U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team star Timothy Weah has opened up about what he described as the “weird” experience of standing behind Donald Trump in the Oval Office while the president fielded questions on the Iran-Israel war and attacked the idea of transgender women competing in women’s sports.
Weah was at the White House with his Juventus teammates on Wednesday as part of a promotional event for the FIFA Club World Cup, ahead of the Italian side’s 5-0 victory over the United Arab Emirates’ Al-Ain FC.
Trump invited questions from reporters about the game and the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which the U.S. will host alongside Mexico and Canada.
But the Juventus players stood uncomfortably behind POTUS as he instead answered queries about the more pressing political questions of the day.
Weah, the son of former Liberian soccer star-turned-former president George Weah, later told reporters that the players had been made to attend the event.
“They told us that we have to go and I had no choice but to go,” he explained, reported The Athletic.
“I was caught by surprise, honestly. It was a bit weird,” he added. “When he started talking about the politics with Iran and everything, it’s kind of like, I just want to play football, man.”