Donald Trump sends message to Ferran Torres after Spain hero wears MAGA-style hat

Ferran Torres’ MAGA-style hat was a ‘nice tribute’, says US President Donald Trump (Picture: Getty)

Donald Trump has branded Ferran Torres a ‘great player’ and thanked the forward for his ‘nice tribute’ after the forward was pictured wearing a ‘Make Spain Great Again’ cap during his side’s World Cup celebrations.

Torres made himself an overnight national hero in this summer’s scrappy and bad-tempered World Cup final, coming off the bench to thunder home a dramatic extra-time winner for Spain against Argentina.

The 26-year-old Barcelona attacker, formerly of Manchester City, had been on the receiving end of heavy criticism from fans and pundits alike across La Roja’s campaign but made sure to silence his doubters with a goal that will go down in history.

The strike saw Spain win their second World Cup, 16 years after their previous global triumph in 2010 and two years on from their Euro 2024 victory over England.

Violent post-match scuffles involving the two sets of players threatened to shadow Spain’s celebrations in New Jersey, with runners-up Argentina widely condemned for their gamesmanship and shoddy behaviour in the aftermath.

But these ugly scenes were quickly swept aside as Rodri made his way to the podium at MetLife Stadium to collect the coveted prize from United States President Trump, who tried his very best to gatecrash the trophy lift.

Just moments earlier, Mikel Merino appeared to mock Trump on the stage, while both Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martinez declined a handshake from the 80-year-old as the two Argentina defenders went up to receive their runners-up medals.

Torres was the hero as Spain overcame Argentina in last weekend’s World Cup final (Picture: Getty)

The Barcelona striker sported the cap during Spain’s celebrations in Madrid (Picture: Getty)

The following day, though, Torres gave a nod to Trump as Luis de la Fuente’s jubilant squad joined to celebrate the title with their adoring fans back home in Madrid.

Capturing the incredible scenes from Spain’s open-top bus, the striker filmed himself screaming, ‘Vamos!’, while donning a red MAGA-style hat emblazoned with the words, ‘Make Spain Great Again’.

‘Everyone wants in on the movement,’ a tweet from the official account of The White House read alongside a video of Torres’ antics in the Spanish capital.

Everyone wants in on the movement. https://t.co/FeCJrFZyEE— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 21, 2026

On Friday, Trump gave his reaction to Torres’ apparent hat-tip, which he described as a ‘very great compliment’ and a ‘nice tribute’.

‘He is a great player,’ Trump told reporters.

‘He was wearing essentially a “Make America Great Again” cap and I think he meant that very nicely and we appreciate it. He made America great.

‘I know that he meant it as a very great compliment so it was a nice tribute.’

Trump proved a constant source of controversy at the World Cup, making sure to insert himself at the centre of the US’ story after Folarin Balogun was shown a red card in the side’s group-stage victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The sending off meant the Monaco striker, formerly of Arsenal, had been due to miss the co-hosts’ all-important round-of-16 tie with Belgium through suspension.

However, Balogun’s one-match ban was subsequently suspended for a year by FIFA, a decision which left the Belgian Football Association ‘astonished’ and ‘investigating potential options’.

It later emerged that United States President Trump had spoken privately with FIFA chief Gianni Infantino on the phone, encouraging the governing body to ‘review’ their initial call.

Infantino and Trump handed the trophy to Spain’s jubilant squad in New Jersey (Picture: Getty)

Featuring as a guest on The Daily Show in the week, women’s football legend Megan Rapinoe accused Trump of contributing to the US’ demise and throwing Mauricio Pochettino’s side ‘off their game’.

Asked how Trump’s intervention may have affected the national team, the former USA and Seattle Reign midfielder replied: ‘Certainly not well!

‘It didn’t give them the boost, maybe, that were thinking it would or that Trump was hoping that it would.