The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) issued a statement on Monday (July 6) defending referee Raphael Claus after U.S. President Donald Trump described the Brazilian official as "suspicious."
In the statement, the CBF said Claus is "globally recognized as one of the world's best active referees and has built a career marked by technical excellence, ethical conduct and absolute respect for the game," adding that it rejects any insinuation casting doubt on his integrity.Following a VAR review, Claus sent off U.S. forward Folarin Balogun during the World Cup Round of 32 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina last Wednesday (July 1). FIFA later overturned the automatic suspension resulting from the red card.
On Monday, Trump said he had asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review the decision and criticized the Brazilian referee.
"That referee is somewhat suspicious if you look into his past. I don't want to say that because I don't like creating controversy, but it's very suspicious," the U.S. president said.
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