Trump Eyes UFC Fight At White House For 250th Anniversary — Could USA Soccer Join? - TKO Group Holdings (NYSE:TKO)

The celebration of America's 250^th birthday is less than a year away and work is already being done on the planning for the country's semiquincentennial.

Sports fans could get treated to live events happening at the White House on July 4, 2026, and in a different U.S. city to celebrate the historic American anniversary.

UFC at White House Proposed: President Donald Trump has been a big fan of the UFC, the mixed martial arts company owned by TKO Group Holdings Inc TKO, for years.

The president recently said that he was considering hosting a UFC fight at the White House as part of America's 250^th anniversary celebration. The UFC confirmed to Front Office Sports that the discussions are real and underway.

July 4, 2026, will mark the 250^th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and watching professional fighters beat each other up at the White House could be one of the key celebrations for Americans across the country.

UFC has taken part in fights around the world in unique venues, but creating an Octagon inside or outside the White House could be among the biggest challenges yet. A UFC fight would also mark the first pro sports event hosted at the White House if the talks lead to an official event.

U.S. Soccer Celebration: The U.S. Men's National Soccer Team is one of several co-hosts for the 2026 World Cup and has already qualified for the tournament as a result.

This year's World Cup will feature 48 teams for the first time, as opposed to the 32 that have been included every four years in recent tournament history. The top two teams of each group (12 groups) along with the eight best third-place teams will qualify for the Round of 32.

It is currently unknown which group Team USA will be part of. If they manage to make it past their group and into the Round of 32, they could set up a huge American anniversary celebration.

Two of the Round of 16 games will be played on July 4, 2026, with one played in Houston and one played in Philadelphia. While neither game will take place in Washington, D.C., as American sports go, this could be one of the biggest in Team USA history.

The U.S. Men's National Soccer Team previously played on July 4, 1994, losing 1-0 to Brazil in the Round of 16. The U.S. Women's National Soccer Team previously played on July 4, 1999, defeating Brazil 2-0 in the semifinals to advance to the tournament final.

Neither of those events happened during a huge anniversary year like the potential of Team USA playing on the country's semiquincentennial.

Of course, to make it to the Round of 16, Team USA may have to be playing better than recent matches, after losing the Gold Cup final to Mexico over the Fourth of July weekend this year. Team USA is currently ranked with the 13^th best odds to win the World Cup at DraftKings Inc DKNG at +4,000.

Fox Corp FOX, which has the U.S. rights to the 2026 World Cup games, is likely to see strong viewership the longer Team USA is in it.

While it's a year away and logistics need to be worked out and Team USA needs to make the right Round of 16 game, there is the possibility that sports fans get to watch Joey Chestnut eat hot dogs, Team USA win a World Cup Round of 16 game and watch UFC fighters compete in a White House Octagon all on the country's birthday.

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