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U.S. President Donald Trump has commended Spain's World Cup hero Ferran Torres for sporting a "Make Spain Great Again" cap during the trophy celebrations, concluding it was a "tremendous compliment" rather than a mockery.
Torres netted the only goal in a tense final against Argentina to secure Spain's second men's world championship last Sunday in New Jersey. The Barcelona forward joined his teammates in a bleary-eyed victory parade through Madrid the next day, flaunting some heavy heads, the trophy and, in Torres's case, a controversial hat.
The 26-year-old was photographed donning the red baseball cap throughout much of the festivities. Trump's presidential campaign bore the slogan "Make America Great Again," and the President was certain he had found another admirer in Torres.
"Well, he's a tremendous player and he was wearing, essentially, a 'Make America Great Again' cap. So it was a nice tribute and I think he meant that very kindly. We appreciate it," Trump told reporters gathered at the White House on Friday.
"I saw him wearing the, essentially, 'Make America Great Again' hat, and I know that he meant it as a very great compliment and we appreciate it."
It remains unclear what Torres intended by wearing the cap, as the player has yet to make any public statement about his motives. In the absence of any clarity, the vacuum has been filled by widespread politicization of the gesture.
The Politicization of Spain's World Cup Win
Torres could have basked in a far less contentious celebration of what may well prove to be the defining moment of his entire professional career. The striker who gave himself the nickname 'El Tiburón'—The Shark—had a sandbar shark named in his honor at the Oceanogràfic de València, the largest aquarium in Europe.
Instead, images of Torres's cap, which he largely wore back-to-front, were seized upon by social media accounts linked to the White House and the far-right Spanish political party Vox.
Spain risked becoming an uncomfortable World Cup champion for a tournament hosted on U.S. soil under Trump's administration. Tensions between the two nations have flared over the U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, Spain's defense budget increases within NATO, and the use of jointly-operated military bases at Morón and Rota amid the U.S. conflict with Iran. Trump has labeled the European country a "terrible partner" and threatened in March to "cut off all trade with Spain."
"We don't want anything to do with Spain," he said.
Torres's cap, whether intentional or not, appears to have softened Trump's position, at least toward one Spaniard.