King County International Airport has “advised a local company about the possibility of a presidential or vice presidential temporary flight restriction on July 6 in Seattle” if the USMNT advances to the round of 16 World Cup match that day, though it remains unclear if President Trump or VP JD Vance would actually attend the game, according to Sofia Schwarzwalder of the SEATTLE TIMES. Trump has yet to be seen at a World Cup match this summer. The local World Cup matches have “brought celebration, excitement, traffic disruptions and recording-breaking numbers of people around Seattle and on the city’s public transportation.” The arrival of the President or VP and their security “would likely cause significant delays.” King County Department of Executive Services Communications Manager Cameron Satterfield said that information “would likely come shortly after the outcome of Wednesday’s game to allow enough time for preparations.” U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Energy Secretary Chris Wright were seen at Seattle Stadium for the USMNT-Australia match on June 19. Schwarzwalder noted Trump “has not visited Seattle as president” and Vance also “has not made a formal visit to Seattle so far in his term” (SEATTLE TIMES, 6/29).
SHOWING PRIDE: POLITICO’s Sasha Issenberg reported Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is “reveling in the fact that his country is hosting the world’s top sporting event, and that its national team is doing well.” Carney attended two of Canada’s group-stage matches and “gave a locker-room talk to the team after its defeat of Qatar that spread widely on social media.” Carney has been “such an omnipresent component of his team’s group-stage run” that its one defeat against Switzerland has been “blamed on the ‘Carney Curse’ because the prime minister briefly stepped away from his seat when a crucial goal was scored.” Carney was not in L.A. on Sunday for Canada’s knockout fixture against South Africa. Shortly after Canada’s dramatic, last-minute winning goal, Carney “released a photo of himself watching the match via mobile phone on an airport tarmac” (POLITICO, 6/29). The GLOBE & MAIL’s Cathal Kelly wrote of Carney’s locker room speech to the Canadian team: “We are close to the line here. Not over it, but toeing it. … Resist the urge to become one of the boys, or girls. They don’t know you and they don’t want to” (GLOBE & MAIL, 6/29).
