US President Donald Trump has admitted that he personally asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review the red card given to USMNT striker Folarin Balogun during the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, asserting that the referee was unfair and that intervention was necessary to save the situation.
Since the suspension of the red card was announced, a wave of fierce attacks has targeted Infantino from Belgium, Germany, and UEFA, arguing that football should not be governed this way and that orders must never be taken from a US president or anyone else.
While FIFA chose to remain silent in the face of this backlash, Trump addressed the crisis with clear and direct statements on Monday:
“I watched the play, and I am someone who loves sports, I was an athlete and I understand sports very well. It was not a foul, and it didn’t deserve any penalty at all.”
“The referee raises suspicions if you review his history. He made a decision that no one believed, including the players of the opposing team.”
“Balogun did nothing wrong, and he is our best player, or one of our best players. Yet, he got a red card. If it’s unfair to any player, it’s even more unjust when it happens to one of the best players on the team.”
“You cannot punish a player by banning him from another match because of a play like that. I spoke with the FIFA President, who is a very respectable man, and my respect for him has only grown after this situation.”
“I am the one who brought the World Cup here, not Biden. Biden was sleeping, and if things were normal, I would have retired by now. But I brought the Olympics and the World Cup to America, and that is something I am very proud of.”
