Wayne Gretzky gives his thoughts on Shaquille O'Neal, Tom Brady and Aaron Judge after sharing 2026 FIFA World Cup draw stage with them

Wayne Gretzky offered a rare public glimpse into his experience on one of sport’s biggest global stages posting Saturday on Instagram after joining fellow American sports icons Shaquille O’Neal, Tom Brady and Aaron Judge at the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final Draw.

Gretzky, who served as one of FIFA’s celebrity draw assistants at the ceremony in Washington, D.C., shared a photo of the four standing together on stage with the caption:

“Three of the nicest people I’ve ever met. Had a great day thank you FIFA @fifaworldcup.”

The click saw the NHL legend appearing alongside the NBA Hall of Famer O’Neal, seven-time Super Bowl champion Brady and New York Yankees star Judge. All four assisted host Rio Ferdinand in selecting teams from the draw pots for the expanded 48-team tournament.

Gretzky’s post comes two days after the high-profile ceremony at the Kennedy Center where FIFA hosted celebrity appearances and global football pageantry ahead of the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

O’Neal, Brady and Judge each drew sections of the group stage while Gretzky handled selections from Pot 4. The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off June 11 which will bring the tournament back to North American soil for the first time since 1994.

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Wayne Gretzky struggled to pronounce country names during the draw

Wayne Gretzky’s cameo at the 2026 FIFA World Cup Draw on Thursday also took an unintended turn as the hockey legend struggled repeatedly with the pronunciation of several Pot 4 nations.

When Gretzky was assigned to announce teams drawn from the final pot, his first slip came immediately with North Macedonia which he mispronounced while standing on stage wearing a Canadian pin and positioned in front of U.S. President Donald Trump.

"Wayne Gretzky Can’tada Say Those Country Names!!🤘🤣," read the caption of one clip posted by a user on X.

The difficulties continued as Gretzky drew Curaçao, converting it into “Curocko” before stumbling again with Jordan, adding extra syllables to one of the more straightforward names of the evening. The series of errors quickly drew attention from viewers and media following the live broadcast.

Gretzky completed his portion of the draw without further issue but his mispronunciations became one of the ceremony’s most discussed moments on social media.