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President Donald Trump arrived at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Saturday for the 126th installment of the Army-Navy game, hours after officials said two U.S. Army soldiers and a U.S. interpreter were killed in an ambush in Syria.
The president called out the attack in a Truth Social post shared just an hour before kickoff.
“We mourn the loss of three great American patriots in Syria, two soldiers and a civilian interpreter. We also pray for the three wounded soldiers who, it has just been confirmed, are doing well,” Trump said. “This was an ISIS attack against the United States, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria that is not fully controlled by them. The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack. There will be very serious retaliation. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
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Saturday marks Trump’s seventh appearance in the match, participating every year from 2016 to 2020, as well as last year’s affair. The 2016 game was also the last time the game was played in Baltimore, with Army winning 21-17 to snap Navy’s 14-game winning streak over the Black Knights.
“Getting ready to land at Fort McHenry for my short drive to the Army-Navy Game. Everyone asks who do I support, Army or Navy? My answer is, ‘You’ve got to be kidding if you think I’m going to give you that answer!'” Trump later wrote on Truth Social.
Last year’s game was in Landover, Maryland, at Northwest Stadium, home of the Washington Commanders. Trump joined the fray with Vice President JD Vance, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Elon Musk, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Daniel Penny, who was acquitted of charges in the death of Jordan Neely.
Last year, Army won the AAC for the first conference title in program history. The Black Knights were in the Top 25 before losing 31-13 to Navy. This year is a chance for the army to seek redemption.
This game will decide the winner of the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, which goes to the winner of the annual round-robin competition of the Army, Navy and Air Force. Navy won it last year by sweeping the other two academies, marking the first time a team has won the trophy since 2017.
If all three teams go 1-1 against each other, the previous year’s winner retains the trophy, but both Army and Navy earned narrow victories over Air Force this season, making this week’s matchup a winner-take-all contest.
Army has not defeated an AP-ranked Navy team since 1955. The Midshipmen were in the College Football Playoff rankings – but not the AP Top 25 – when they lost to Army in 2016. Navy is currently ranked 22nd in the AP poll but is not ranked by the CFP committee.
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Both teams have secured bowl bids – the Black Knights (6-5) to the Fenway Bowl and the 9-2 Midshipmen to the Liberty Bowl.
Navy finished first in the AAC and missed the league title game due to tiebreaks. Tulane won the conference title game and earned a bid to the College Football Playoff.
