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USMNT Thought Trump’s Red Card Rescue Was AI Before Belgium Went Nuts

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Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore / CC BY-SA 2.0

Team USA’s strangest World Cup plot twist first sounded so unreal that players thought it might have been made by artificial intelligence.

The U.S. men’s national team was rolling toward Husky Soccer Stadium when word started spreading that Folarin Balogun would be available against Belgium after President Donald Trump called FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

Defender Chris Richards described the bus scene to The New York Post as a blend of music, celebration and disbelief.

“To be fair, we were lit on the bus regardless. We had our speaker in the back listening to music,” Richards said.

“Then one person said something, another person said the same thing and nobody wanted to confirm it. It was pretty much right when we got here that we found out it was true … a lot of us thought it was AI at first.”

Christian Pulisic said the Balogun’s reaction gave it away. “I just saw a big smile on his face,” he revealed.

“I got to see him and dap him up after that. Knowing we’re gonna have him around tomorrow, it helps so much. It’s a big boost.”

The possible escape route had surfaced Sunday in The Athletic, which pointed to Article 27 of FIFA’s disciplinary code.

That provision says “the judicial body may decide to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure.”

Balogun’s one-game suspension was lifted before the U.S. faced Belgium in the Round of 16 on Monday, July 6.

Trump celebrated the reversal on Truth Social. “Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!”

According to several reports, Trump had called Infantino about the red card. The reported legal argument focused on slow-motion instant replay, which Trump said violated FIFA rules, and on whether the red card penalty was excessive.

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Outkick founder Clay Travis put Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and White House task force head Andrew Giuliani at the center of the challenge.

“President Trump, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, and White House task force head Andrew Giuliani put together a team of elite lawyers — from outside the government — to challenge the Flo Balogun red card,” Travis said.

Travis said the group argued that slow-motion replay had been used improperly.

“Specifically they challenged the use of slow motion instant replay to give the red card, which they argued violated FIFA rules. The president also conveyed to Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s president, that the appeal had been filed and he believed the red card penalty was excessive,” he explained.

“FIFA’s independent committee reviewed the decision and agreed the penalty was incorrectly given, rescinding it under their rule 27 authority.”

The rule cited in the challenge limits slow motion to establishing facts, such as where players were or how contact occurred, rather than judging severity. The severity of an offense is supposed to be judged at normal speed.

By Sunday, FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee had suspended Balogun’s “automatic match suspension” for a one-year probationary period.

The reprieve came with a catch. Another similar infraction during that period could reinstate the original suspension and add new punishment.

“If the person benefiting from a suspended sanction commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked by the judicial body and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement,” the rule reads.

U.S. Soccer responded by accepting the decision and looking ahead to Seattle.

“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.”

The celebration moved beyond soccer’s usual circles. Tom Brady quote-tweeted a video of famous American sports moments and predicted, “We’re adding a Balogun goal to this list tomorrow.”

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle posted, “Flo is back,” with multiple American flag emojis.

Belgium did not join the party. The Athletic carried the translated French jab from Belgian head coach Rudi Garcia, who treated the decision like a prank.

“I didn’t know that at the World Cup the 5th of July is actually the first of April. It’s April Fools,” Garcia said.

“We’re not defending the national team or federation, we are defending football.“

Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois admitted the timing caught Belgium off guard.

“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 football association issued its own protest, saying it was “astonished” and arguing that FIFA had contradicted competition rules and a May World Cup circular on automatic red-card suspensions.

“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,” the organization stated.

“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.”

Belgium’s federation said it was “investigating all potential options,” while the decision sparked talk of legal action and a possible referral to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The outrage was not limited to Belgium. ITV pundit Gary Neville said the decision “absolutely stinks,” even though he agreed Balogun should not have been sent off.

“I actually didn’t think it was a red card, and I think there should be a process which allows it to be overturned,” Neville said.

Former Ireland captain Roy Keane’s reaction was more blunt. “It seems unfair because it is unfair,” Keane said. “It seems like a bit of a pals’ act, shall we say.”

FIFA has deferred suspensions before, including for Cristiano Ronaldo, Nicolás Otamendi and Moisés Caicedo, allowing all three to compete in this year’s World Cup.

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