Integrity of World Cup is questioned as Trump, Fifa defend Balogun suspension actions

With the integrity of Fifa and the World Cup under attack from European football leaders, Fifa President Gianni Infantino acknowledged taking a call from US President Donald Trump before US forward Folarin Balogun was cleared to play against Belgium later on Monday.

Balogun was issued a red card in the US match against Bosnia-Herzegovina last week, resulting in a suspension for the Belgium contest. Trump called Infantino after the match with Bosnia to plead his case to overturn the call and Fifa lifted the suspension on Sunday.

The Belgian football federation challenged Fifa’s ruling not to enforce a ban on Balogun. The European football body Uefa described the decision as an “incomprehensible” breach of football’s rule of law. Trump acknowledged calling Infantino and took credit for getting Fifa to review the red card.

A chaotic and unprecedented day in modern World Cup history then saw a Fifa appeal judge dismiss Belgium’s legal challenge, fewer than eight hours before kick-off in Seattle with a quarter-finals place at stake.

The Belgian football body “is not a party to the proceedings and, as such, has no standing to appeal the decision”, Fifa said in a statement.

It was unclear if Belgium can pursue an appeal to the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport, which is on standby to rule on urgent World Cup cases.