His attempt to help backfired.
President Donald Trump is driving a controversy at the World Cup that risks undermining the United States’ success in the tournament so far and could add to a global perception that the nation is embedded in corruption that goes beyond soccer.
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Here’s what happened and why it’s so controversial.
Trump says he asked the head of FIFA to review a referee’s decision to kick out the U.S.’s leading scorers from last week’s game. FIFA not only reviewed it but also reinstated the player a day before the U.S.’s big game.
Under FIFA rules, the red card issued to Folarin Balogun after a challenge that injured another player meant he was banned from playing Monday against Belgium, in a massive game that could see the U.S. advance to the quarterfinals.
A day before the game, FIFA said Balogun could play, offering little reason as to why, besides citing an obscure disciplinary code. FIFA didn’t mention Trump, but the connection was unmistakable.
“I didn’t tell them what to do; I can’t tell them what to do,” Trump said of FIFA officials Monday, after reporting over the weekend that he called the FIFA president.
“All I did — I asked for a review because I didn’t think it was a foul,” the U.S. president said.
There is an argument to be made that Balogun’s red card was overly aggressive because the contact appeared to be unintentional. But the outrage quickly morphed from a response to the original call into a global indictment of FIFA and how world leaders such as Trump can bend the rules of soccer to their favor.
There are a few reasons:
Trump’s call to FIFA risks tying the U.S. to an organization reviled around the globe for its corrupt reputation (after scandals going back decades).
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Leading up to this World Cup being co-hosted in the United States, Trump has embraced FIFA leaders, who also openly courted and flattered him. At times, the relationship was financially beneficial for Trump. As The Washington Post reports: “Infantino and Trump had cultivated each other for nearly a decade, a relationship that began when the World Cup was awarded to North America eight years ago and has progressed to FIFA renting office space in Trump Tower and awarding Trump its inaugural peace prize last year. ‘You are part of the FIFA team now,’ Infantino said in the Oval Office in 2018, handing Trump a customized jersey to celebrate the future World Cup.”
But working together to host the World Cup is one thing; Trump leveraging his cozy relationship with FIFA’s leaders to try to influence actual play — while so much of the world is closely watching — is another level entirely.
Just a week ago, the world learned that Trump has used the presidency to dramatically boost his income, to the tune of more than $2.2 billion in 2025. Even some Republicans have compared Trump’s stunning self-enrichment while in office to the rule of Russia’s autocratic leader, Vladimir Putin.
“He and his family believe they are entitled to this,” former New Jersey governor Chris Christie told ABC News. “… This is Putin-esque type of corruption and self-enrichment.”
All of this risks adding to the perception that the United States is not a global leader for freedom and prosperity but part of the problem.
“The world is outraged that Trump would intervene in the World Cup. There’s scathing press everywhere,” said Kim Lane Scheppele, a Princeton University professor who studies the rise and fall of democracies. “There are huge audiences watching the games, and fair play is a crucial element the game. If the U.S. wins the game later today, many will call the game rigged because of Trump’s interference, and that will ultimately discredit the U.S. team. It’s another Trump backfire.”
Amber Phillips writes The 5-Minute Fix newsletter, a quick analysis of the day’s biggest political news. Send her an email here, or ask a question that could be featured in an upcoming newsletter.
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