An image authentically shows U.S. President Donald Trump leaving a brown stain on a chair during his trip to Ireland in September 2026.
In September 2026, people shared an image purportedly showing U.S. President Donald Trump leaving a brown stain on a chair during his trip to Ireland that month.
One X post (archived) featuring the alleged photo had amassed roughly 4 million views as of this writing.
(@StillADog via X)
Trump visited the country on the weekend of Sept. 12-13, during which he met with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin. The U.S. president sparked controversy following that meeting after calling for Irish unification, an act that would merge the United Kingdom’s Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland. Trump also met with Ireland President Catherine Connolly and attended the Irish Open at his golf course in Doonbeg.
Several Snopes readers asked if the image of Trump leaving the stain — which also spread on Bluesky, Facebook, Threads, TikTok and YouTube — is authentic.
One Threads user claimed artificial intelligence was not used to create the alleged photo, though it was not clear whether or not this was said sincerely.
(@becca_reptile_and_human_momma via Threads)
Some users commenting under the posts seemed genuinely unsure whether the image was real, while other remarks of bewilderment were possibly written in jest.
In sum, the image is fake and originated from an AI-generated video. That AI-generated clip originated from a prompt seemingly using an authentic photo that did not display a stain.
Creator Tom Adelsbach first posted the content as a fake video on Facebook, Instagram and X on Sept. 12, as confirmed by a reverse image search. His posts’ captions read, “BREAKING: Donald Trump causes an international incident during his meeting with Ireland President Catherine Connolly.”
Snopes emailed Adelsbach to ask for the exact text prompt he submitted to the AI tool to create the fake video. We also emailed the White House to request comment and will update this article if we receive additional details.
Adelsbach’s 22-second, AI-generated video features a fake depiction of Trump sitting next to Connolly. The U.S. president appears to sigh, stand up and shake Connolly’s hand. The sound of photographers taking pictures can also be heard. As the inauthentic clip continues, Trump exits left, revealing the brown stain on his chair. The stain then grows in size and drips on the floor, leaving Connolly’s AI depiction audibly reacting in horror.
Adelsbach previously labeled similar content with disclaimers about comedy, parody and satire. His posts featuring the fake chair stain do not show the same disclaimer. However, Meta’s “AI content” label does appear on Facebook and Instagram.
The original photo
Another reverse image search revealed that the Northern Irish Belfast Telegraph newspaper published an authentic photo that Adelsbach appeared to use when creating the AI-generated video. The newspaper credited the picture of Trump and Connolly to photographer Tony Maxwell. The caption says the pair were seated inside Áras an Uachtaráin, the Irish president’s residence. The full caption reads, “President Catherine Connolly and President Donald Trump at Aras an Uachtarain (Tony Maxwell/Maxwells/PA).”
President Connolly’s social media accounts also feature a similar photo of her sitting next to Trump.
For background, here is why we alert readers to rumors created by sources calling their output humorous or satirical.
