More lobbying has begun from soccer federations and political leaders around the world following President Donald Trump’s calls to FIFA’s Gianni Infantino in the wake of Folarin Balogun‘s World Cup red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Days after Trump first reached out to the FIFA president and said he suggested that Balogun not receive a mandatory one-match ban, FIFA announced Sunday that Balogun would be able to play against Belgium on Monday night and that his one-game ban had been suspended.
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The decision was so shocking that Belgium’s football association said it was “astonished” and Balogun’s own USMNT teammates wondered if the announcement was even real at first.
It’s very real. And it’s setting a dangerous precedent for FIFA.
England‘s Jarell Quansah was sent off for a straight red card Sunday night for a tackle on Jesús Gallardo in the Three Lions’ 3-2 win. Like Balogun’s red card, Quansah wasn’t called for a foul on the field, but the video replay officials called referee Alireza Faghani to the pitch side monitors. After a quick look at the replays, Faghani gave Quansah a red card.
Monday, Labour MP Noah Law wrote a public letter to Infantino asking for Quansah’s one-match ban to be reviewed and directly cited the Balogun situation.
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“Whilst I believe that it was right for Jarell Quansah to have received this red card and that refereeing rules must be applied consistently, I believe it would be right to delay his suspension until after the completion of the World Cup,” the letter said.
“We know that a similar situation arose earlier in the competition when United States forward Folarin Balogun received a red card during the Round of 32.”
After England striker Harry Kane was praised by Trump on social media, England manager Thomas Tuchel was asked — perhaps half-jokingly — if Trump could get involved in getting Quansah’s ban removed.
“Where does it start and where does it end now? Can we overturn it or not overturn it or what?” Tuchel said.
France, meanwhile, is reportedly appealing a yellow card that was given to Michael Olise during the team’s win over Paraguay on Saturday. Olise received the yellow after Paraguay’s Matias Galarza successfully feigned that Olise had hit him.
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Olise is still eligible to play against Morocco in the quarterfinals since he received just one card during that match. But if he was given a yellow card in that Morocco game, he’d be ineligible to play in the semifinals if France advanced.
In announcing the decision to hand Balogun a suspended one-match ban, FIFA cited article 27 of its sporting code. Immediately after the match, there was scrutiny over the replays that were shown to referee Raphael Claus. According to FIFA’s VAR rules, normal speed replays “should” be used in a situation like that of Balogun. Claus was shown slow-motion replays.
The backlash to the suspension of Balogun’s ban and the role that Trump played in it has been so severe, however, that FIFA was forced to issue a statement on Monday morning saying that Trump didn’t have anything to do with it.
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“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’s statement 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.”
That statement came on the same morning that Trump himself confirmed he had talked to Infantino. And while Infantino may already have a phone that’s constantly getting texts and calls from political leaders, it’s safe to assume that those who have his number are now going to be further emboldened to attempt to put their fingers on FIFA’s disciplinary scale.
