The US women’s hockey team has turned down an invitation from Donald Trump to attend his State of the Union address, following the release of footage in which he joked to the US men’s hockey team that he’d face impeachment if he failed to invite the women’s team.
Both the women’s and men’s team won gold medals for the United States at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
After the men’s team’s final victory over Canada, Trump gave a locker room call to invite them to the State of the Union address, tour the White House and travel on a military plane.
During the call, Trump joked about the women’s team, who also beat the Canada team.
“I must tell you, we’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that,” Trump said, adding that if he didn’t invite the women, “I do believe I probably would be impeached.”
A USA Hockey spokesperson says that while the women’s team did receive an invitation from Trump, they’d ultimately decided to decline.
“We are sincerely grateful for the invitation extended to our gold medal–winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team and deeply appreciate the recognition of their extraordinary achievement,” the spokesperson said.
“Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate.”
Boys club
Trump’s call to the men’s hockey team was coordinated in part by FBI director Kash Patel, who has been under fire recently for his handling of the Epstein files.
Having been criticised for his role in the alleged cover-up, Patel reportedly privately informed government officials that Trump’s name appeared in the Epstein files.
Amid the ongoing US investigations, video footage emerged this week, showing Patel chugging beers and pounding his chest in celebration with the men’s hockey team, in their locker room in Milan, after flying there on a justice department plane.
Patel’s spokesperson Ben Williamson has insisted the visit was official business, adding that Patel had a number of official meetings scheduled with Italian law enforcement and the US ambassador to Italy.
Hours before the video footage shows Patel drinking and partying in Italy, the US Secret Service had shot and killed an armed man who had driven into Trump’s Florida residence at Mar-a-Lago.
Patel responded to the incident, posting on X, to say that the FBI was “dedicating all necessary resources in the investigation”.