WASHINGTON/USA: United States President Donald Trump has defended his decision to seek a FIFA review of the controversial red card shown to American striker Folarin Balogun, insisting the dismissal was unfair and that allowing the suspension to stand would have cast a shadow over the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Trump’s remarks come amid growing international debate over FIFA’s decision to suspend Balogun’s automatic one-match ban, clearing the U.S. forward to feature in the country’s Round of 16 clash against Belgium. The move has drawn criticism from some quarters, including Belgian football officials, while supporters argue that the original red card was excessive.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday, Trump confirmed that he personally contacted FIFA President Gianni Infantino to request a review of the incident but insisted he did not attempt to influence the outcome of the disciplinary process.
“All I did was ask for a review because I didn’t think it was a foul,” Trump said.
The U.S. president argued that the incident involved two players colliding while challenging for the ball rather than deliberate violent conduct deserving of a red card.
“I thought it was two great athletes that crashed into each other and got entangled. That was not a guy punching somebody in the face,” he said.
Trump maintained that suspending one of the United States’ key players for such an incident would have been unfair to both the team and the tournament.
According to him, major competitions such as the FIFA World Cup should feature the strongest available players, regardless of the country they represent.
“You want to see a game with your best players,” he said, comparing the situation to the prospect of football icons such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo or Harry Kane being ruled out over what he described as a routine collision on the field.
“If we win or we lose, it’s fair. Otherwise, let’s say we lost him and we lose the game. It would be a terrible thing,” Trump added.
The president also criticised the referee’s decision, describing the original red card as “horrible” and suggesting that the match official’s judgment should receive greater scrutiny than FIFA’s subsequent review.
“I didn’t know what the red card was when I found out. I said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding. Our best player is not going to play the next game.'”
Trump said he believed FIFA ultimately reached the correct decision by allowing Balogun to play, stressing that he merely requested a review and did not instruct football’s governing body on how to rule.
“I didn’t tell him what to do. I can’t tell him what to do,” he said, adding that he believed the matter was decided by FIFA’s disciplinary committee rather than by Infantino personally.
Balogun was sent off during the United States’ World Cup victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina after a challenge that officials initially deemed worthy of a straight red card. FIFA later suspended the automatic one-match ban following a review, making the striker available for the knockout fixture against Belgium. The decision has generated widespread debate over consistency in officiating and the role of political intervention in international sport.
Trump’s intervention has also attracted criticism from some football stakeholders, who questioned whether political leaders should engage in FIFA’s disciplinary process. FIFA, however, has maintained that the review was handled through its independent judicial procedures.
