He highlighted the episode while speaking at Trump Tower<\/a> in New York City during a reception with FIFA chief Gianni Infantino, held ahead of Sunday\u2019s World Cup final<\/a> between Spain and Argentina.<\/p>\n While recounting the highlights of the weeks-long tournament, Trump singled out what he called \u201cprobably the most unforgettable moment\u201d: the red card shown to U.S. striker Folarin Balogun<\/a>, who received a one-match ban during the U.S.-Bosnia match on July 1. <\/p>\n In the aftermath, Trump personally called Infantino<\/a> to press for the suspension to be lifted \u2014 a move FIFA ultimately made, triggering a political backlash and accusations that the president had crossed a line.<\/p>\n \u201cI was forced to call Gianni and just make a recommendation,\u201d the 80-year-old president said on Friday. \u201cI said, \u2018Gianni, I’d like to make a recommendation: Let the guy in the game!\u2019 No I didn\u2019t say that. I said I\u2019d like to wage a complaint. And actually\u2026I had no idea what was gonna happen.\u201d<\/p>\n Balogun returned to the field on July 6, though the U.S. ultimately lost to Belgium 1\u20134<\/a>, ending the host nation\u2019s run in the quadrennial tournament.<\/p>\n Still, Trump cast the episode as a net positive. \u201cIt\u2019s so much better the way it worked out because there’s no controversy,\u201d he said, standing beside Infantino on Friday. \u201cThey won the game, and our team had all of its players.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThink of it. If he didn\u2019t allow him and they lost, they\u2019d say we would have won the game if we had our best player,\u201d the Republican president added. \u201cSo, Gianni made yet another of his many good decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n That assessment was not widely shared. <\/p>\n The European Union of Football Associations condemned FIFA\u2019s reversal as \u201cunprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable.\u201d Belgium coach Rudi Garcia said he initially thought the decision was a joke, while the Belgian Federation indicated it would be \u201cinvestigating all potential options.\u201d<\/p>\n Others warned the move placed the U.S. in an untenable position<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cThis is a lose-lose situation for Team USA now,\u201d geopolitics expert Cyrus Janssen wrote on X. \u201cWe beat Belgium and the victory will be tainted as we needed our President to cheat to help us win. If we lose than [sic] even our President cheating couldn\u2019t help us win.\u201d<\/p>\n Amid mounting criticism, Infantino released a statement on July 6<\/a> emphasizing that FIFA\u2019s disciplinary process operates independently.<\/p>\n \u201cI have seen the public comments regarding the decision of the independent FIFA Disciplinary Committee related to the suspension of Folarin Balogun, and I would like to reiterate a fundamental principle of FIFA\u2019s governance,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n \u201cFIFA\u2019s judicial bodies are independent. They operate autonomously, apply the FIFA Disciplinary Code, and decide cases based on the applicable regulations and the specific facts before them,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Infantino is now facing a formal complaint<\/a> lodged with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which alleges breaches of political neutrality rules.<\/p>\n![\"On](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2286558664.jpeg\")
On Friday, President Donald Trump boasted about pressuring FIFA President Gianni Infantino over a US soccer player’s red card suspension. (Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"Folarin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2285225899.jpeg\")
Folarin Balogun himself acknowledged Trump\u2019s \u2018unique\u2019 intervention was controversial. \u2018I could almost see within my team-mates a bit of nerves,\u2019 he said (Getty Images)<\/p>\n