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The president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, confirmed this Monday that he received a personal call from President Donald Trump regarding the expulsion of American forward Folarin Balogun, but he defended that the decision to lift the sanction was solely the responsibility of the independent judicial bodies of the organization, according to statements reported by Marca.
The controversy erupted after it was revealed that FIFA invoked Article 27 of its Disciplinary Code to suspend the automatic sanction resulting from the direct red card shown to Balogun by Brazilian referee Raphael Claus on July 1 during the round of 16 match between the United States and Bosnia and Herzegovina, held in Santa Clara, California.
Infantino acknowledged the conversation with Trump but tried to distance it from the disciplinary resolution: "Yes, I regularly discuss matters related to the FIFA World Cup with the President of the United States, and in this case, I received a call from President Donald Trump, just as I receive calls from heads of state, government officials, stakeholders in football, and business executives worldwide on many different topics."
The leader assured that during that call he explained to Trump that there was a legal process underway: "I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving the independent judicial bodies of FIFA and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent authorities. This is how the FIFA system works, and it is a principle that I will always uphold."
Infantino also emphasized that the disciplinary committees act with full autonomy: "FIFA's judicial bodies are independent. They operate autonomously, apply the FIFA Disciplinary Code, and decide cases based on the applicable regulations and the specific facts before them. Their independence is essential for the credibility and integrity of football, and this must always be respected."
Trump, for his part, acknowledged on Monday at a press conference from the Oval Office that he had requested a review, calling the referee's decision "horrible" and stating that "it was not a foul." On Saturday, he had already celebrated FIFA's resolution on Truth Social with the message: "Thank you to FIFA for doing the right thing and reversing a great injustice!"
The measure triggered a wave of international criticism. Belgium declared itself "astonished" and filed a formal appeal with FIFA, citing Article 66.4 of the Disciplinary Code, as Balogun was eligible for the Round of 16 match between both teams, scheduled for this Tuesday.
UEFA was even more emphatic, describing the decision as "unprecedented, incomprehensible, and unjustifiable," warning that FIFA "crossed a red line."
Former FIFA president Joseph Blatter also spoke out with a straightforward statement: "Red cards are not annulled by political phone calls."
This episode is regarded as the first documented instance in the history of the World Cups where a President of the United States directly intervenes with FIFA to overturn a sanction against a player from his national team, establishing a significant precedent for the governance of world football.
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