Trump marks one-year anniversary of assassination attempt at the FIFA Club World Cup final

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J (AP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday marked the one-year anniversary of a failed attempt on his life, joining family, friends and close advisers to witness Chelsea's dominating FIFA Club World Cup final victory over Paris Saint-Germain.

The president joined the players on the field after the match to congratulate the tournament's outstanding performers, present PSG players with their runner-up medals and hand Chelsea their championship trophy.

“It was an upset today I guess,” Trump told reporters after flying back to Washington following Chelsea's victory. "But it was a great match.”

Trump and first lady Melania Trump were greeted with cheers as they arrived at MetLife Stadium just ahead of the pre-match performance by musical artists Robbie Williams and Laura Pausini. And the president got a smattering of boos when he was briefly shown on the stadium's mega-screen.

The president waved to the crowd and pumped his fist as he and his entourage arrived at the stadium luxury box, where they took in the match with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and his wife, Leena Al Ashqar.

Other guests spotted in the president's suite included Attorney General Pam Bondi, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, NFL great Tom Brady and media mogul Rupert Murdoch.

MetLife in a little over a year will host the 2026 World Cup final.

Chelsea, of the English Premier League, spoiled PSG's bid to win its fourth major title of the season, exactly 100 days after PSG clinched Ligue 1 on April 5. The Paris team added the Coupe de France by beating Reims 3-0 on May 24, then romped over Inter Milan seven days later in the Champions League Final.

Chelsea dominated throughout, racing out to a 3-0 lead in the first half behind a pair of goals from Cole Palmer and one from João Pedro.

Sunday's match fell on the first anniversary of the assassination attempt Trump survived in Butler, Pennsylvania, while campaigning for president.

“It remains my firm conviction that God alone saved me that day for a righteous purpose: to restore our beloved Republic to greatness and to rescue our Nation from those who seek its ruin,” Trump said in a statement released Sunday night after he returned to Washington.

He also hailed doctors, first responders and rallygoers who helped guide other attendees to safety, saying, “These men and women arrived at the rally grounds as ordinary Americans, but left as heroes.”

The international sporting match also offered an opportunity for Trump and aides to huddle with Qatari government officials.

Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, in a brief exchange with reporters ahead of the match, said he remained “hopeful” about Gaza ceasefire and hostage negotiations.

Witkoff, who joined Trump for the tournament finale, appeared to nod affirmatively when asked by reporters if he planned on meeting with senior officials from the Gulf nation of Qatar, which is serving as an intermediary with Hamas in the talks, during the match.

“I’ll be meeting them,” Witkoff said.

The president, who has a warm relationship with Infantino, has said he plans to attend multiple matches of the World Cup tournament next year that will be held at stadiums in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Preparations for next year's big soccer moment for North America are well underway. But it comes amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and its neighbors over proposed tariffs, immigration and Trump repeatedly saying that Canada should become the 51st state.

Trump earlier this year said the tensions will only make the tournament more “exciting.”

“ Tension’s a good thing, ” Trump said.

Sporting events have made up the bulk of Trump’s trips in the U.S. since taking office this year. In addition to his visit this weekend to the soccer tournament, he’s attended the Super Bowl in New Orleans, the Daytona 500 in Florida, UFC fights in Miami and Newark, New Jersey, and the NCAA wrestling championships in Philadelphia.

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Cassidy reported from Atlanta. Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price contributed reporting from Washington.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, left, and President Donald Trump carry the championship trophy after the Club World Cup final soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

President Donald Trump, right, presents the Golden Ball award to Chelsea's Cole Palmer at the Club World Cup final soccer match between Chelsea and PSG at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, right, speaks with President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump during the Club World Cup final soccer match between Chelsea and PSG in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

President Donald Trump, right, salutes alonside first lady Melania Trump as they attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

President Donald Trump, right, and first lady Melania Trump attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

President Donald Trump, right, and first lady Melania Trump attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Donald Trump Jr., from right, and Bettina Anderson wait for the arrival of President Donald Trump at Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, N.J., en route to attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, right, and Jared Kushner wait for the arrival of President Donald Trump at Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, N.J., en route to attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Boris Epshteyn, from left, Jared Kushner, White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, Michael Boulos, Bettina Anderson, partially obstructed and Donald Trump Jr. speak before the arrival of President Donald Trump at Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, N.J., en route to attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

President Donald Trump, right, and first lady Melania Trump attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, from right, Donald Trump Jr., and Bettina Anderson watch as President Donald Trump arrives at Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, N.J., en route to attend the Club World Cup final soccer match, Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion with first responders and local officials at Hill Country Youth Event Center in Kerrville, Texas, during a tour to observe flood damage, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days.

District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.

Norwegian company Equinor owns Empire Wind. Spokesperson David Schoetz said they welcome the court's decision and will continue to work in collaboration with authorities. It’s the second developer to prevail in court against the administration this week.

The Trump administration froze five big offshore wind projects on the East Coast days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Trump has targeted offshore wind from his first days back in the White House, most recently calling wind farms “losers” that lose money, destroy the landscape and kill birds.

Developers and states sued seeking to block the order. Large, ocean-based wind farms are the linchpin of plans to shift to renewable energy in East Coast states that have limited land for onshore wind turbines or solar arrays.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul applauded the court decision, telling reporters the projects had been “stopped under the bogus pretense of national security.”

“When I heard this I said one thing: I’m the governor of New York, if there is a national security threat off the coast of New York, you need to tell me what it is. I want a briefing right now. Well, lo and behold, they had no answer,” she said.

On Monday, a judge ruled that the Danish energy company Orsted could resume its project to serve Rhode Island and Connecticut. Senior Judge Royce Lamberth said the government did not sufficiently explain the need for a complete stop to construction. That wind farm, called Revolution Wind, is nearly complete. It’s expected to meet roughly 20% of the electricity needs in Rhode Island, the smallest state, and about 5% of Connecticut’s electricity needs.

Orsted is also suing over the pause of its Sunrise Wind project for New York, with a hearing still to be set. Dominion Energy Virginia, which is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, plans to ask a judge Friday to block the administration’s order so it can resume construction, too.

Trump has also dismissed offshore wind developments as ugly, but the Empire project is about 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) offshore and the Sunrise project is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) offshore.

The fifth paused project is Vineyard Wind, under construction in Massachusetts. Vineyard Wind LLC, a joint venture between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, joined the rest of the developers in challenging the administration on Thursday. They filed a complaint in District Court in Boston.

In contrast to the halted action in the U.S., the global offshore wind market is growing, with China leading the world in new installations. Nearly all of the new electricity added to the grid in 2024 was renewable. The British government said Wednesday it secured a record 8.4 gigawatts of offshore wind in Europe’s largest offshore wind auction, enough clean electricity to power more than 12 million homes.

Robin Shaffer, president of Protect Our Coast New Jersey, said the Trump administration was right to stop construction on national security grounds. He urged officials to immediately appeal the adverse rulings and seek to halt all work pending appellate review. Opponents of offshore wind projects are particularly vocal and well-organized in New Jersey.

Empire Wind is 60% complete and designed to power more than 500,000 homes. Equinor said the project was in jeopardy due to the limited availability of specialized vessels, as well as heavy financial losses.

During a hearing Wednesday, Judge Nichols said the government’s main security concern seemed to be over operation of the wind turbines, not construction, although the government pushed back on that contention.

In presenting the government’s case, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, Jr. was skeptical of the perfect storm of horrible events that Empire Wind said would derail their entire project if construction didn’t resume. He disagreed with the contention that the government’s main concern was over operation.

“I don’t see how you can make this distinction,” Woodward said. He likened it to a nuclear project being built that presented a national security risk. The government would oppose it being built, and it turning on.

Molly Morris, Equinor’s senior vice president overseeing Empire Wind, said in an interview that the company wants to build this project and deliver a major, essential new source of power for New York.

McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island. Associated Press writer Anthony Izaguirre contributed to this report from Albany, New York.

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FILE - Wind turbines operate at Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts, July 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FILE - Wind turbine bases, generators and blades sit along with support ships at The Portsmouth Marine terminal that is the staging area for Dominion Energy Virginia, which is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, Dec. 22, 2025, in Portsmouth, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

FILE - A sign for the company Equinor is displayed on Oct. 28, 2020, in Fornebu, Norway. (Håkon Mosvold Larsen/NTB Scanpix via AP, File)

Blades and turbine bases for offshore wind sit at a staging area at New London State Pier, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in New London, Conn. (AP Photo/Matt O'Brien)