Former President Donald Trump announced Monday that he had asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review a red card issued to U.S. striker Folarin Balogun. Trump stated he did not believe the play was a foul and that Balogun should have been allowed to play in a crucial match.
"I asked for a review because I didn’t think it was a foul," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. He added, "I thought it was two great athletes that crashed into each other and got entangled."
FIFA suspended Balogun's one-match ban, a typical consequence for a red card, for up to one year. Trump claimed credit for the review, though he noted that Infantino did not make the decision alone, suggesting a committee was involved.
Balogun, who plays professionally for AS Monaco in France's Ligue 1, received the red card from Brazilian referee Raphael Claus during the second half of the U.S. team's 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1. The red card would have sidelined him for the team's subsequent match against Belgium.
"If you would have taken him out, I think it would have really stained this incredible game," Trump said. "We got to have our best players, and they’ve got — Belgium’s got a great team, by the way. We have our best players, and they have to have their best."