Sepp Blatter, the former FIFA President, shared his views on the soccer organization’s decision to suspend the red card ban placed on USA World Cup star Folarin Balogun. This decision came ahead of the team’s match against Belgium.
Despite being banned twice due to a corruption investigation, Blatter remains vocal and is blocked from FIFA activities until 2027. He was succeeded by Gianni Infantino as the current FIFA President.
The incident arose after Balogun received a red card during a match between the U.S. and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The card, a result of Balogun stepping on a defender’s ankle during play, followed a VAR review.
Sources mentioned that then-President Donald Trump called Infantino, urging a review. On a later date, the suspension reversal was confirmed.
Blatter commented on social media, writing, “Red cards are not overturned by political phone calls. They are overturned by rules, evidence, and independent bodies. If a U.S. President intervenes with the FIFA President—and a player is suddenly cleared before a World Cup knockout match—the question is unavoidable: Quo vadis, FIFA? Football must never become a playground for political power.”
Meanwhile, Folarin Balogun played a significant role by scoring during a group stage match against Paraguay in June 2026.
According to Fox News contributor Clay Travis, Trump, along with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik and White House task force leader Andrew Giuliani, assembled legal experts to challenge the red card decision.
The extent to which FIFA considered this approach is uncertain. However, Belgium has shown discontent, appealing the decision and demanding a detailed explanation from FIFA.
The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) expressed astonishment, while Belgium’s coach Rudi Garcia criticized the ruling. “I didn’t know that in the offices of FIFA the fifth of July was the first of April in Europe,” he remarked through a translator. He emphasized that the federation defends the sport’s integrity and ethics, marking this as an unprecedented situation in World Cup history.
UEFA also stated that FIFA’s decision “crossed a red line.”
The Associated Press has contributed additional information for this report.