'Unprecedented incident': U.S. President Trump directly calls FIFA → World Cup ban overturned, football world in uproar "Reviewing legal response"

*This content was translated by AI.

This is truly an unprecedented incident. U.S. President Donald Trump personally intervened on behalf of his country's star striker, Folarin Balogun (AS Monaco), who received a sending-off penalty, prompting FIFA to revoke the sanction.

Global media outlet AP reported on the 6th (Korean time) that "President Trump directly called FIFA President Gianni Infantino and requested a review of the red card decision against Balogun. Following this call, FIFA revoked Balogun's suspension, allowing him to participate normally in the World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium."

Balogun received a red card for stepping on Tarek Muharemovic's right ankle during Bosnia and Herzegovina's Round of 32 match. Under standard regulations, this should have automatically triggered a one-match suspension; however, FIFA cited Article 27 of its disciplinary code to announce that "the enforcement of the sanction will be suspended for one year."

It is unprecedented for a president to request the revocation of a penalty against a key player on their national team. Balogun, a central striker who scored the winning goal in the Bosnia match before being sent off just 19 minutes later, had previously led the U.S. to a decisive 4-1 victory over Paraguay in the group stage opener with multiple goals.

This marks the first time since the 1962 Chile World Cup, when Brazil's Garrincha received a similar overturned sending-off penalty, that a suspension on the World Cup main stage has been reversed.

Following the incident, President Trump issued a statement via his personal social networking service (SNS), expressing gratitude: "Thank you to FIFA for making the right decision and correcting this great injustice." Even Mauricio Pochettino, head coach of the U.S. national team, defended both Trump's intervention and FIFA's action, stating it was "a completely unfair call" and adding that "sports possess a magical power that unites people and nations."

In contrast, Belgium, the opposing nation, strongly protested. The Belgian Football Association issued an official statement declaring they were "shocked" and announced they are "reviewing all legal measures, including filing a case with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)."

Additionally, Rudy Garcia, head coach of the Belgian national team, sharply criticized the decision: "July 5th at FIFA headquarters appears to be Europe's April Fools' Day. This is the first such decision in World Cup history. We will fight to uphold football's ethics."

Concerns and criticisms have also poured out across the football community. Thomas Tuchel, head coach of the England national team, pointed out: "Now we can endlessly argue for overturning yellow cards for Declan Rice or Michael Olise. It remains unclear where this trend will end." Ståle Solbakken, head coach of the Norway national team, remarked: "When the next red card is issued, who will revoke the suspension? This is the worst decision that could inflict major damage on the World Cup."

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*This content was translated by AI.