Donald Trump was expected to attend this weekend’s matchup between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Penn State Nittany Lions, but it appears he has decided not to go.
As reported by Joe Lister of Onward State, Trump is no longer anticipated to be at Saturday’s top-five showdown in the Big Ten.
“Donald Trump is no longer set to attend Penn State football’s Saturday matchup against Ohio State, a university spokesperson told Onward State,” Lister wrote on Wednesday.
“Reports of Trump’s attendance first came out on Thursday, before Penn State confirmed that a private citizen invited the former president to watch the game with them.”
It’s not clear why Trump has decided not to attend this weekend’s game since sporting events has been a vital part of Trump’s campaign with one prominent strategist even declaring his appearances at sporting events as a “winning strategy” for him in the 2024 election.
“It’s a great visibility thing,” Republican strategist Larry Shaheen said earlier this year of Trump’s decision to attend sporting events, saying that the average fan in the stands “fits his base.”
“With all his flaws and character issues, it’s funny because he has been a hero of the working man over the course of the last several years,” Shaheen said according to The Charlotte Observer. “It’s a winning strategy.”
Needless to say, this decision led to a lot of reactions on social media.
“Hooray!!! Let’s get back to football,” one fan wrote.
“He saw the Buckeyes offense on Saturday and changed his mind,” another fan added.
“Because he knows he’d be booed,” another fan said.
“Well, at least traffic won’t be as insane,” another fan said.
“Was not looking forward to the logistical nightmare that this would’ve caused,” another fan added.
“Awesome. Keep politics out of sports,” another fan said.
We’ll have to see where Trump decides to go instead in the final days before the election.
