Trump confirms he asked Fifa to review Balogun ban

 

President Donald Trump has confirmed he asked Fifa to review United States striker Folarin Balogun's one-match suspension at the World Cup.

Balogun, 25, was set to miss his side's last-16 tie against Belgium after being shown a straight red card for a foul on Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Tarik Muharemovic in the previous round.

But Fifa made the shock decision to suspend the automatic one-match ban for 12 months, leading to widespread criticism, including from Uefa, Belgium and England boss Thomas Tuchel.

Fifa's decision frees US forward Balogun, who has scored three goals at this summer's tournament, to be selected for the match in Seattle, which kicks off at 17:00 local time (01:00 BST on Tuesday).

The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) says it is "astonished" by the move and has told the United States Soccer Federation it "contests the eligibility" of Balogun playing in the tie after its appeal against the decision was dismissed.

Trump said football's world governing body "made the right decision", adding it would have left a "big stain" on the tournament had the ban been implemented.

Speaking at the White House on Monday, Trump said he had asked Fifa to review the decision because he "didn't think it was a foul".

He confirmed he had spoken to Fifa president Gianni Infantino but said "all" he did was ask for a review and added he did not tell the Swiss he had to suspend Balogun's ban.

Trump added: "I think it [the suspension] would have left a big stain. I can't tell them what to do. I don't believe they made the decision; I believe it was the commission that made the decision. And it was the right decision."

However, European football governing body Uefa said it left the integrity of football at stake.