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Yet again, FIFA, and its chief, Gianni Infantino, have distinguished the game of football by showing what it is all about. Not glorious athletes representing code and country across the globe. Not the sense of wellbeing that comes with exercise. No: it’s all about corrupt manoeuvrings, opaque decisions, and scandalous meddling. And who better to be at the centre of it than one of America’s most corrupt, self-enriching figures, one President Donald J. Trump?
On 5th July, the one-game suspension for American striker Folarin Balogun was vacated in exchange for a one-year probation. Balogun had received a contentious red card in the US match against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the World Cup round of 32. It was not a decision taken well by the spectators and, in particular, the US President. On 6th July, he admitted to reporters that he had contacted Infantino about the red card decision. “That wasn’t a foul,” he explained. “That wasn’t even an infraction. That was two guys running full speed who happened to crash into each other.” The inevitable insinuation followed: that the decision maker on the pitch could not be trusted. “And this referee, who is a little suspect – if you check his past. I don’t want to say that because I don’t like to create controversy, but very suspect.”
