NEW YORK – U.S. President Donald Trump was the target of boos during the U.S. Open men’s final on Sunday. The heightened security measures imposed for his visit caused long lines, forcing many people to miss the start of the match, even after organizers postponed it.
Dressed in a suit and a long red tie, Trump emerged from his suite about 45 minutes before the match began and heard a mixture of boos and cheers coming from the still-nearly empty Arthur Ashe Stadium. His appearance, without any announcement, was so brief that some spectators missed it.
Trump reappeared to boos before the national anthem. The president stood to acknowledge the crowd and appeared briefly on the big screens during the anthem, flashing a wry smile that only intensified the booing.
After the anthem, the Republican president gestured to a small group of supporters seated nearby, then sat on the balcony of his suite to watch the match attentively. Trump generally did not applaud, even after key moments that galvanized the rest of the crowd, such as Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz’s victory over Italian Jannik Sinner.
Trump reappeared on the big screen after the first set, prompting boos and mocking whistles. He raised his left fist in a salute to the crowd, as cheers continued in the 24,000-seat stadium, one of the largest in tennis.
The president then returned to the pavilion, where he was seen sitting at a table with his family. He appeared to be eating, but returned to his seat just before match point. Cameras briefly filmed Trump celebrating, but his reaction at the end was as muted as it had been for most of the match. This time, the crowd’s reaction was also muted.
Organizers delayed the start of the match by half an hour to give the crowd time to clear the extensive security checkpoints, reminiscent of those at airports. Despite this, thousands of increasingly frustrated fans remained in single file outside the stadium at the start of the match. Many seats, especially those in the upper tiers, remained empty for nearly an hour.
The Secret Service issued a statement saying that protecting Trump “required an all-out effort,” noting that this “may have contributed to the delay.”
“We sincerely thank all fans for their patience and understanding,” it added.
Trump attended the final as a guest of Rolex, despite the imposition of high customs duties on the Swiss watchmaker’s homeland. The U.S. Tennis Federation also attempted to limit negative reactions to Trump’s appearance on national television, stating in a statement before the match: “We routinely ask our broadcasters to refrain from broadcasting any off-court disturbances.”
However, the reactions to Trump ultimately did not amount to major disturbances.
His appearance at the U.S. Open is the latest example of Trump prioritizing major sporting events during his second term, rather than traveling to make policy announcements or shout slogans that he favored during his candidacy.
Since returning to the White House in January, and before the U.S. Open began on Sunday, Trump has attended the Super Bowl in New Orleans and the Daytona 500, as well as UFC fights in Miami and Newark, New Jersey, a college wrestling tournament in Philadelphia, and the FIFA Club World Cup Final in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Some of these spectators cheered him, but others booed him on other occasions.
The president accepted Rolex’s invitation despite his administration’s imposition of a massive 39% tariff on Swiss products. This amount is more than two and a half times higher than the tariffs applied to European Union exports to the United States and nearly four times higher than the tariffs applied to British exports to the United States.
The White House declined to comment on Trump’s acceptance of a corporate invitation to the tournament, but the president has not hesitated to blur the lines between political decisions, foreign policy, and efforts to boost the profits of his family business. He has tirelessly promoted his interests in cryptocurrencies and luxury golf, even announcing that the United States would host the G20 summit in December 2026 at his golf resort in Doral, Florida.
There were no major public protests against Trump on the tournament’s central course on Sunday. However, participants also avoided wearing the “Make America Great Again” caps worn by Republicans.
A 58-year-old tennis fan from Turin, Italy, traveled from her home in the Boston area to watch the final. She explained that she chose a fuchsia cap for the US Open to avoid confusion with the dark color of MAGA caps.
“I made sure not to buy the red one,” said the fan, who requested anonymity due to her employer’s public communication rules.
Those in attendance alongside Trump included White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and White House Chief of Staff Suzi Wiles. Trump spent several moments during the match chatting with various people around him.
Among those in attendance were numerous celebrities, some of whom publicly endorsed then-Vice President Kamala Harris in last year’s election. They included Pink, Bruce Springsteen, and Shonda Rhimes. During pre-match interviews with stars like Martha Stewart and Jon Hamm, broadcast on a giant screen in the stadium, questions focused on tennis and pop culture, not Trump and politics.
However, the president was so enthusiastic about his trip that he told reporters aboard Air Force One on his flight to New York that the plane had flown over Ashe Stadium, even though the roof prevented those inside from responding.
Trump was a headliner at the US Open, but he hasn’t attended since being booed during a quarterfinal match in September 2015, a few months after launching his first presidential campaign.
The Trump Organization previously controlled its US Open suite, adjacent to the stadium’s television broadcast booth, but closed it in 2017, during the first year of Trump’s first term. Trump’s sons now run the family business, with their father back in the White House.
Trump was born in Queens, the birthplace of the US Open, and for decades was a New York City-area real estate mogul and later a reality TV star. Before becoming a politician, he attended the tournament, usually sitting on the balcony of his company suite during the evening matches, and often appearing on the venue’s screens.
