A Cold Front In Milan: Vice President JD Vance Receives Icy Welcome At Winter Games
If you thought the temperature inside the San Siro Stadium was chilly on Friday night, it had nothing on the reception waiting for the American delegation in the VIP box. The Winter Olympics are supposed to be that one brief shining moment where the world puts its differences on ice, holds hands, and marvels at people hurling themselves down mountains at breakneck speeds. It’s about unity. It’s about national pride.
For Vice President JD Vance, the opening ceremony in Milan wasn’t a celebration—it was an away game in a hostile stadium, and the home crowd let him know exactly how they felt. As the Parade of Nations kicked off, everything seemed to be going according to the script. The atmosphere was electric. But when the camera lens found Vance in the stands, the script got shredded.
The Moment the Cheers Turned To Jeers For Vance
You have to feel for the athletes here. Team USA walked out looking sharp in their Ralph Lauren gear, led by speed skater Erin Jackson and bobsledder Frank Del Duca. They were beaming, waving, soaking in the moment they’ve trained their whole lives for. The crowd roared for them. It was that classic Olympic goosebumps moment.
Then, the director made the call to cut to the Jumbotron. There was Vance, standing alongside his wife, Usha, waving a miniature American flag with the enthusiasm of a guy trying to get on the “Kiss Cam.” The reaction was instantaneous and brutal. It wasn’t a few polite murmurs of dissent. It was a wall of sound. Boos, whistles, and jeers rained down from the rafters.
Even the NBC broadcast team couldn’t spin it. “Those were a lot of boos for him,” the announcer noted, sounding almost surprised by the ferocity of it. It was a tough scene. Vance seemed to try to power through it, keeping the smile plastered on, but you could practically see the tension radiating off the screen. It’s one thing to get heckled at a campaign rally; it’s another to get booed by an international crowd while seated next to the President of Italy.
Speaking of whom, when Italian President Sergio Mattarella was introduced, the place went nuts with applause. The contrast couldn’t have been sharper if it were drawn with a freshly sharpened skate blade.
A Political Storm Clouds the Opening Ceremony
So, why was the reception for Vance so hostile? To understand the temperature in the room, you have to look at what was happening outside the stadium.
Milan hasn’t exactly rolled out the red carpet for the American political delegation. Protests in the streets marred the days leading up to the ceremony. The sore spot? The presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Italy.
Reports that ICE agents were on the ground to assist with security didn’t sit well with the locals. Protesters were seen marching with banners comparing the agency to the Gestapo, shouting, “ICE go home.” It’s a geopolitical mess, and Vance, who has been a vocal supporter of aggressive immigration enforcement, became the face of that anger.
When you mix a controversial domestic record with an international crowd already on edge about American law enforcement operating on their soil, you get a recipe for a very loud, very public rebuke.
The Absence Of Trump and the Response From Rivals
Interestingly, Vance was flying solo on this one. President Donald Trump, who usually loves the pomp and circumstance of a sporting event, decided to sit this one out. Maybe he checked the weather forecast in Milan—and we aren’t talking about the snow. By sending Vance to lead the delegation alongside Marco Rubio and Tom Fertitta, Trump avoided the heat, leaving his VP to take the lumps.
What This Means For the Rest Of the Games
Vance tried to play nice earlier in the week, telling reporters that the Olympics are “one of the few things that unites the entire country.” He talked about Democrats and Republicans cheering together. It was a nice sentiment, but Friday night proved that unity is a lot harder to come by than a gold medal.
The 2026 Winter Games have barely begun, and already the narrative has shifted from the slopes to the stands. For the athletes, the hope is that the focus snaps back to their incredible feats of athleticism. But for Vance, this trip to Italy serves as a harsh reminder: you can wave the flag all you want, but you can’t force the crowd to cheer.
