Connect with us

Investigation

The referee is a little bit suspect – President Trump confirms he spoke to FIFA president to review Folarin Balogun’s red card

Published

1 hour ago

on

The referee is a little bit suspect - President Trump confirms he spoke to FIFA president to review Folarin Balogun?s red card

US President Donald Trump has confirmed that he personally spoke with FIFA President Gianni Infantino regarding the red card shown to United States forward Folarin Balogun.
 
Speaking at the White House Monday, July 6, the President said he did not demand that Balogun’s ban be flipped in his phone call with FIFA’s Gianni Infantin but asked for a review of the incident.
 
The move sparked outrage with USA’s next opponent, Belgium, which launched a dramatic late appeal to have the ban reinstated hours before kickoff in Seattle, which FIFA rejected.
 
Trump, however, told Belgian officials that the World Cup Round of 16 clash would have been “rigged” had Folarin Balogun not been allowed to play. He also criticised Brazilian referee Raphael Claus, who issued the controversial red card.
 
‘Yeah, I did, I spoke to Gianni. I asked for a review by FIFA,’ Trump said. ‘That’s all I did. And, you know, again, I’m good at this stuff. That wasn’t a foul. That wasn’t even an infraction. That was two guys running full speed who happened to crash into each other.
 
‘He (Balogun) didn’t do anything wrong, and he’s our best player, or one of our best players, a very vital player, and they gave him a red card. I didn’t think it meant much. Then I started hearing that it means you can’t play in the next game, at least in the next game.
 
‘These were two great athletes who got tangled up. And this referee, who is a little bit suspect – if you check his past. I don’t want to say that because I don’t like to create controversy, but very suspect. If you’d like, I’ll provide you with his past.’
 
Claus was once accused of match-fixing in 2023 in Brazil but was never charged with any wrongdoing, and there is no suggestion of any type of allegation aimed at Claus in this World Cup.
 
‘Firstly, it wasn’t a foul,’ Trump added. ‘And then you have to look at the person who made the decision. The game tonight is going to be amazing. We are going to have a full team and Belgium is going to have a full team. And you know what, if they beat us they can be really proud.
 
‘This game would have had a big mark on it. The other way, if they beat us I would say it is rigged, just like the election was rigged in 2020. I think they made a brilliant decision, I thought the referee’s decision was horrible. Nobody talks about that. They talk about the red card like it was fine.’
 
Trump continued: ‘He (Balogun) didn’t do anything wrong, and he’s our best player, or one of our best players, a very vital player and they gave him a red card.
 
‘That’s one thing, to penalize somebody for the game. But how do you penalize them for a game that hasn’t been played yet? It’s very unfair. You can’t do that.’
 
Trump insisted he didn’t force Infantino to make Balogun available.
 
‘I didn’t say “you have to do this”. Gianni is a smart, tough man and his stock is going through the roof,’ Trump said.
 
‘I didn’t know what the hell a red card was. When I found out I said “you gotta be kidding”. I said “wow, that’s a lot of power, that’s terrible”. But then I looked at his past and it wasn’t so great.
 
‘I didn’t tell him (Infantino) what to do, I can’t tell him what to do.’
 
Shortly after Trump spoke, Infantino released a statement on the growing backlash across the world.
 
‘Yes, I regularly discuss matters related to the FIFA World Cup with the President of the United States, and on this matter, I did receive a call from President Donald Trump, just as I receive calls from heads of state, government officials, football stakeholders and business executives from around the world on many different issues,’ Infantino said.
 
‘During our conversation, I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA’s independent judicial bodies and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent bodies. That is how FIFA’s system works, and it is a principle that I will always uphold.
 
‘I read the decisions of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee when they are issued. Sometimes I am surprised by them. Sometimes I agree with them, and sometimes I disagree. What I always do, however, is respect those decisions and the autonomy of the bodies that make them.
 
‘Whether we personally like a decision or not is irrelevant. Respect for independent institutions and the rule of law is what protects the integrity of our competitions and the credibility of FIFA at all times.’

See Complete Details,Videos Here..
Related Topics:

Trending