FBI Director Kash Patel is defending his decision to attend Sunday’s Olympic gold medal hockey game between Team USA and Canada.
Videos posted on social media show Patel in the locker room with Team USA after its overtime win. The FBI director is seen celebrating with players, drinking beer and banging on a table.
In another video, he is wearing one of the player's gold medals.
"I love America and was extremely humbled when my friends, the newly minted Gold Medal winners on Team USA, invited me into the locker room to celebrate this historic moment with the boys," Patel said. "Greatest country on earth and greatest sport on earth."
Patel has said he was in Italy meeting with law enforcement officials providing security for the Olympics. He posted photos of visits to the Milan Joint Operations Center.
Great visit with the Milan Joint Operations Center, a 24/7 interagency operation with international partners to support the Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games. The JOC is focused on protecting the US athletes, 250,000 US citizens who traveled to Milan for the games, as well as… pic.twitter.com/RKUuq28NGk
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) February 21, 2026
Patel said lessons learned during the Olympics would help as the United States prepares to host the FIFA World Cup this summer.
Still, the trip prompted questions on social media about whether taxpayer funds were used to cover certain expenses. Patel later posted on X a screenshot of an email that said any personal portion of the trip would be reimbursed.
