Trump says he asked FIFA chief to review red card foul

Published 06 Jul, 2026 07:52pm 2 min read

President Donald Trump said on Monday he ​asked FIFA chief Gianni Infantino to review a ‌red-card foul against USA striker Folarin Balogun and that he did not think the foul called by the “horrible” referee was ​fair.

“All I did was ask for a review, ​because I didn’t think it was a foul,” ⁠Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

The unprecedented move ​has thrust FIFA’s disciplinary process into the global spotlight ​and prompted an angry response from Belgium, who play the US on Monday for a place in the quarter-finals.

Trump said the incident that ​got Balogun the red card was simply a ​case of two athletes colliding, and he raised questions about the ‌fairness of the referee who called the foul.

“I saw the play,” Trump said. “That wasn’t a foul. That wasn’t even an infraction. That was two guys running at full speed that ​happened to ​crash into each ⁠other.”

He said FIFA made a “really brilliant decision” to suspend the red card. “I think ​the referee’s call was horrible,” he said.

Trump said ​all ⁠he did was ask for a review. “I didn’t tell them what to do. I can’t tell them what to ⁠do,” ​he said.

He said it was ​important for Team USA to have its best players on the field.

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