Lionel Messi and Inter Miami appeared visibly puzzled after Donald Trump veered into a prolonged monologue about US military action in Iran while hosting the team at the White House.
The delegation visited on Thursday to mark the club’s 2025 Major League Soccer Cup triumph. While the event was expected to stay focused on football and the squad’s accomplishment, the President quickly drifted into geopolitical commentary, creating an uncomfortable moment for the players standing behind him.
As cameras lingered on the group, Messi’s expression in particular drew attention, with the forward and several teammates looking uncertain as the remarks shifted away from sport and toward military claims.
Trump initially framed his comments around the occasion, telling the room: “We like champions. We like winners,” as Messi and the Inter Miami players watched from the stage.
Moments later, he abruptly changed topics, adding: “And before we begin, I think I will say a few words about what’s going on with respect to our operation in the country of Iran.”
He went on to praise the US military and its allies, claiming: “The United States military, together with the wonderful Israeli partners, continues to totally demolish the enemy far ahead of schedule, and at levels that people have never seen before, actually.”
Continuing, Trump said: “We’re destroying more of Iran’s missiles and drone capability every single hour, knocking them out like nobody thought was possible,” Trump said.
He then added: “As soon as they set off a missile, within four minutes, the launcher gets hit. They don’t know what’s happening. But we have the greatest military anywhere in the world.”
Trump also made a series of assertions about Iran’s forces, saying: “Their navy is gone. Twenty-four ships in three days. That’s a lot of ships,” he said. “Their anti-aircraft weapons are gone, so they have no Air Force. They have no air defense. All of their airplanes are gone. Their communications are gone. Missiles are gone. Launches are gone.”
Referencing the state of Iran’s remaining capabilities, he remarked: “60 percent and 64 percent, respectively” of Iran’s capabilities had been destroyed before concluding “Other than that, they’re doing quite well,” Trump said. “I say, what’s left? But they’re tough.”
Donald Trump talking about a USA-Iran war with Messi in the background having absolutely no clue what’s going on 😭😭
— All About Argentina 🛎🇦🇷 (@AlbicelesteTalk) March 5, 2026
The sudden jump from celebrating football to discussing warfare quickly spread online, with viewers reacting to video clips from the appearance.
“Donald Trump talking about a USA-Iran war with Messi in the background having absolutely no clue what’s going on,” penned one user.
A second user observed : “Messi was careful his whole career, working hard to avoid controversy. And now he offers Trump his image and his applause, clapping to war propaganda. This is a disgrace that will follow Messi for the rest of his life. As a fan, this was a very sad day for me”