The World Cup descended into farce on Sunday after it emerged Donald Trump personally called FIFA president Gianni Infantino to review the one-match ban handed to USA striker Folarin Balogun.In a move that has sent shockwaves through the sport, the governing body confirmed that Balogun is free to face Belgium in the last 16 on Monday night, despite being red-carded in the US’s win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1.White House sources have confirmed to the Daily Mail that Trump took the extraordinary step of reaching out to Infantino, ahead of FIFA’s staggering decision to suspend the ban.Moments after the announcement, President Trump thanked FIFA for ‘reversing a great injustice’ in a post on Truth Social.Trump, who has become close friends with Infantino since returning to the White House, wrote: ‘Thank you to Fifa for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice! President DONALD J. TRUMP.’The President’s intervention would appear to make a mockery of the competition’s integrity and has, unsurprisingly, triggered widespread condemnation. Donald Trump reportedly called FIFA chief Gianni Infantino to ask him to suspend the one-match ban given to USA superstar Folarin Balogun The striker was sent off for a tackle during their 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina Donald Trump took to Truth Social on Sunday morning to praise FIFA for ‘doing what was right’ Further reports in the US claimed Trump, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick and White House task force head Andrew Giuliani put together a crack legal team to challenge the dismissal.The decision has also sparked anger within the Belgium team and it’s understood they are considering taking legal action and referring the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.The Belgian FA said it was ‘astonished’ at the decision and would be investigating all options to ‘protect the principles of fair play.’ Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia said: ‘I didn’t know that at the World Cup July 5th is now April 1st – April Fool’s Day. We’re defending football and its ethics.’ Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois admitted the decision came as a ‘surprise’. He added: ‘Had it been done earlier, we’d maybe be able to be more prepared. But as players, nothing changes, we focus to win.’The Belgian FA also insisted the move contradicted FIFA’s competition rules. The automatic nature of such a suspension was reaffirmed in a FIFA World Cup Circular sent to participating member associations in May.FIFA declined to comment. Last year FIFA created a FIFA Peace Prize and immediately handed it to Trump, following the President’s failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize.A FIFA statement earlier on Sunday read: ‘In line with article 27 of the FIFA disciplinary code, the implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year.’If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.’ Belgium coach Rudi Garcia and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois addressed the media on SundayBefore reports revealed that Trump had called Infantino over the matter, the President’s post on Truth Social sparked major speculation on social media that he had some involvement in FIFA’s decision to suspend Balogun’s ban, which was further fueled by another social media post from Barstool Sports boss Dave Portnoy.Hours before FIFA’s decision was confirmed, Portnoy had posted on X: ‘Davey Pitch’s futbul [sic] sources are saying a certain red card may be soon overturned.’ Then, once news of Balogun’s suspended ban broke, the Barstool Sports boss returned to social media to hint that Trump did in fact play a part in the decision.Alongside a doctored image of Portnoy and Trump standing together, with ‘US Soccer’ caps on, he wrote: ‘A lot of people are asking me how this red card got reversed. What happened behind the scenes? Who got it done? ‘Who were my sources that made me confident enough to stake my entire reputation on this Davey Pitch bomb. Well a great journalist never reveals their sources. Sorry.’It’s understood US Soccer’s legal team put forward a submission to FIFA, with their case centering on the officials’ use of slow-motion replays before Balogun was sent off. In an apoplectic statement, the Belgian FA said: ‘The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) is astonished by FIFA’s decision to declare suspended United States player Folarin Balogun eligible to play in the USA–Belgium match on Monday, 6 July at 5:00 p.m.’FIFA bases its decision on Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. This provision states that the FIFA Disciplinary Committee may decide to suspend the enforcement of a previously imposed disciplinary sanction. Balogun and Christian Pulisic were all smiles in training on Sunday after getting the news The decision to show Balogun a straight red card sparked widespread fury on social media’However, Article 66.4 of the same FIFA Disciplinary Code clearly provides that a red card (sending-off) automatically results in a suspension for the team’s next match, as has been the case for all previous red cards issued during this FIFA World Cup.’Furthermore, and irrespective of the above, the decision is in direct contradiction with the provisions of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Competition Regulations, as set out in Article 10.5: “If a player or team official is sent off as a result of a direct or indirect red card (second caution), they will automatically be suspended from their team’s subsequent match. In addition, further sanctions may be imposed.”‘The automatic nature of such a suspension was also explicitly reaffirmed in FIFA World Cup 2026 Circular No. 16, which was distributed to all participating member associations on 12 May 2026.’The same rule is reiterated at every FIFA World Cup 2026 Match Coordination Meeting prior to each match and is included in all FIFA World Cup 2026 workshop presentations.’In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options.’Pascale Van Damme, the Belgian FA president who is a member of the FIFA Council, is understood to have flown into Seattle on Sunday amid ongoing discussions on the matter. In response to FIFA’s decision, the USMNT said on Sunday: ‘We accept the decision of the Disciplinary Committee and are pleased that Folarin Balogun is eligible to compete tomorrow. ‘Our full attention is focused on the Round of 16 match against Belgium in Seattle, and we look forward to the continued support of our amazing fans.’ ‘I think a yellow card would have been fair due to it not being intentional,’ Balogun had said FIFA president Gianni Infantino pictured alongside Donald Trump last monthUSA coach Mauricio Pochettino insisted he was not involved in the process to challenge Balogun’s suspension.’The Federation was working very hard,’ said Pochettino at his pre-match press conference. ‘JT (Batson, the chief executive of U.S. Soccer) and the whole federation were trying to defend our situation. I was not involved and focused on the team preparing for Belgium.’This is good for football, to celebrate, if in the next game if an unfair thing happens you can reverse the decision. From a decision that is slow motion, which is not the reality of what happened on the pitch.’The Daily Mail understands that the USMNT were informed about the decision on Sunday morning. However, the squad were not told straight away and later found out through social media.USA star Chris Richards explained on Sunday: ‘We weren’t quite sure if it was true or not. I think everyone knows with AI and this and that, there can be a few question marks. ‘But ultimately we found out through social media, so it was cool to finally get the confirmation that it was true.’Balogun broke his silence on his red card in the days that followed the USA’s 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, insisting that he felt a yellow card would’ve been fair.’First and foremost, it was totally unintentional, which I’m sure a lot of people know. But, you know, I think the choice of the referee was, of course, his choice, but I don’t think it was the correct call,’ he told reporters on Friday. ‘I think a yellow card would have been fair due to it not being intentional. There’s not many places I can place my foot in such a scenario. But it’s happened, and it’s something that I have to accept and move forward from.’ Also reacting to the news on Sunday, USA star Christian Pulisic said: ‘We found out about it just coming over here, so yeah, at first you’re like, oh, really? Like, is this real? ‘And like, oh, this is great news. Obviously, we’re just happy to have [him].’Under Article 10.5 of FIFA’s tournament regulations, the dismissal automatically carries a mandatory one-game suspension. Hours before the news was official, Barstool Sports boss Dave Portnoy posted this on X Once Balogun’s suspended ban was confirmed, Portnoy returned to X with this post – hinting that US President Trump played a role in FIFA’s decision It serves as a massive boost to USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino ahead of the gameMultiple FIFA officials had previously confirmed that national teams are prohibited from formally appealing red cards or the subsequent disciplinary sanctions.However, the governing body’s judicial committee utilized a rare stipulation within Article 27 of the disciplinary code to circumvent the immediate ban.The specific regulation allows the committee to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure.The disciplinary body recently applied the exact same probationary regulation to Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of the tournament.The forward was initially facing a ban following a violent conduct dismissal during a World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland in November 2025.Ronaldo was sent off after catching defender Dara O’Shea with a trailing elbow during a 2-0 defeat in Dublin.However, after the Portugal captain served a one-game suspension during the team’s subsequent 9-1 victory over Armenia, FIFA intervened.The governing body suspended the final two matches of the ban under a one-year probation period, clearing the five-time Ballon d’Or winner to lead his country from the start of the current tournament.