Donald Trump has secured a remarkable comeback victory over Kamala Harris and is set to return to the White House in January 2025.
With his bombastic remarks and unpredictable nature, the Trump presidency of 2017-2021 produced no shortage of lively headlines. During the next four years, the spotlight will be on America, not only to see what Trump does next, but also because the US is hosting a series of international events, and marking a major milestone in the nation’s history.
Here, Yahoo News takes a look at three moments that Trump will preside over as US president.
When: 4 July, 2026
Where: Across the US
It’s one of the biggest holidays in the United States: 4 July is the annual celebration of the United States’s independence from Britain in 1776.
Americans across the country celebrate with barbecues, parades, concerts and firework displays, but 2026’s Independence Day will be a particularly special milestone – marking 250 years of nationhood.
Events already in the pipeline include the Semiquincentennial Philadelphia Welcome America Festival – a 16-day programme of concerts, parades, educational activities, block parties and firework displays.
Speaking last year, Trump set out his plans to mark the milestone, declaring that on “day one” of his presidency, he would set up a taskforce named “Salute to America 250”, which would work with state and local governments to ensure “not just one day of celebrations, but an entire year of festivities across the nation”.
The now president-elect mentioned a “special one-time festival” attended by “millions of people from around the world” at the “legendary” Iowa State Fairground, as well as major sporting contests for high school athletes.
“These patriot games will allow young Americans from every state to show off the best of American skills, sportsmanship and competitive spirit,” he said. The Republican also said he would sign an executive order to bring back the National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture garden proposed by Trump during his previous presidency.
Trump anticipated a “record year” for tourism, saying “we’re going to have a lot of people coming”.
When: 11 June – 19 July, 2026
Where: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle (plus Canada and Mexico)
FIFA is reportedly expecting three million international visitors to the United States, Canada and Mexico as the three countries jointly host the football World Cup in 2026.
With roughly seven million tickets expected to be available for the tournament of 48 teams, Trump does not appear to be understating an anticipated boom in US tourism in two summers’ time, with fixtures set in Los Angeles, Seattle, New York, Boston, Dallas, Miami and other parts of the States.
The final, on 19 July, is due to take place at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, and Trump is likely to be there, as it is customary for the leader of the host country to present the World Cup trophy to the winner alongside FIFA’s president.
However, this isn’t a guarantee. When the USA last hosted the tournament in 1994, then-president Bill Clinton did not attend the final between Italy and Brazil, with former vice president Al Gore instead presenting the cup to the South American victors.
In a meeting with FIFA president Gianni Infantino in 2018 after winning the right to host the 2026 tournament, Trump said: “It’s a very special event. I think it’s probably certainly one of the biggest, and maybe the biggest sporting event in the world.
“And soccer has come such a long way. Soccer is a game — I guess you call it ‘football’. But, over here, maybe at some point, they’ll change the name. I’m not sure, but we’ll see.”
When: 14 July to 30 July, 2028
Where: Los Angeles
The eyes of the world will once again be on America as Los Angeles hosts the Olympic Games, which is expected to see an estimated 15 million visitors passing through the City of Angels.
As a city not known for having a convenient and efficient public transport network, LA mayor Karen Bass’ declaration that the event would be a “a no-car games” has already presented a logistical nightmare for organisers.
It is not clear how many events Trump will attend in 2028, but he is likely to officially open the Olympics, as is customary for the leaders of all host nations.
Despite efforts for the US to host the Olympic games being well underway during Barack Obama’s presidency, Trump was ready to take the credit for it in 2017. This year, on his Truth Social platform, he wrote: “As President-Elect, I worked with the Olympic Organising Committee of Los Angeles in getting the 2028 Olympics to come to the United States… There was tremendous competition from other countries.”
In early 2020, then-president Trump said the games would be a “major economic victory,” which will “create 112,000 jobs and add $18 billion (£13.85 billion) to our economy, at least”.
