Trump and Sánchez meet at World Cup final amid diplomatic chill
Donald Trump and Pedro Sánchez shook hands at the 2026 FIFA World Cup final on Sunday in a brief but closely watched encounter that marked the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders in nearly two years of simmering tensions between Washington and Madrid.
A handshake that spoke volumes
The meeting lasted no more than a few minutes on the sidelines of the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, where the two men were seated in the same VIP section alongside other heads of state. It wasn’t a formal bilateral summit — nobody was calling it that — but in diplomatic terms, proximity matters. And after 22 months of public friction, even a cordial exchange under the stadium lights carries weight.
Photographs distributed by the Spanish government showed the two men speaking directly, without interpreters visible, a detail their respective offices did not elaborate on.
Nearly two years of friction
The relationship between Spain and the United States has been strained since at least late 2024, when Sánchez publicly criticised US arms shipments to Israel during the Gaza conflict, calling on European allies to condition military support on humanitarian compliance. Washington pushed back hard. Then came the NATO spending row. Trump singled out Spain by name in February 2025, noting that Madrid’s defence budget sat at roughly 1.28 percent of GDP, well below the alliance’s 2 percent target — and well below the 5 percent Trump had begun floating as a new benchmark.
Spain did announce a gradual increase toward the 2 percent goal, committing to reach it by 2029, but that timetable did little to satisfy an administration demanding faster action from European partners.
Still, neither government severed ties. Trade between the two countries topped $36 billion last year, and Spain remains a key US partner on counterterrorism and Atlantic security.
What officials are saying
A senior Spanish foreign ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the encounter was “positive and constructive” but stopped short of announcing any specific agreements or follow-up meetings. “There is a shared understanding that the relationship between our two countries is bigger than any single disagreement,” the official said.
The White House did not issue an immediate statement.
What comes next
The World Cup final — jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico — drew leaders from across the globe, giving Trump an unusual platform for informal diplomacy in a setting far removed from the pressures of the Oval Office or the Moncloa Palace.
Whether Sunday’s encounter translates into anything concrete remains to be seen. Both governments face domestic pressures that make dramatic concessions unlikely in the short term. Spain’s coalition government depends on left-wing partners deeply hostile to US foreign policy, while Trump’s base expects him to keep pushing allies on defence spending.
But they talked. And sometimes, that’s where things start to move.
