FIFA president defends disciplinary process after Folarin Balogun’s World Cup reprieve sparks crisis

WASHINGTON – FIFA president Gianni Infantino defended its disciplinary process on July 6, after United States President Donald Trump hailed as “brilliant” its decision to suspend American striker Folarin Balogun’s World Cup red-card ban, fuelling accusations the governing body had bowed to political pressure.

Infantino said FIFA’s judicial bodies had operated “independently and autonomously” and that he had told Trump the Balogun case was subject to an ongoing legal process, after the US leader personally urged him to review the case.

The affair has become the tournament’s biggest controversy, drawing condemnation from European football body UEFA – which said FIFA had “crossed a red line” – the Royal Belgian Football Association, several national federations and senior coaches, officials and politicians, with critics arguing that FIFA had undermined confidence in its own disciplinary system.

Belgium, who advanced to the quarter-finals with an emphatic 4-1 victory, had challenged Balogun’s eligibility hours before kick-off.

But FIFA rejected the appeal and the striker started the match, before making little impact and being substituted as the Americans exited the tournament.

England, meanwhile, who had defender Jarell Quansah sent off in the July 5 last-16 win over Mexico, are now considering their options regarding any appeal over that red card as a result of the Balogun case, a source told Reuters.

British lawmakers also appealed to FIFA for consistency.

“He (Balogun) didn’t do anything wrong and he is our best player,” Trump told reporters at the Oval Office on July 6. “When they take your best player and say ‘You can’t play’, it’s very unfair.

“I think they (FIFA) made a really brilliant decision. I asked for a review. If they would not allow a top player to play I think it (the World Cup) would have had a big stain.”

Trump also questioned refereeing by Brazil’s Raphael Claus, who had sent Balogun off, saying he was “a little bit suspect if you check his past”. He did not elaborate.

Infantino later confirmed the call from Trump but said he had explained that FIFA’s judicial bodies operated independently.

“During our conversation I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA’s independent judicial bodies and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent bodies,” he said. “That is how FIFA’s system works, and it is a principle that I will always uphold.”

FIFA’s disciplinary committee said it had the authority to suspend the one-match ban. It also fined Balogun US$40,000 (S$51,700) for coming onto the pitch following the match to celebrate with teammates after his dismissal.

“Suspending the effects of a red card based on an explicit provision of the applicable regulations is a much more balanced measure,” the committee’s chairperson said in a statement.

For UEFA, the decision to suspend the ban was simply wrong.

“We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.

“When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined.”

Several national football federations have been equally critical of FIFA’s decision.

High-profile criticism also came from big names in the sport.

“This is our sport, not theirs,” said former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who is in talks to become the new Germany coach.

“If Donald Trump and Gianni Infantino really sorted this out between themselves, it is madness; it calls everything into question. These two people, who know nothing about football, should have absolutely nothing to do with this.”

It is not the first time in 2026 that FIFA has been accused of mixing politics with sport, with Infantino attending Trump’s Board of Peace meeting in February and facing subsequent questions about the body’s political neutrality.

Balogun was sent off after a VAR review for dragging his studs down the back of defender Tarik Muharemovic’s leg and on his foot during their win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32.

The red card carried an automatic one-match ban, ruling the 25-year-old Monaco striker out of the July 6 tie with Belgium. FIFA instead suspended the ban for a one-year probationary period without rescinding the card itself, citing Article 27.

Even former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who stepped down in 2015 amid corruption allegations, joined the criticism.

“Red cards are not overturned by political phone calls. They are overturned by rules, evidence and independent bodies,” he said.

“If a US president intervenes with the FIFA president – and a player is suddenly cleared before a World Cup knockout match – the question is unavoidable: Quo vadis, FIFA?

“Football must never become a playground for political power.”

REUTERS