US President Donald Trump has confirmed he personally telephoned FIFA president Gianni Infantino to request a review of the red card handed to American striker Folarin Balogun, a controversial intervention that has drawn fierce condemnation from European football authorities and reignited debate about political interference in sport.
Trump made the admission during an Oval Office event on Tuesday — one ostensibly focused on new investment accounts for American children — when reporters pressed him on the widely reported phone call. Balogun, the United States' leading scorer at this year's World Cup with three goals, received the red card during the US's 2-0 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina in Santa Clara, California. Under standard FIFA rules, the card carried a mandatory one-game ban that would have ruled him out of the round of 16 clash against Belgium in Seattle.
Trump: 'All I Did Was Ask for a Review'
Speaking to reporters, Trump was careful to frame his intervention as a request rather than a demand. "All I did was ask for a review," he said. "I didn't say, 'You have to do this.'" He insisted that FIFA's independent disciplinary committee made the final call to suspend the ban, allowing Balogun to take the field against Belgium.
Trump was candid about the limits of his initial football knowledge, admitting he did not know what a red card was or what consequences it carried until someone explained it to him. Once he understood that Balogun would miss a knockout match, he said, he felt compelled to act. He described the original refereeing decision as "horrible" and argued that slow-motion video replays used to issue the card made the challenge appear more aggressive than it was in real time.
"I didn't think it was a foul," Trump said. "I thought it was two great athletes that crashed into each other and got entangled." He added that it would have been a stain on the tournament if the US's leading scorer were absent, and praised FIFA for what he called a "brilliant decision" in suspending the punishment.
The president, who said he understands sports "really well," also argued that competitive fairness demanded both teams field their best players. "Belgium has got a great team. We have to have our best players, and they have to have their best. And if we win or we lose, it's fair," he said.
International Backlash and FIFA's Defence of Independence
The reaction from the global football community has been swift and largely damning. The Belgian football federation moved to formally challenge Balogun's eligibility for the match, while UEFA — European football's governing body — described FIFA's decision to lift the suspension as "incomprehensible and unjustifiable." Critics across the international sports world labelled the episode an outrageous intrusion into the game's regulatory processes.
Shortly after Trump's Oval Office remarks, Infantino issued a public statement defending the integrity of FIFA's judicial system and distancing the governing body from any suggestion it had yielded to presidential pressure. "During our conversation, I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA's independent judicial bodies and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent bodies," Infantino wrote. "That is how FIFA's system works, and it is a principle that I will always uphold."
The statement appeared designed to reassure member associations that FIFA's disciplinary committee had acted independently, though critics noted that the outcome — a lifted ban following a direct call from the host nation's president — was difficult to separate from the political context. For more on the wider implications of the decision, see our coverage of FIFA's Balogun ban suspension and fears of a dangerous precedent.
Republican Support and Trump's Deflection
Not everyone in the room was troubled by Trump's involvement. Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who attended the Oval Office event, offered enthusiastic praise. "On behalf of all Americans, thank you for getting rid of that ridiculous red card," Cruz said during his remarks. "It was spectacular."
Trump himself appeared to anticipate the controversy the topic would generate, initially trying to steer reporters away from it altogether. "They don't want to know anything about soccer slash football," he said of the journalists gathered in the room. "Fortunately, they won't be asking any questions on that. Nobody cares about that, right?" Reporters did, of course, pursue the question — leading to one of the more unusual admissions of his presidency.
The episode is the latest eyebrow-raising episode of the Second presidency of Donald Trump, during which the president has shown a willingness to wade into institutions — sporting, legal, and diplomatic — that have traditionally operated at arm's length from the White House. Whether FIFA's decision ultimately withstands legal challenge from Belgium, and what precedent it sets for the remainder of the tournament, remains to be seen.
