How Trump’s call to FIFA tested the limits of rules-based order

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about FIFA in the Oval Office at the White House, July 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein) How Trump’s call to FIFA tested the limits of rules‑based order Published: July 7, 2026 5.44pm EDT Share article Print article “All I did was ask for a review because I didn’t think it was a foul,” United States President Donald Trump said this week in front of reporters in the Oval Office. He was explaining why he had personally called FIFA President Gianni Infantino to ask that a red card issued to American forward Folarin Balogun be reconsidered. Balogun had been issued the red card during the team’s round of 32 match against Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1. The Americans won that match 2-0, but a red card normally carries an automatic one-match suspension. Four days later, FIFA announced it had placed Balogun on one year’s probation instead, citing Article 27 of its disciplinary code, which gives FIFA’s judicial bodies discretion to hold off on enforcing sanctions. FIFA also fined U.S. Soccer US$40,000, and the red card stayed on Balogun’s record. Infantino confirmed he had spoken with Trump, but said he told the president the matter was subject to “an ongoing legal process involving FIFA’s independent judicial bodies.” Trump, for his part, said he did not tell Infantino what to do. The reversal allowed Balogun to play against Belgium in the round of 16 match. Belgium defeated the U.S. 4-1, and Balogun and his team bowed out of the World Cup at the same stage as they did in 1994, 2010, 2014 and 2022. The controversy is a small but revealing example of a much larger debate about the perceived rules-based international order. Folarin Balogun (20) and Christian Pulisic (10) of the U.S. soccer team stand by after Balogun received a red card during a World Cup game between the U.S. and Bosnia in Santa Clara, Calif., on July 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner) FIFA’s own rules allowed the exception FIFA’s competition regulations state plainly that a red card triggers an automatic suspension for a team’s next match. Yet after the call from Trump, FIFA suspended enforcement of that sanction for Balogun. The Royal Belgian Football Association tried and failed to appeal the decision, and the Union of European Football Associations, European soccer’s governing body, said FIFA had “crossed a red line.” FIFA maintains a broader non-interference principle, which is meant to shield national federations and…