Rare FIFA Reversal Followed Phone Call From Trump

After a US player was given a red card during a World Cup match on Wednesday night, touching off a furor, President Trump picked up the phone. He asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to reconsider the referee's call that suspended the American team's leading scorer after a foul against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the New York Times reports. On Sunday, in a highly unusual reversal, FIFA announced that Folarin Balogun that will be allowed to play Monday against Belgium after all, saying the automatic one-game suspension is now paused.

It's the first time since 1962 that FIFA has let a player take the field when a suspension would normally apply. The decision adds another chapter to Infantino's long-running outreach to Trump, which has included awarding him FIFA's first Peace Prize. On Sunday, Trump thanked FIFA in a post for "reversing a great injustice," without mentioning his call. The next US match is Monday against Belgium, whose team is less pleased by the decision. Saying it was "astonished" by the announcement, the Royal Belgian Football Association argued the decision violates FIFA's statues, per the Guardian. The organization said it was "investigating all potential options."