NEW YORK (AP) — Police scuttled an NBA Finals watch party near Madison Square Garden and the New York Knicks warned fans to get to Monday’s matchup at least two hours early as part of enhanced security measures with President Donald Trump attending the game.
Trump is a longtime Knicks fan who confirmed Friday that he would attend the first NBA Finals game in New York since 1999. He already has attended a number of major sporting events in his second term, including the 2025 Super Bowl, Daytona 500 and Ryder Cup.
Part of the fallout from Trump’s visit was the cancellation of a Game 3 watch party outside MSG. The New York Police Department said in a statement Sunday the decision was made in coordination with the Secret Service.
“There will be no watch parties outside of Madison Square Garden for Game 3 only,” the statement said. “This was done fully in coordination with the Secret Service because of the presidential visit. We expect watch parties at Madison Square Garden to resume for Game 4.”
Such parties, where thousands of fans pack in to watch the game on a big screen, have been a point of contention for the city’s police department, even without the complication of a presidential visit.
More than two-dozen people were arrested as Friday’s watch party spilled into the streets surrounding the Garden after the Knicks beat the Spurs in San Antonio. One woman was accused of punching a police officer in the face, the NYPD said.
Heading into the NBA Finals, the city had moved to cancel watch parties outside the arena altogether because of rowdy behavior at unofficial gatherings but later reversed itself and granted a permit for Game 1 last Wednesday.
Matt McCool, special agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s New York field office, said he understood that with the Knicks on a historic run there would be some disappointment from fans.
“At the same time, our responsibility is to ensure the highest level of public safety,” he said. “After careful coordination and assessment, the Secret Service and the NYPD jointly determined that outdoor watch parties could not be accommodated in the immediate vicinity of Madison Square Garden due to the security requirements associated with an event of this scale and the need to maintain a secure environment for protective operations.”
Team-sanctioned watch parties will go on at Wollman Rink in Central Park and Brooklyn Bowl, the Knicks website said. Both events required advanced registration and were already at capacity as of Sunday afternoon.
Strict rules were put in place for those attending the game. The Knicks warned fans to bring as little as possible to Game 3 and encouraging them to arrive at least two hours before tipoff as part of enhanced security measures.
The Knicks said Saturday that a strict no-bag policy would be in place and there would be “TSA-style screening procedures” for fans when they enter Madison Square Garden for the game that is scheduled to begin just after 8:40 p.m. EDT.
The Knicks said there would be no storage at MSG for prohibited items brought to the arena. A list of them is available at https://www.secretservice.gov/prohibiteditems.
Associated Press writers Michael Sisak and Jake Offenhartz in New York contributed to this report.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
FILE - Actor Elliott Gould, left, joins Donald Trump, center, and Marla Maples at courtside during an NBA basketball game between the Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, in New York, March 6, 1991. (AP Photo/Steve Freeman, File)
FILE - Donald Trump, right, talks to an unidentified man from the stands at Madison Square Garden during the New York Knicks game against the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 11, 2006, in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)
PARIS (AP) — Moments after being announced as France's new coach on Tuesday, Zinedine Zidane clenched his fists and his usually measured voice trembled a little.
“I’m excited,” he said. “The France team makes you dream. We have extraordinary players, an extraordinary team.”
Zidane coached Real Madrid until leaving in 2021. He replaces Didier Deschamps at the helm of France team he led to glory as arguably its greatest ever player.
“I’ve waited five years for this chance, so that’s why I’m a bit emotional,” said Zidane, adding that it was the happiest day of his career as coach.
“I’ve always watched this side as a fan and also as a future coach, I won’t hide it.” Zidane added. “That’s why I didn’t take a club side. I told myself that the only thing I wanted to do after Madrid was taking the France team.”
French Football Federation president Philippe Diallo announced Zidane’s appointment at the FFF headquarters in Paris on Tuesday, saying he has been given a 4-year contract.
Diallo called the hiring of Zidane “an exceptional moment, exceptional because of the person sat next to me,” adding that Zidane “is one of the legends of French soccer.”
The 54-year-old Zidane could have gone to another club after leaving Madrid in 2021. But there was no way he would.
“I had some offers during the five years I was away to take charge of a club,” he said. “I turned them all down for the France team. It was the only thing I wanted to do.”
Zidane called it “an immense joy” taking charge.
“I have so many emotions, I am ready for the challenge,” he said. “That's what motivates me.”
Zidane praised Deschamps, who won the 2018 World Cup and stepped down after the recent edition, where Les Bleus lost in the semifinals to Spain.
“Today I have the opportunity to be in charge of this team and I will give everything so that this team can win,” Zidane said. “I would also like to congratulate DD (Deschamps) for these remarkable years.”
Diallo said he met Zidane for talks in February, 2025 after Deschamps said he would stand down after the 2026 World Cup. Zidane said France would play differently to how it did under Deschamps.
“What motivates me is the game, I was a No. 10, I like goals,” Zidane said. “I was a leader on the field and now I want to be a leader by experience.”
His first game as France coach will be away to Turkey in the Nations League on Sept. 25, followed by a match in Belgium three days later.
Home fans need to wait until Oct. 2 for a glimpse of Zidane at Stade de France, when France plays Italy, 20 years after he was sent off against Italy in the 2006 World Cup final for headbutting Italy defender Marco Materazzi in the chest.
“I’ve noted all of the four matches to come, they're in my head,” Zidane said, tapping his forehead. “Italy is special, because I played there, because I know people, because I speak Italian. All of those things.”
After the announcement, Zidane went to greet a large gathering of fans outside the federation headquarters and they cheered loudly when he arrived.
France lost the World Cup final on penalties in 2022 and lost the European Championship final on home soil in 2016. Some Deschamps critics, among them former France teammate Christophe Dugarry, said he should have won more with the players he had.
Deschamps described an “an unbreathable atmosphere” at the end of his tenure, without detailing what the tensions were.
Zidane and Deschamps were different types of midfielders, but are forever linked by glory.
The industrious Deschamps was France’s captain and the mercurial Zinedine was the creative force when France won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000.
Affectionately nicknamed “Zizou” his face was beamed onto the Arc de Triomphe the night France celebrated its first World Cup triumph in ’98. An inspired Zidane scored two headers in the final in a 3-0 win against Brazil at Stade de France and later that year he won the Ballon d’Or.
Born in Marseille to Algerian parents, Zidane’s club career took him from Cannes to Bordeaux and then to two of the world’s biggest clubs: Italian giant Juventus and Madrid.
His international career began in 1994, when he scored two stunning goals against the Czech Republic after coming on as a substitute, in front of his home fans in Bordeaux.
He won league titles with Juve and Madrid and scored a brilliant volley to help Madrid win the Champions League in 2002.
With Zidane carrying an injury, France flopped at the 2002 World Cup — going out in the group stage — but reached the final four years later after Zidane came out of international retirement.
His 108th and final game for France was against Italy in the 2006 World Cup final and he scored early with a deft Panenka-style penalty for his 31st, and last, international goal.
Then, with millions watching around the world, an infamous moment saw him walk back up the field and slam his forehead into Materazzi’s chest, sending the tall defender flying backward.
Zidane trudged past the gold-tinted World Cup trophy as he left the field in Berlin, his international career over.
His first game as France coach will be away to Turkey in the Nations League on Sept. 25, followed by a match in Belgium three days later.
Home fans need to wait until Oct. 2 for a glimpse of Zidane at Stade de France, when France plays Italy.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Zinedine Zidane, newly appointed coach of the France national soccer team, smiles during a media conference at the headquarters of French Football Federation headquarters in Paris, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
Zinedine Zidane, newly appointed coach of the France national soccer team, attends a media conference at the headquarters of French Football Federation headquarters in Paris, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
Zinedine Zidane, newly appointed coach of the France national soccer team, smiles during a media conference at the headquarters of French Football Federation headquarters in Paris, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
France head coach Didier Deschamps stands by the bench during the World Cup third-place playoff soccer match between France and England in Miami Gardens, Fla., Saturday, July 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
FILE - Zinedine Zidane of France displays the World Cup after the final of the soccer World Cup 98 between Brazil and France at the Stade de France in Saint Denis, north of Paris, Sunday, July 12, 1998. (AP Photo/Thomas Kienzle, file)
FILE - Former French player Zinedine Zidane, left, embraces Kylian Mbappe of France, as he is being presented to fans as a new Real Madrid player in Madrid, July 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas, File)
