France has moved the date of the 2026 G7 summit to accommodate President Donald Trump’s schedule, which includes hosting a UFC fight at the White House on June 14 to celebrate his 80th birthday and America’s 250th anniversary celebrations.
France Delays G7 After Donald Trump Announces White House UFC Event on His Birthday
The annual Group of Seven summit was initially scheduled to take place from June 14-16 in Évian-les-Bains, France. The dates were announced by French President Emmanuel Macron in June 2025 during the previous G7 summit held in the Canadian Rockies. However, the summit has now been rescheduled to June 15-17.
The rescheduling stems from a conflict with Trump’s plans to host a UFC event on the White House South Lawn on June 14, his 80th birthday. Trump first announced these plans during a July 2025 rally at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, and confirmed the June 14 date in an October 2025 speech at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia. The date also coincides with Flag Day and celebrations marking America’s 250th anniversary.
A White House official confirmed the scheduling change to multiple news outlets, stating that Trump’s attendance at the G7 summit was considered critical by international partners. “As the leader of the free world, our partners believed that President Trump’s attendance at the G7 Summit was essential. They kindly shifted dates to accommodate the US President’s schedule,” the official said.
The French presidency offered a more diplomatic explanation for the change. A spokesperson for Macron declined to directly confirm the connection to the UFC event, instead stating that the new dates were “the result of our consultations with G7 partners”.
UFC CEO Dana White confirmed to CBS News in early January 2026 that preparations for the White House event were finalized. The event will accommodate approximately 5,000 people on the White House South Lawn, with an additional 85,000 spectators able to watch from the Ellipse park across the street on large screens. White revealed that the week-long celebration will include music, a stage, and various activities for fight fans, with weigh-ins scheduled to take place at the Lincoln Memorial.
Trump indicated the event could feature eight or nine championship fights, describing them as “legendary” bouts. The fighters will reportedly walk from the Oval Office to the octagon on the South Lawn. White mentioned that replacing the South Lawn grass after the event will cost approximately $700,000.
This marks the second time France has hosted the G7, following the 2019 summit in Biarritz. The venue, Évian-les-Bains, is an Alpine spa town on Lake Geneva near the Swiss border that previously hosted the G8 summit in 2003. Macron emphasized that the French G7 presidency, which began on January 1, 2026, would focus on addressing global economic imbalances and returning the G7 to its original purpose as a forum for dialogue among major economic powers.
