FIFA President Gianni Infantino defied Donald Trump's World Cup narrative on Monday as he defended the tournament's referees amid criticism from the President. Infantino, who has ingratiated himself with Trump over the past year awarding him the FIFA Peace Prize, appeared to have bowed to the Commander-in-Chief yet again on Sunday when FIFA overturned USA star Folarin Balogun's one-game ban. FIFA announced on Sunday that it had suspended the striker's ban, which was handed down following his red card in the Round of 32, allowing him to play in the USA's game against Belgium on Monday. It later emerged that the decision came after Trump made a personal phone call to Infantino over the red card. The President confirmed his conversation with Infantino on Monday, while also taking aim at referee Raphael Claus, who had shown Balogun the red card. Yet, in a shocking turn of events, Infantino broke ranks from Trump over his attack on the official on Monday evening, instead sharing public support for the World Cup's referees. FIFA chiefs Gianni Infantino shockingly broke rank with Donald Trump on Monday The US President had hit out at World Cup referee Raphael Claus in a press conferenceThe FIFA chief credited the crew of referees at the World Cup for the success of the tournament so far. 'The FIFA World Cup 2026 has been an overwhelming success and a major contributor to this is our fantastic group of match officials - Team One,' Infantino wrote in an Instagram post on Monday, shortly after Trump's scathing comments. 'The tournament is being officiated by the best in the world, selected through a rigorous process which considered their skills, consistency, and quality over a sustained period.'Once more, I reiterate that we must respect the referees and respect the rules that govern our game. It is very simple and cannot ever be overstated - without referees, there is no football.'Infantino's public display of support came shortly after the President had branded Claus 'suspect' during his press conference. Trump told the Belgians that the World Cup last-16 game would have been 'rigged' without Balogun and took aim at Claus, who brandished the red card at the striker during the game against Bosnia and Herzegovina last week. 'Yeah, I did, I spoke to Gianni. I asked for a review by FIFA,' Trump said. 'That's all I did. And, you know, again, I'm good at this stuff. That wasn't a foul. That wasn't even an infraction. That was two guys running full speed who happened to crash into each other.'He (Balogun) didn’t do anything wrong, and he’s our best player, or one of our best players, a very vital player and they gave him a red card. I didn’t think it meant much. Then I started hearing that it means you can’t play in the next game, at least in the next game. Infantino defended the tournament's officials in a post after Trump's criticism of Claus Folarin Balogun's one-match ban was suspended by FIFA after a phone call from Trump 'These were two great athletes who got tangled up. And this referee, who is a little bit suspect - if you check his past. I don’t want to say that because I don’t like to create controversy, but very suspect. If you’d like, I’ll provide you with his past.'Claus was once accused of match-fixing in 2023 in Brazil but was never charged with any wrongdoing and there is no suggestion of any type of allegation aimed at Claus in this World Cup.'Firstly, it wasn't a foul,' Trump added. 'And then you have to look at the person who made the decision. The game tonight is going to be amazing. We are going to have a full team and Belgium is going to have a full team. And you know what, if they beat us they can be really proud.'This game would have had a big mark on it. The other way, if they beat us I would say it is rigged, just like the election was rigged in 2020. I think they made a brilliant decision, I thought the referee's decision was horrible. Nobody talks about that. They talk about the red card like it was fine.'Balogun, USA's top scorer in the tournament with three goals, was given a straight red card during the USA's 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the last 32 - a decision at the time that was criticized for being wrong. He tangled with Bosnia and Herzegovina defender Tarik Muharemovic while trying to win the ball and Balogun's leg scraped down the ankle of his opponent.But a moment that was, at first, met with widespread sympathy has since been transformed into one of huge scandal that has erased the goodwill aimed at the World Cup hosts. Piers Morgan accused the US of 'cheating' on Monday before the game, even as Trump insisted the red card was an injustice.Trump continued: 'He (Balogun) didn’t do anything wrong, and he’s our best player, or one of our best players, a very vital player and they gave him a red card.'That’s one thing, to penalize somebody for the game. But how do you penalize them for a game that hasn’t been played yet? It’s very unfair. You can’t do that.' Trump branded Claus 'suspect' after the official brandished a red card at Balogun last week Trump insisted he didn't force Infantino to make Balogun available.'I didn't say "you have to do this". Gianni is a smart, tough man and his stock is going through the roof,' Trump said.'I didn't know what the hell a red card was. When I found out I said "you gotta be kidding". I said "wow, that's a lot of power, that's terrible". But then I looked at his past and it wasn't so great.'I didn't tell him (Infantino) what to do, I can't tell him what to do.'The call from FIFA sparked widespread calls for Infantino to resign from his position amid the controversy. UEFA said FIFA had crossed a 'red line' by failing to uphold what it called a core rule of the competition. It said an automatic one-match suspension 'is not a discretionary option' and is 'a principle embedded in regulations'.'When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake, and the credibility of a competition is undermined,' UEFA said in a statement. 'Equally, such a decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition. We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.' Balogun was sent off for a tackle during their 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina Trump confirmed that he spoke with Infantino over the the Balogun red card drama Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter and Glenn Micallef, the European Union's commissioner for sport also hit out, both insisting that sporting decisions should not be dictated by politics.Shortly after Trump spoke, Infantino released a statement on the growing backlash across the world.'Yes, I regularly discuss matters related to the FIFA World Cup with the President of the United States, and on this matter, I did receive a call from President Donald Trump, just as I receive calls from heads of state, government officials, football stakeholders and business executives from around the world on many different issues,' Infantino said.'During our conversation, I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA’s independent judicial bodies and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent bodies. That is how FIFA’s system works, and it is a principle that I will always uphold.'I read the decisions of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee when they are issued. Sometimes I am surprised by them. Sometimes I agree with them, and sometimes I disagree. What I always do, however, is respect those decisions and the autonomy of the bodies that make them.'Whether we personally like a decision or not is irrelevant. Respect for independent institutions and the rule of law is what protects the integrity of our competitions and the credibility of FIFA at all times.'Belgium had launched an appeal on Sunday shortly after FIFA's verdict on Balogun's fate had been announced.However, FIFA had rejected their appeal on Monday just hours before the Round-of-16 clash kicked off. Infantino has ingratiated himself with Trump over the past year awarding him the Peace PrizeBelgian bosses ominously suggested that the decision 'leaves all further actions open' if Balogun was named on the United States team sheet, which he ultimately was, making Pochettino's Starting XI.In a statement, the Belgian FA said: 'The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) has received the decision of the FIFA Appeal Committee, signed by its member Mr Salman Al-Ansari, which declares the RBFA's case inadmissible and confirms the earlier decision allowing United States player Folarin Balogun to play.'To date, the RBFA has still not received any grounds for this decision, nor has it received the information it has been requesting since the start of this procedure id est a copy of the decision and the motivation declaring the player eligible as well as the referee's report. Which is a breach of FIFA regulations.They added that: 'The RBFA has informed the United States Soccer Federation that it contests the eligibility of the player, should the player be listed on the referee's team sheet. This leaves all further actions open.'According to sources close to the team, Belgium are considering taking legal action and referring the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.