Topline
President Donald Trump has called for the 87-foot steel-and-wire-mesh arena constructed for an upcoming UFC fight at the White House to be a permanent fixture of the South Lawn, comparing the structure to France’s iconic Eiffel Tower and suggesting it be made permanent.
Construction on the South Lawn of the White House for an upcoming UFC match on May 29, 2026.
Getty Images
Key Facts
Speaking from the Oval Office in a TikTok video, Trump called the purpose-built arena “quite attractive to a lot of people” and mused, “maybe we’ll never, ever take it down.”
He said he sees it as similar to the Eiffel Tower on the Seine River, which was originally built as the centerpiece of the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris and meant to be taken down after 20 years.
Trump said the tower was left up because officials said “we kind of like it,” but in reality the tower remained because the French military found it valuable as a radio antenna and it was later used to intercept enemy communications.
Today, the Eiffel Tower is home to several satellite dishes and 120 antennas broadcasting television channels and radio stations to the greater Paris area.
Key Background
The concept of leaving the arena on the White House lawn is the latest idea to significantly modify “The People’s House” and other historic D.C. landmarks, many of which are already coming to fruition to the frustration of local historians. Construction is underway on a project that will build a 90,000-square-foot ballroom at the White House that involves tearing down the East Wing. The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued to stop construction, arguing the Trump administration ignored legal requirements to have such large changes reviewed, and the Society of Architectural Historians said the project threatens the historic integrity of the White House. The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts said it received a record 2,000 public comments about the proposal—99% of which were critical. Trump completely replaced the iconic grass lawn of the White House Rose Garden, first built by First Lady Ellen Wilson in 1913, with stone paving to create a patio space. In April, Trump announced a renovation to the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool that has anchored the Washington D.C. Mall for more than 100 years. He said he plans to coat the granite structure in a commercial-grade pool liner in a color called “American Flag Blue.” Historic preservation experts have questioned the aesthetic choice: “The reflecting pool is hallowed ground,” Charles Birnbaum, former coordinator of the National Park Service’s Historic Landscape Initiative, told Politico. “It shouldn’t resemble a swimming pool.” Trump has also said he’ll build a 250-foot triumphal arch near Arlington to celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary and proposed the repainting of the National World War II Memorial fountain basin.
Big Number
$10 billion. That’s the size of a fund Trump in April suggested be established for Washington D.C. beautification projects. Sen. Jeff Merkley, the top Democrat on the Senate panel that oversees the Park Service’s budget, has said he’s “a ‘hell no’ on giving Trump a blank check for vanity projects.”
What To Watch For
The arena will be used for “UFC Freedom 250,” a series of mixed martial arts fights on the White House lawn that falls on Trump’s 80th birthday—June 14. There are 4,300 seats for invited guests on the White House lawn and another 75,000 to 100,000 people will watch the fights on giant screens at the nearby Ellipse Park. UFC has said it plans to spend $700,000 to repair the grass that will be damaged on the South Lawn after the arena is removed.