U.S. President Donald Trump said he personally asked FIFA president Gianni Infantino to review Folarin Balogun's suspension after the American striker received a red card in a World Cup game against Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to CNN's Betsy Klein.
"All I did was ask for a review. I didn't say, 'You have to do this,'" Trump said Monday.
Trump added that he "didn't think it was a foul" in reference to the play that resulted in Balogun's red card. Balogun was sent off in the second half of the United States' 2-0 win July 1. Trump called Infantino that night, sources told Tyler Pager and Tariq Panja of The New York Times.
"I didn't tell him what to do. I can't tell him what to do," Trump said, according to Klein.
FIFA announced Sunday that Balogun's one-match ban, which is automatically issued after a player is red-carded at the World Cup, was "suspended for a probationary period of one year." That makes him eligible to play in Monday's round of 16 encounter against Belgium.
Trump weighed in after the unusual decision, writing: "Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!"
Infantino and Trump have become increasingly close in recent years. The former created the FIFA Peace Prize, which was bestowed on the U.S. president on stage during the draw for this summer's competition.
Automatic World Cup match suspensions like Balogun's cannot be appealed under FIFA rules, although the governing body's disciplinary committee can "fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure."
The Belgian football federation said Sunday it was "astonished" by FIFA's decision.
Balogun is the United States' leading scorer at the 2026 World Cup with three goals. A win over Belgium on Monday in Seattle would send the U.S. to the quarterfinals at a men's World Cup for the first time since 2002.
