. I put it back on and never took it off again,” he explained.The president’s day-to-day activities reflect Argentina’s wider football culture, with Cabarras occupying an almost sacred status at major events.Many fans refused to wash their jerseys throughout the World Cup if the team kept winning. Others insist on sitting in the same chair or watching every game with the same group of friends. Some fans even believed they had to stay where Argentina had scored previously, while others avoided changing any pre-match routines.A widely circulated video during this World Cup showed a group of supporters reading passages from the Bible as Argentina opened their scoring against Egypt. After a victory, they repeat this ritual before every subsequent game. Other fans resort to frozen statues or slips of paper with their opponents’ names written on them, believing it will bring bad luck to the opposing team.
Long-standing presidential superstitions
Milley’s decision also follows an unusual tradition among Argentine presidents.This belief dates back to the 1990 World Cup, when then-president Carlos Menem visited Argentina shortly before their opening defeat to Cameroon. Menem was subsequently labeled a “mufa” – a curse word – and since then the current Argentine president has generally avoided attending key World Cup matches involving the national team.For many Argentines, this superstition has become part of football folklore, and Millais seems determined not to be a leader in breaking it.
Trump will attend the final
While Milley remains at home, the White House has confirmed that Trump will attend Sunday’s final at the New Jersey Coliseum in New York.White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt said the US president was looking forward to the game and described this World Cup as “the most watched, safest and most successful World Cup in American history.”Trump is also expected to attend a FIFA reception at Trump Tower before the final. Infantino confirmed that the US president is expected to join him in presenting the World Cup trophy to the winning captain, continuing a tradition followed by the host nation’s leaders in the previous final.Qatar Trophy 2022 presented by Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Infantino Lionel Messi When France won the World Cup in 2018, they were joined by Russian President Vladimir Putin as FIFA president.This time, however, the Argentine president will be wearing the same lucky jacket and watching the game from hundreds of miles away, hoping that keeping faith in his Cabaret will be enough to help the defending champions lift the World Cup again.
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