The Los Angeles Dodgers have officially accepted an invitation from President Donald Trump to visit the White House in honor of their World Series championship, marking a return to the nation’s capital for the team.
The visit is scheduled for April 7, just before the Dodgers play a three-game series against the Washington Nationals.
Additionally, members of the team will spend time on Capitol Hill the following day, according to an official announcement from the franchise.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts spoke about the significance of the event, describing it as an important tradition for championship teams.
In keeping with long-standing baseball tradition, President Trump has invited the 2024 World Champion Los Angeles Dodgers to the White House when they play in Washington D.C. on April 7. The Dodgers look forward to visiting the White House and celebrating our title.
In…
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) March 25, 2025
“It wasn’t a formal conversation that we had as a ballclub,” Roberts said.
“It’s certainly a huge honor to get the invitation to the White House. It allows us to celebrate our 2024 championship. To my understanding, every World Series champion gets that honor, so it’s a great honor for all of us.”
He continued, “I respect the position. It’s the highest office in our country, certainly in the world, so, looking forward to it.”
i still think about this at least twice a day pic.twitter.com/bq2kmaZAdt
— ash (@shoheisohtanis) March 23, 2025
The Dodgers’ decision to visit President Trump follows a recent controversy surrounding the late Jackie Robinson, a legendary Brooklyn Dodgers player.
Earlier this month, a Department of Defense webpage detailing Robinson’s military service was briefly taken offline, and the letters “dei” were added to the URL before it was restored.
A page dedicated to Jackie Robinson’s military career has been removed from the Department of Defense website.
The dead URL now says ‘DEI.’ pic.twitter.com/9wXwbbq1Ib
— Pop Base (@PopBase) March 19, 2025
When informed of the situation, Roberts responded, “I think I’m happy that the page went back up. I have my strong opinions on DEI and all that stuff, but that’s another scrum.”
This will be the Dodgers’ first White House visit since 2021 when the team met with former President Joe Biden following their championship win in the Covid-shortened 2020 season.
Notably, in a 2019 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Roberts suggested he would have declined an invitation to the Trump White House had the team won the World Series that year.
Last time the Dodgers went to the WH we got this legendary video pic.twitter.com/A2kGOLGjua
— Dodgers Muse (@LADodgersMuse) March 26, 2025
Despite the tradition of championship teams visiting the White House, the Los Angeles Times recently published an article discouraging the team from making the trip.
The piece referenced past political stances taken by Dodgers personnel, including ailing star player Mookie Betts, who opted out of a 2019 White House visit with the Boston Red Sox and has been vocal about social justice issues.
The article also noted that Dodgers co-owners Magic Johnson and Billie Jean King have publicly criticized Trump.
“All in all, it’s hard to imagine the Dodgers agreeing to a celebratory photo op with the president right now. Los Angeles is not just Dodger blue, but Democrat blue,” the article stated.
“The president lost L.A. County by 33 percentage points. In his feuds with California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Trump has threatened to withhold fire disaster funds without concessions. He seems to never miss an opportunity to take a swipe at the Golden State.”
Libs when they see that Dodgers are going to visit Trump at the White House pic.twitter.com/AtBSYrS71a
— Make L.A. Great Again 🇺🇸 (@lalovestrump) March 26, 2025
The editorial went so far as to suggest that the Dodgers should decline the invitation, saying, “The World Champion Dodgers should stand up to, not next to, the president. If an overture from the White House comes, they can send a friendly note: Thanks, but no.”
While some critics may oppose the visit, the Dodgers are not alone in heading to Washington.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day has confirmed that the Buckeyes will visit the White House after winning their national championship.
Ryan Day confirmed today that the Ohio State football team will visit the White House on April 14
pic.twitter.com/Fgs6UNoz1n— The Buckeye Nut (@TheBuckeyeNut) March 24, 2025
Day announced on Monday that his team would meet with President Trump on April 14.
“It’s an honor to be invited,” Day told reporters. “I remember growing up and watching the national championship teams going to the White House… it’s part of the celebration of our team.”
The Buckeyes claimed the national title after defeating Notre Dame on January 20.
Their trip follows closely behind Super Bowl LIX champions, the Philadelphia Eagles, who are set to visit the White House just two weeks earlier.
This marks a huge shift from 2018 when the Eagles declined an invitation to meet with Trump after their Super Bowl win that year.
Despite falling short of a historic three-peat, Trump recently revealed that he still intends to host the Kansas City Chiefs at the White House, as they missed their 2020 visit due to pandemic restrictions.
Speaking with Outkick’s Clay Travis aboard Air Force One, Trump stated, “I look forward to having the Eagles. And one other thing, we’re going to have the Kansas City Chiefs after that because they missed their turn because of Covid.”
The president also clarified that he was the one who scrapped the Eagles’ post-Super Bowl visit in 2018.
“Well, actually, (the Eagles) did want to come,” he said. “A lot of people wanted to come, including the coach (Doug Pederson) — terrific guy, by the way — but the coach wanted to come,” Trump explained.
“The general manager (Howie Roseman) wanted to come. The owner (Jeffrey Lurie) wanted to come. A lot of people wanted to come. Some of the players wanted to come. And I just said, ‘Just forget it,’ right?”