It’s enough to knock you sick, it really is. Donald Trump’s grubby hands have been all over this World Cup, and it now seems he and his team have been able to force FIFA into making a controversial decision in favour of the USA team.
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Trump, Infantino, and FIFA at centre of another controversy
Striker Flo Balogun was sent off during their victory against Bosnia, resulting in a one-game ban for their top scorer in this tournament. He was due to miss out in their crunch clash with Belgium this week, in what would have been a major blow for the hosts.
It’s understood that, following the red card, a team from the White House then made contact with Mr. Infantino directly, asking for them to review the decision. There are no mechanisms in place to overturn dismissals, and on paper, this request should have been a futile one.
However, as reported by multiple sources on Sunday, FIFA have taken the highly unusual – and almost entirely unprecedented – decision to lift the suspension in its entirety, allowing Balogun to completely dodge his suspension and become available for selection on Monday.
Belgium see red over ‘astonishing’ FIFA u-turn
The whole situation has gone down like a lead balloon within the footballing community. What makes this decision particularly jarring is the uncomfortably close relationship Donald Trump has developed with FIFA President Gianni Infantino in the last year.
Infamously, football’s governing body invented a trophy to hand to the president, naming him as the first winner of the FIFA Peace Prize in 2025. Since then, the Trump Administration has dropped bombs on Iran, Venezuela, and Nigeria. The bar has never been so low.
Understandably, the Belgian FA have been left ‘astonished’ by the nonsensical u-turn. In a statement issued on Sunday, the USA’s next opponents accused FIFA of not understanding their own rules – and promised to ‘investigate all options’ to challenge this decision.
“FIFA bases its decision on Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. This provision states that the FIFA Disciplinary Committee may decide to suspend the enforcement of a previously imposed disciplinary sanction.”
“However, Article 66.4 of the same FIFA Disciplinary Code clearly provides that a red card (sending-off) automatically results in a suspension for the team’s next match, as has been the case for all previous red cards issued during this FIFA World Cup.”
“In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options.” | Belgian FA
‘Are we surprised? Not with this lot…’
Social media users, journalists, and football pundits have not been shy in suggesting that corruption is afoot. The ITV panel were particularly scathing, with Roy Keane stating it was a case of ‘pals helping pals’, and Ian Wright branding it ‘shameful’. Gary Neville, meanwhile, said the decision ‘absolutely stinks’.
“It absolutely stinks, let’s be clear. There is no process for the red card to be overturned at a World Cup. So if FIFA, somehow, decide to let a player play, I’d be absolutely raging if I was Belgium. And let’s be honest, are we surprised? No, not with this lot.” | Gary Neville