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‘I Need Help’—President Trump Receives Final Plea From World Cup Winner

The plight of Spain’s 2010 champion is just one of the myriad logistical problems plaguing Sunday’s final.
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U.S. President Donald Trump (left) has received a public plea from Joan Capdevila.
U.S. President Donald Trump (left) has received a public plea from Joan Capdevila. / SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images (Trump), JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images (Capdevila)

One of Spain’s World Cup winners from 2010, Joan Capdevila, directly asked U.S. President Donald Trump for help with his travel documentation in his attempts to attend Sunday’s final against Argentina.

Spain hasn’t made it to this stage of a men’s World Cup since Capdevila started at left back against the Netherlands in the South Africa showpiece 16 years ago. Luis de la Fuente’s side has taken inspiration from that past generation, deliberately dialling down the high-tempo style which won the 2024 European Championship, to ease through the tournament in North America.

Capdevila had hoped to watch his international successors take on Argentina at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. only to find that his ESTA, the documentation required for those traveling from many European nations to enter the U.S. as a short-term tourist, had been rejected.

“I need help,” Capdevila wrote on X, dropping Trump’s official handle in for good measure.

“I just found out that I can’t travel to the final with my kids because my ESTA was denied. Can anyone help me with this? You have no idea how excited I was to be there with all my teammates from 2010 and this team to cheer them on.

“I can’t believe they won’t let me enter the U.S.... and that I’ll miss a moment like this with my kids, who love soccer so much...” Capdevila also tagged the official account for Spain’s Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports.

“If anyone knows how to fix this, I’ll be eternally grateful.”

World Cup Final Faces Mountain of Logistical Issues

New York City smoke
New York City was blanketed in a thick smoky haze on Wednesday and Thursday. / Michael Nagle/Bloomberg/Getty Images

The plight of Spain’s only previous World Cup winning fullback is just one of a myriad logistical issues plaguing Sunday’s showpiece fixture.

For fans already in the U.S., getting to MetLife Stadium could prove to be an onerous undertaking. Much was made in the build-up to the tournament about how expensive tickets for the 20-minute train from New York City to New Jersey were. Even after government subsidies, a return trip will cost $98.

That sum is a pittance compared to the prices of actually getting into the stadium. The cheapest ticket for a chance to see what may prove to be Lionel Messi’s final World Cup appearance is set to exceed $8,000, with those figures only likely to rise as the event looms closer.

Trump memorably claimed that he wouldn’t pay some of the prices floated around the previous rounds of World Cup matches, but the President is unlikely to be troubled for a fee when he attends Sunday’s final. As New York Knicks fans discovered earlier this summer, any event with Trump in the stands forces dramatically heightened security measures.

FIFA have already encouraged supporters to get to the stadium as early as four hours before the 3 p.m. kickoff. After all, there is Tom Cruise and Robbie Williams to see. Unless he can acquire some sort of governmental assist, Capdevila may be forced to watch the mayhem unfold from afar.

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