Miscaptioned Video: Trump’s College Football Appearance Mistaken for Super Bowl
A widely shared Facebook post claimed that President Donald Trump received a standing ovation at the Super Bowl, based on a video showing Trump and First Lady Melania Trump entering a football field amidst cheers. However, the video is miscaptioned, depicting Trump’s appearance at the 2020 college football national championship game, not the Super Bowl.
Misleading Captioned Video
The Facebook post, shared nearly 4,000 times, featured a video of Trump and Melania entering a football field, along with the caption: "Trump got a standing ovation at the Super Bowl! The crowd went wild cheering for him."
Fact-Checking the Video
Contrary to the post’s claim, the video does not depict the Super Bowl. Instead, it shows Trump’s attendance at the College Football Playoff title game between Louisiana State University (LSU) and Clemson University in New Orleans on January 13, 2020.
Evidence supporting this fact includes:
- Previous Sharing: The same footage of Trump and his wife entering the field at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome was shared by CBS 17 in North Carolina on YouTube over five years ago.
- Getty Images: Getty Images captured photographs of Trump and the First Lady at the 2020 college football national championship game, where LSU defeated Clemson.
Trump’s Super Bowl Reception
While the video in question does not show Trump’s Super Bowl appearance, he did attend the Super Bowl LIX in 2025. However, his reception was a mixed bag.
Footage shared by the NFL shows the crowd cheering for Trump when he was shown saluting during the national anthem. According to USA TODAY, the president faced a mixture of cheers and boos at the game.
Debunking Related Claims
USA TODAY has debunked other social media claims related to the 2025 Super Bowl, including:
- Manipulated Video: A video that had been altered to portray a crowd booing Trump.
- Altered Image: An image that had been modified to display a supposed Trump post blaming Kansas City’s loss on "DEI nonsense."
Conclusion
The Facebook post mischaracterizes a video of Trump’s appearance at a college football game as a standing ovation at the Super Bowl. Trump’s actual reception at the Super Bowl was a combination of cheers and boos. USA TODAY’s fact-checking efforts are supported by a grant from Meta and adhere to the principles of the International Fact-Checking Network, ensuring nonpartisanship, fairness, and transparency.
