‘A Lot of Boos’: JD and Usha Vance Face Hostile Reception at Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony

Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance were met with a chorus of boos, whistles, and jeers when they appeared on the jumbotron during the 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Milan on Friday—a stinging rebuke on the world’s biggest sporting stage that underscored the Trump administration’s deteriorating standing with European allies.

The hostile reception at San Siro Stadium came despite a pre-emptive plea from International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry just days earlier for spectators to “be respectful” of American officials. The incident capped a week of anti-Trump protests across Milan and revealed the deep chasm between the administration’s domestic swagger and its international isolation.

The Moment Captured Live

As Team USA athletes entered the stadium during the Parade of Nations to enthusiastic cheers from the crowd, the mood shifted dramatically when cameras panned to the Vances waving miniature American flags from their seats in the grandstand.

“There’s the vice president, JD Vance, and his wife, Usha—oop,” NBC commentator Mary Carillo said during the broadcast. “Those are not—oh, those are a lot of boos for him. Whistling, jeering, some applause,” according to The Daily Beast.

The reaction was even more pronounced on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) feed. “Oop…those are a lot of boos for him …whistling, jeering, some applause. Not a long shot for him on the screen there,” broadcaster Adrienne Arsenault said, according to Newsweek.

A source inside the stadium told The Daily Beast that, unlike most other national leaders during the Parade of Nations, Vance’s name was not even announced.

The Independent’s Flo Clifford, reporting from inside San Siro Stadium, noted “a largely positive reception for the US contingent — there are thousands of American fans in the stadium — but very definite boos and jeers for vice president JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, who the camera pans to waving American flags for a few brief seconds.”

A Rare Olympic Spectacle

Veteran Olympic reporter Christine Brennan, who has covered 22 Olympic Games, emphasized the rarity of such a reception.

“It’s very rare to hear boos at an Olympic opening ceremony,” Brennan wrote on X. “In my 22 Olympics it probably has happened but I sure don’t remember it. Vice President JD Vance just got booed when he appeared on the big screen. The US athletes, on the other hand, received loud cheers.”

The contrast was stark: Team USA, led by speed skater Erin Jackson carrying the American flag, received warm applause from the crowd. The boos were reserved specifically for the vice president and his wife, according to USA Today.

The IOC’s Failed Plea

The hostile reception came despite IOC President Coventry’s explicit request just two days earlier for spectators to show restraint.

At a press conference on Wednesday, when asked whether it would be understandable if Americans were jeered during the opening ceremony given the “geopolitical backdrop” and Milan’s mayor calling ICE agents “a militia that kills,” Coventry responded diplomatically, according to Entertainment Weekly.

“I hope that the opening ceremony is seen by everyone as an opportunity to be respectful of each other,” Coventry said. “When we went to the [Olympic] village that is the best reminder of how we should be. You see athletes from every walk of life. No one is asking what country they come from or what religion. They are all just hanging out.”

“It was a real opportunity to put into perspective how we could be and so, for me, I hope that the opening ceremony will do that and will be a reminder for everyone how we could be,” she added, according to the same sources.

The Guardian reported that “Olympic officials have quietly expressed hope the ceremony will unfold without political demonstrations directed at American athletes or officials,” according to Town & Country.

The crowd ignored the plea entirely.

Political Trolling and Social Media Reaction

Former Vice President Kamala Harris’s team seized on the moment. The “HQ” account operated by Harris’s team posted a video of Vance’s cold reception with the caption: “Everyone booed anyway. Sad!”—invoking a classic Trump phrase, according to The Daily Beast.

Viewers online were quick to react, with one American user writing: “USA got cheered loudly and when they showed JD Vance they immediately got booed loudly lmao.”

Activist Harry Sisson shared on X: “JD Vance just had the entire stadium booing him at the Olympics in Italy. So humiliating.”

The ICE Controversy: Fuel for the Fire

The boos did not occur in a vacuum. They came against the backdrop of widespread Italian anger over the Trump administration’s decision to send Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Milan as part of the U.S. delegation’s security detail.

On Friday morning, just hours before the opening ceremony, hundreds of protesters rallied in Milan against the presence of ICE agents, according to Reuters and multiple sources. Demonstrators chanted slogans, blew whistles, and set off flares, criticizing the deployment of ICE officials in Italy.

The protests focused on ICE’s role in President Trump’s deportation policies, with banners reading “ICE OUT” and “ICE should be in my drinks not my city.” Student-led demonstrators directed messages at Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging them to leave the city.

Thousands of Italians took to the streets on Saturday to protest the presence of ICE at the Winter Olympics, voicing frustrations with what many see as a desecration of democracy within the United States, according to The Daily Beast.

Team USA, led by speed skater Erin Jackson carrying the American flag, received warm applause from the crowd. The boos were reserved specifically for the vice president and his wife, according to USA Today.

Alessandro Capella, the head of the Italian Democratic Party’s Milan chapter, told NPR: “It’s not just for the Olympic Games, it’s about justice in the world. We don’t want here ICE,” according to The Daily Beast.

The backlash in Italy followed disclosure that analysts linked to a branch under U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would support the U.S. delegation during the Olympics, as is common at previous Games, according to Global News. However, the Trump administration’s controversial immigration enforcement policies—including images of brutality from ICE’s crackdown in Minneapolis that resulted in the deaths of two American citizens—had made this a particularly sensitive issue, according to The Daily Beast.

The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee clarified that no agents from ICE were providing security for Team USA specifically.

Italian and European Press Coverage

While major Italian newspapers like Corriere della Sera and La Repubblica did not appear to give extensive standalone coverage to the booing incident itself in immediately available English-language reports, European media outlets documented the tension surrounding Vance’s visit.

The Guardian, Britain’s leading progressive newspaper, had reported ahead of the ceremony that Olympic officials hoped the event would unfold without political demonstrations.

The BBC covered the booing incident in its Olympics coverage, with video clips circulating on Yahoo News showing Vance’s reception.

Reuters, the international news agency, extensively covered the Milan protests against ICE’s presence, providing European audiences with context for the hostile atmosphere surrounding the American delegation.

The incident received significant attention in Canadian media, with both CBC’s live broadcast commentary and Global News providing detailed coverage of the boos and the broader political context.

The Diplomatic Tightrope

Vance’s visit to Milan was supposed to showcase American-Italian friendship. He met with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday, and his office said they discussed “the strength of bilateral relations between the nations, the Olympics and mutual efforts to improve the business and investment climate,” according to Newsweek.

However, even Meloni—who has cultivated a close relationship with President Trump—has recently sided with top U.S. allies in Europe over Trump’s bid to take over Greenland. The divergence suggests limits to the populist alliance between Trump and Europe’s nationalist right.

Vance was seated at the ceremony next to Italian President Sergio Mattarella and IOC President Coventry. When Mattarella was introduced, the crowd cheered enthusiastically—a stark contrast to Vance’s reception moments later, according to Fox News.

Other Controversial Receptions

Israel’s Olympic team also faced boos as they entered during the Parade of Nations, with some spectators protesting the war in Gaza. There had been calls for Israel to be banned from the Games, according to Newsweek.

In contrast, Ukraine received lengthy, enthusiastic applause from the crowd.

The loudest greeting was reserved for host Italy, whose athletes walked in to an electronic version of “The Barber of Seville,” according to Newsweek.

Vance’s Olympic Itinerary

Despite the hostile reception, Vance had expressed enthusiasm about attending the Olympics. “I had been excited to go to the Olympics in Milan pretty much since I became vice president,” he told reporters.

Earlier on Friday, Vance attended the team figure skating event at the Milano Ice Skating Arena with Rubio and his family, according to Fox News.

On Thursday, Vance was spotted with Rubio at the U.S. women’s ice hockey game against the Czech Republic, which the Americans won 5-1, according to Fox News and multiple sources. However, even that appearance generated negative reactions, with social media users expressing dismay at seeing Vance during the broadcast, according to HuffPost Sports.

“GAG!! JD Vance is there watching the women’s hockey game. Gross!!!!!!!,” one viewer wrote on X, according to HuffPost.

“Just got jump scared by jd vance while watching womens hockey i hate it here,” another posted, according to the same source.

Notably absent from the Milan ceremony was President Trump himself, who has frequently attended domestic sporting events including the College Football Playoff National Championship and Super Bowl 5.

A Pattern of Public Rejection

This is not the first time Vance has been publicly booed. Entertainment Weekly noted that “this round of boos comes almost a year after Vance was booed loudly as he entered the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. in March” 2025.

The Olympics booing, however, represents a far more visible and internationally significant rebuke—broadcast live to billions of viewers worldwide and occurring in the heart of a major European ally.

The Milano Cortina Games feature almost 3,000 athletes from 90 countries competing across multiple venues, according to Newsweek. The opening ceremony is traditionally a celebration of international unity and Olympic ideals.

That Vance—representing the world’s most powerful nation—would be singled out for sustained booing at such an event speaks volumes about how the Trump administration is perceived by international audiences.

As one sports commentator noted, the cheers that accompanied American athletes made clear that the hostility was directed not at the United States or its people, but specifically at the Trump-Vance administration’s policies and conduct.

The incident encapsulates a fundamental tension of the Trump era: domestic political posturing that plays well with the MAGA base often generates international revulsion, leaving American officials to navigate an increasingly hostile global environment.

For Vance and Usha Vance, their moment on the Olympic stage—which should have been a ceremonial highlight of the vice presidency—instead became a very public illustration of America’s diminished standing under Trump’s leadership.

This story was aggregated by AI from several news reports and edited by American Kahani’s News Desk.