White House visits by championship teams
In the United States, the winner of a professional championship game, such as the Super Bowl or World Series, often visits the White House after winning said championship. Usually, the championship team meets with whoever the president of the United States is at the time, and the president gives a speech related to the team.
History
Although the exact start of the tradition of championship teams visiting the White House is unknown, the earliest known time it happened was on August 30, 1865.[1] On that day, then president Andrew Johnson welcomed two amateur baseball teams to the White House: the Brooklyn Atlantics and Washington Nationals. The Atlantics visited because they had won the championship the previous season, and the Nationals visited because Johnson was a fan of the team.[2]
The first time a professional sports team visited the White House was in 1869 when the Cincinnati Red Stockings visited Ulysses S. Grant at the White House. It was not until 1924 that the first "Big Four" sports team visited the White House, that being the Washington Senators.[3]
In 1963, John F. Kennedy welcomed the Boston Celtics to the White House, that being the first time an NBA team visited the White House.[4]
Visit refusals
In 1984, NBA player Larry Bird turned down his team's invitation stating, "If the president wants to see me, he knows where to find me.” Michael Jordan, after winning his first title with the Chicago Bulls in 1991, did not attend the team's visit because he wanted to play golf.[5]
In 2011, Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas refused an invitation to visit the White House after the team's Stanley Cup win due to his belief that the federal government had grown out of control under the presidency of Barack Obama.[6]
During the first presidency of Donald Trump many teams and individual players refused to visit the White House due to objections against the administration.[7]
In 2018, after the Philadelphia Eagles won Super Bowl LII and were invited to the White House, president Trump revoked the invite due to a potential boycott from the Eagles players.[8]
Following the team's 2018 Stanley Cup win, three members of the Washington Capitals declined their invitation to visit the White House. While Braden Holtby and Devante Smith-Pelly refused due to conflicting personal beliefs, Brett Connolly explained that he did so out of respect for Smith-Pelly.[9]
During the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup when asked if she was excited about potentially visiting the White House along with the United States women's national soccer team, Megan Rapinoe replied that she would not be going and doubted she would even be invited. In response Trump shared on Twitter that he would invite the team whether they won or lost. Rapinoe's teammate Ali Krieger agreed she had no interest in a White House visit as she did not support the administration's policies.[10] The team did not end up visiting the White House.[11]
In April 2025, twelve Philadelphia Eagles players skipped out on their invitation to visit the White House after the team's Super Bowl win.[12]
List of leagues, events, and organizations whose champions visit the White House
| League/organization/event | First visit | First team/group/person to visit |
|---|---|---|
| MLB | 1924 | Washington Senators |
| Little League World Series | 1992 | Long Beach Little League |
| NBA | 1963 | Boston Celtics |
| WNBA | 2000 | Houston Comets[13] |
| NFL | 1980 | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| NHL | 1983 | New York Islanders |
| MLS | 1998 | D.C. United |
| NWSL | 2024 | Gotham FC[14] |
| Olympians | 1961 | Wilma Rudolph[15][16] |
| NASCAR | 1978 | 500+ guests (including Bill France Sr. and Bill France Jr.[17]) |
| Tour de France | 2001 | Lance Armstrong |
| NCAA FBS Football | 1961 | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| NCAA FCS Football | 1995 | Youngstown State Penguins |
| NCAA men's basketball | 1976 | Indiana Hoosiers |
| NCAA women's basketball | 2009 | UConn Huskies[18] |
References
- ^ "How White House visits became a U.S. tradition". ESPN.com. 2016-03-01. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ Knight, Molly (2023-04-07). "Which Sports Teams Do Get to Visit the White House?". Vulture. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ "When did championship teams start visiting the White House?". Yahoo Sports. 2019-11-05. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ "White House championship visits over the years". Yardbarker. 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ Stephens, Sean (February 9, 2017). "How Did Athletes Visiting the President at the White House Become a Tradition?". RollingStone.com. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
- ^ Cohen, Tom (January 24, 2012). "Star goalie snubs White House". CNN.com. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
- ^ Gaines, Cork. "Championship teams visiting the White House has turned into a mess — here is how Trump and the teams have wrecked the tradition". Business Insider. Retrieved 2025-03-04.
- ^ "Will the 2025 Super Bowl Champions Visit the White House? All About the Decades-Long Tradition (and Why President Trump Revoked Philadelphia's Last Invitation)". People.com. Retrieved 2025-03-04.
- ^ Wyshynksi, Greg (Mar 22, 2019). "Caps G Holtby declines White House invitation". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
- ^ Oprysko, Caitlin (June 26, 2019). "Trump goes after women's soccer star who said she'd refuse to go 'to the f—ing White House'". politico.com. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
- ^ West, Jenna (December 9, 2019). "USWNT Received Private Invite From White House to Visit After World Cup". si.com. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
- ^ Lazarus Caplan, Anna (April 29, 2025). "A Dozen Philadelphia Eagles Players Skip White House Visit with Donald Trump". People.com. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
- ^ Haney, Grant. "The Legacy of the Houston Comets: Pioneers of Women's Basketball". tshaonline.org. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
- ^ Madani, Doha (September 23, 2024). "For the first time, White House welcomes National Women's Soccer League champions". nbcnews.com. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
- ^ Shogan, Colleen (June 23, 2021). "Olympian Wilma Rudolph Visits the White House". whitehousehistory.org. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
- ^ "Olympians at the White House: Historical Highlights". whitehousehistory.org. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
- ^ "NASCAR Visits the White House | Goldmine | UNC Charlotte". goldmine.charlotte.edu. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
- ^ Medina, Mark (April 28, 2009). "Barack Obama wins game of P-I-G against UConn women's basketball team". latimes.com. Retrieved August 19, 2025.