Denmark’s World Cup bid takes on new meaning after Trump’s Greenland fixation

The Denmark team before the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier match between Denmark and Greece at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen on October 12, 2025. - Kristian Tuxen Ladegaard Berg/NurPhoto/Getty Images Denmark’s national soccer team takes on North Macedonia in Copenhagen on Thursday, aiming to move within one game of qualification for this summer’s FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. But given the US’ status as a co-host and American President Donald Trump throwing the idea of an annexation of Greenland back into the global geopolitical discourse as recently as January, it won’t just be six million Danes watching.

Over 2,000 miles away, the lion’s share of 57,000 Greenlanders will also be watching the game with bated breath, drawn not only by the stakes on the pitch, but by what Denmark’s journey to a US-hosted World Cup represents off it. “Greenlandic people cheer for Denmark,” Greenland men’s national team captain Patrick Frederiksen told CNN Sports . “In football, handball (and) kind of every sport because we are part of the Danish kingdom, so we are one with Denmark.

“When Denmark is playing, some Greenlandic players are cheering for them because it’s something we’ve grown up with. Some are even excited to see Denmark (potentially) qualify for the World Cup. ” However, like all sports, soccer is an emotional, results-driven business, so fan support sometimes follows the scoreboard.

“There’s a funny saying here: When Denmark wins, we win. But if Denmark loses, they lose,” chuckled Knud Olsen Egede, a lifelong Greenland fan. Greenland fan Knud Olsen Egede in his native Nuuk.