At the men’s final of the US Open 2025 held at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York on September 7, 2025, President Donald Trump’s appearance became a major talking point — not because of the tennis, but because of the stadium-wide reaction the moment he was shown on screen.
Reuters+3The Guardian+3AP News+3
The crowd’s reaction was immediate and sustained: jeers, boos and whistles echoed through the stadium whenever Trump appeared on the big screen. One particularly pointed moment came during the national anthem, when his salute was followed by a chorus of boos louder than the cheers.
In the lead-up to the match, the event organisers had reportedly asked broadcasters not to air crowd reactions directed at Trump. A memo from the United States Tennis Association (USTA) requested that networks refrain from showcasing any disruptions or protests in response to the President’s attendance.
Despite the request, instances of the boos and whistles were captured on mobile phones and circulated widely on social media — the crowd noise could not be fully controlled. As one report noted,
“They knew exactly what would happen, but no matter how much they tried to control it, they couldn’t stop the dozens of phones recording everything.”
Meanwhile, backstage and inside the VIP suite, the optics reportedly became more awkward. The President had been invited to the event by the luxury watch brand Rolex, despite his administration’s previous imposition of heavy import tariffs on Swiss-made watches.
AP News Some attendees recorded long entry delays caused by heightened security, which may have added to crowd frustration. AP News+1
One particularly uncomfortable scenario: Trump’s original plan apparently included handing out the championship trophy on-court. But given the crowd reaction and the likelihood of boos growing even louder if he stepped into the spotlight again, the moment was quietly scaled back or arranged so that he did not become the centre of a further spectacle. Observers noted that the trophy was placed waiting in the suite, but the ceremony proceeded without a prominent Trump moment.
For President Trump, the event became a painful reminder of the shifting attitudes of the New York crowd and the difficulty of blending political image-making with a sports audience. The cheers he may have expected were drowned out by sustained disapproval — and while the cameras may have tried to suppress it, the audience’s reaction could not be edited away.
💭 FINAL THOUGHT:
In the world of live events and media optics, it isn’t just what’s staged that matters — it’s what the audience chooses to show. When the crowd turns on you, even the most controlled appearance can backfire.
