The World Cup's biggest political controversy began with a red card on the pitch and reached all the way to the White House. Behind the lifting of Folarin Balogun's one-game suspension for his sending-off against Bosnia and Herzegovina lies a direct call from President Donald Trump to FIFA President Gianni Infantino, according to reporting from journalist Ben Jacobs.
The effort began almost immediately after the red card was shown in Wednesday's match. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who led the US delegation at the Bosnia game, read through FIFA's disciplinary rules on the flight home and began mapping out how the suspension could be contested. Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force on the World Cup, then took over the effort, mobilising Trump-aligned lawyers and supporters to pressure FIFA.
Trump himself called Infantino to ask why the red card had been shown and why it carried a one-game ban. A US official said the government supplied FIFA with "additional evidence" centred on the referee's slow-motion replay review, which reportedly factored into the disciplinary committee's decision. Once the suspension was lifted, Trump posted on Truth Social thanking FIFA for reversing what he called a serious injustice.
FIFA has rejected any suggestion of undue influence, insisting the decision was taken solely by its independent disciplinary committee under Article 27. The Royal Belgian Football Association, however, said it was "astonished" by the reversal, arguing it breaches FIFA's own rules, and has been granted the right to formally appeal — with a possible escalation to the Court of Arbitration for Sport reportedly under consideration. The episode is not the first sign of a close relationship between Trump and Infantino: the FIFA president awarded Trump the governing body's inaugural Peace Prize last year, and financial disclosures later revealed Infantino had gifted the president tickets worth $15,000 to the Club World Cup final. A Trump adviser sought to downplay the president's direct role, saying he had not pushed for a specific outcome.
The controversy now hangs over Monday night's round-of-16 clash between the United States and Belgium at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Source: Ben Jacobs
Image: Sky News
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