James Rodríguez Snubs President Petro’s Daughter at World Cup Send-Off — And Colombia Can’t Stop Talking About It

It lasted perhaps three seconds. But it has consumed Colombia’s social media landscape, and the nation will not stop talking about it.

At a ceremonial send-off for the Colombian national football team at Bogotá’s CATAM military air base on Thursday, President Gustavo Petro presided over an official flag-handover ceremony ahead of the squad’s departure for the United States and the 2026 FIFA World Cup. All 26 players passed one by one down a reception line to receive a vueltiao hat — a traditional Colombian symbol — as a gift from the president, in an act described as a symbolic representation of Colombia’s 52 million citizens.

Among those present was Antonella Petro, the president’s youngest daughter, who is also a footballer herself. As James Rodríguez — Colombia’s captain and the country’s most famous active player — reached his position in the line for a sending off handshake with the nation’s first daughter, Antonella attempted to interact with him. “¿Te puedo pedir una foto?” (“Can I ask for a photo?”) she is heard saying in video circulated online, apparently requesting a photograph or autograph from Rodríguez.

The footballer continued his walk down the line and ignored the president’s daughter. Antonella, though visibly shaken from the awkward moment, remained composed and continued greeting the other players.

By the time Colombia’s squad boarded their flight to the United States, the clip had gone viral across X, Instagram, and TikTok — racking up millions of views and generating a debate that had nothing to do with football tactics.

A Moment That Landed in the Middle of an Election

In any other week, a football captain bypassing a photo request during a formal protocol line would be a minor story. In Colombia on June 4, 2026 — seventeen days before the presidential runoff between right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella and his left-wing counterpart and Senator Iván Cepeda — it became something else entirely.

The incident occurred within a broader politically charged context. Cepeda had already filed a public complaint that day because his runoff opponent, de la Espriella, had been photographed wearing the Colombian national team jersey after the first-round results — a complaint the Colombian Football Federation dismissed, stating it had no authority to prohibit de la Espriella from wearing the national colors.

The political connection to James specifically did not go unnoticed. De la Espriella himself publicly stated during the campaign that he had served as James Rodríguez’s lawyer — a detail that lent the viral moment a political dimension neither party appeared to have sought.

Social media users quickly connected the images to the political climate of the past four years, the possible political leanings of certain footballers, and the electoral moment the country is living through ahead of the June 21 runoff.

Although no players made any overt physical gestures or expressions of dissatisfaction with appearing alongside the country’s first left-wing president and former guerrilla fighter of the M-19 rebel group — interpretations arose primarily from user comments on digital platforms.

What Actually Happened

Some Colombian outlets reported that James did not respond to Antonella’s request in order to avoid breaking protocol — continuing down the line as all the other players had done before him. Others left the moment without explanation, allowing the images to speak for themselves.

The event was announced at the last minute and closed to the press. During the ceremony, the majority of players were observed with visibly unenthusiastic expressions as they received their gifts — a detail that contributed to broader criticism of whether the politically sensitive send-off event was appropriate at all, given the electoral climate.

James was not given the flag to carry — a traditional honor for the team captain. Instead, the flag was handed to head coach Néstor Lorenzo, a decision that also drew criticism in the hours that followed.

Petro’s Response

The president did not comment on the James-Antonella exchange directly. In a post on X shortly after the ceremony, Petro wrote:

“He has departed for a destination I hope will be triumphant. There goes the country of beauty to the World Cup.”

Colombia Heads to the World Cup

Colombia’s squad is now in the United States preparing for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Colombia is preparing for its final friendly match against Jordan on Sunday in San Diego, California, as the national team returns to the World Cup for the first time since missing qualification for Qatar 2022.

For the next month, the country will attempt to hold two competing obsessions simultaneously — a presidential runoff that will determine Colombia’s political direction for the next four years, and a World Cup campaign that has united the country across every political divide.

On June 4, those two obsessions collided in a three-second moment at a military air base in Bogotá, and Colombia’s internet did the rest.