Berkshire Hathaway CEO Greg Abel becomes U.S. citizen at Iowa Cubs game

Greg Abel became a U.S. citizen Thursday night at Principal Park, where the Iowa Cubs turned a game against the Buffalo Bisons into their 18th on-field naturalization ceremony. Abel, the Canadian-born CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, also threw out the first pitch in the pregame event.

The ceremony took place before first pitch at 6:38 p.m. in Des Moines and included 29 new citizens from 16 countries. For the Iowa Cubs, the setting was part of the point: the club has made the naturalization ceremony an annual tradition, usually staging it around the Fourth of July, and moved it earlier this year to June 25.

Abel’s appearance gave the ceremony a wider spotlight than most. He became chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway on January 1, 2026, succeeding Warren Buffett and taking over day-to-day leadership of one of the world’s largest conglomerates while remaining based in Iowa.

That combination of roles made the scene at Principal Park unusually resonant. Abel was not just a newly naturalized American at a ballpark ceremony. He was also the new face of a company tied to dozens of businesses, from Geico to Duracell to Dairy Queen, taking part in a rite that put a Triple-A park at the center of a civic milestone.

The Iowa Cubs have made that overlap between baseball and public life part of the club’s identity. By hosting the ceremony on the field before a game, the team gave the 29 new citizens, including Abel, a backdrop that was both local and unmistakably American: a summer night at the ballpark, a first pitch, and a crowd watching a life-changing moment unfold before the game began.