President Trump says he was 'forced' to intervene with FIFA after Folarin Balogun's red card: 'I had no idea what was going to happen'
The USMNT has been out of the 2026 World Cup for well more than a week, but FIFA's decision to suspend striker Folarin Balogun's red card remains one of the most controversial stories of the tournament.
It was once again a topic of discussion on Friday, when President Donald Trump appeared to distance himself from the fallout of his phone call to FIFA president Gianni Infantino that reportedly led to Balogun being able to play in the Round of 16 against Belgium.
Speaking alongside Infantino during a FIFA reception at Trump Tower, Trump said he did not know what would happen after the call and insisted Infantino deserves "credit" for allowing Balogun to play:
"This has been a tournament like no other, filled with fierce competition, unforgettable moments. Probably the most unforgettable is when they gave that gentleman — is it a red card? And I was forced to call Gianni and just make a recommendation. I said 'Gianni, I'd like to make a recommendation. Let the guy in the game!' No, I didn't say that. I said, 'I'd like to wage a complaint.' I had no idea what was going to happen.
"But, you know, so much better the way it worked out because there's no controversy. They won the game and our team had all of its players. [Infantino] made another great decision if you think about it. You'll never get credit for that."
The USMNT lost 4-1 to Belgium. It has since been reported that the decision to suspend the red card was made solely by FIFA disciplinary chair Mohammad al-Kamali and without input from any of the 17 other members of the disciplinary committee.
Trump's remarks covered a wide range of stories in the World Cup, such as England's now-infamous decision to go full defense while holding a 1-0 lead over Argentina in the second half of the semifinal match.
The president said England manager Thomas Tuchel erred by making captain Harry Kane, with whom Trump golfed, become a defensive player:
"You have a great player in England, who I played golf with. You know that, right? He is Harry, who's been fantastic. I think they perhaps made a mistake when they made him a defensive player.
"What do I know about soccer? They took the lead and they took their best player, and they put him on defense. Then somehow... We got to be a little offensive, right? But no, I'm not gonna call it. Look, what do I know about coaching? I thought that was a little unusual, but Harry is a great guy actually."
Looking ahead, Trump boasted of the ratings and attendance success FIFA has seen in the United States, Mexico and Canada. This tournament broke the World Cup record for total attendance before the knockout stage even began.
Trump would like the U.S. to host the World Cup again, and soon. He recounted an alleged conversation he had with Infantino and other FIFA officials in which he lobbied the U.S. to solely host the 2034 World Cup, to which Infantino responded by supposedly suggesting a joint U.S.-China bid:
"I say what we should do is, you should choose the United States of America again. This time we'll leave Canada and Mexico out, but then what you do is you — I was very nice to get them in — but what you do is, you choose us but you pick somebody else for the next one, and that will take some of the anger, hatred and steam out of everyone.
"Gianni also had another idea. He said we could do it, China and the United States for next time. We could do it China and the United States, so you have a nice short flight in between games. The players would love that."
The 2030 World Cup will be hosted jointly by Spain, Portugal and Morocco, which was announced nearly three years ago. The 2034 World Cup will be hosted by Saudi Arabia, which was announced a year and a half ago.
