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Amid the row over U-turn on ban on Balogun, a look at the friendship between US President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino
FIFA President Gianni Infantino (left) and US President Donald Trump pose for a selfie. (REUTERS)
FIFA has surprisingly suspended the automatic one-game World Cup ban for US striker Folarin Balogun after US President Donald Trump made a call to FIFA President Gianni Infantino. This unprecedented intervention has ignited a massive political and athletic firestorm across the global football community.
News18 explains their ties.
WHAT HAPPENED?
During the United States’ 2-0 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina in the Round of 32, Balogun was shown a straight red card after a VAR review for inadvertently stepping on the ankle of defender Tarik Muharemovic.
Per standard tournament regulations, a straight red card carries an automatic one-match suspension that cannot be appealed, which would have barred the U.S. team’s top goalscorer from playing against Belgium in the Round of 16.
Following the match, Trump made a direct phone call to Infantino to protest the decision and demand an official review.
FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee subsequently invoked Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. This allowed it to “suspend the implementation of the match suspension for a probationary period of one year.” As a result, Balogun was cleared to play against Belgium.
WHY THE BACKLASH?
The decision marks the first time since 1962 that political pressure has successfully altered a player’s red-card suspension status during an ongoing World Cup.
The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) expressed utter astonishment, calling the move a “direct contradiction” of fair play, and has launched an inquiry into potential legal options.
European sports analysts and political watchdogs have heavily criticised Infantino for abandoning FIFA’s statutory mandate of strict political neutrality to appease his close friend in the White House.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN INFANTINO AND TRUMP
While FIFA has traditionally maintained a strict policy of political neutrality, Infantino has aggressively courted Trump to secure logistical backing, maximise revenue, and expand football’s footprint in the United States. This relationship has drawn intense scrutiny from ethics committees, foreign governments, and football purists alike.
In July 2025, FIFA officially opened a brand-new corporate office inside Trump Tower in New York City, making the global governing body of football a direct financial tenant of the sitting U.S. president.
In December 2025, after Trump publicly expressed frustration over missing out on a Nobel Peace Prize, Infantino created and awarded Trump the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize. Infantino defended the move by claiming Trump “saved lives” during Middle East ceasefire negotiations.
Infantino was a prominent attendee at Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025 and has been spotted at Mar-a-Lago wearing custom “4547″ MAGA-style caps. He also drew immense backlash for publicly endorsing Trump’s domestic agenda at the American Business Forum, stating that everyone “should support what he’s doing.”
COMPLAINTS AND ISSUES
Watchdog group FairSquare recently filed a formal seven-page complaint with the FIFA Ethics Committee, alleging that Infantino repeatedly violated Article 15 of the FIFA Code of Ethics regarding mandatory political neutrality. Despite Infantino’s constant flattery to secure smooth operations, the Trump administration’s strict travel limits resulted in several international fans, Iranian football officials, and Somali referee Omar Artan being denied entry visas to the U.S.
WHY ARE THEY ALIGNED?
For Gianni Infantino, the strategy is risk mitigation and aggressive expansion. Operating the multi-billion-dollar World Cup and Club World Cup infrastructure requires extensive coordination with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, stadium logistics, and federal task forces. Infantino believes staying in Trump’s inner circle ensures the commercial success of these events.
For Trump, the connection serves as a major public relations victory, allowing him to position himself as the chief orchestrator of the world’s largest sporting spectacles on American soil while boosting football’s popularity within his political base, say experts.
With agency inputs
About the Author
At the news desk for 20 years, the story of her life has revolved around finding pun, facts while reporting, on radio, heading a daily newspaper desk, teaching mass media students to now editing speci…Read More
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