England national team captain Harry Kane confirmed during a World Cup press conference that he played a round of golf with United States President Donald Trump.
Speaking to reporters recently, Kane revealed the meeting took place 18 months ago at Trump’s course in Palm Beach, Florida, following a personal invitation, and called the experience “surreal.”
“I played alright to be honest… We played about 18 months ago. He invited me to play when I was down in Palm Beach. So when the President invites you somewhere … It was a pretty surreal experience just to meet him, and to play golf with him.
“His golf is pretty good, to be honest. I hope I can play golf as well as him when I’m his age, that’s for sure. So, (it was) a unique experience. I’m just grateful he invited me down to play.”
Last week, the American president had posted “Harry Kane of England is a GREAT player!!!” on Truth Social, immediately after England’s 3-2 round-of-16 win over Mexico in Mexico City. A few days later, during a press conference in Washington, Trump spoke about the World Cup and revealed the golf outing to reporters.
“I think (Harry) Kane is a great player,” Trump said. “See, I played golf with him and I like him a lot. He’s a good golfer. He’s really great.”
Trump’s long history with footballers
Kane is not the first England captain to join Trump on the golf greens. In 2019, Wayne Rooney played a round with Trump and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani at Trump National Golf Club in Washington. Rooney, who was plying his trade in Major League Soccer (MLS) for DC United at the time, received the invitation from Trump’s youngest son, Barron, who was part of the DC United youth setup.
Trump has established a regular pattern of hosting football teams at the White House. In March of this year, Lionel Messi and Inter Miami were the guests of honour following their MLS Cup victory. In 2025, the Juventus men’s first team also visited the White House during their pre-season promotional tour of the United States.
The American president recently sparked controversy when he intervened to overturn a red card and subsequent one-match ban issued to United States striker Folarin Balogun. Following Balogun’s dismissal in a match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Trump confirmed he personally called FIFA President Gianni Infantino to request an immediate review of the officiating decision. FIFA subsequently rescinded the suspension, allowing Balogun to play in the United States’ round-of-16 match against Belgium.
