Fifa is facing a fresh credibility crisis after Gianni Infantino intervened to suspend Folarin Balogun’s red-card ban, reportedly after a personal phone call from Donald Trump. The decision let the USA striker play in their last-16 defeat to Belgium – a game the hosts lost heavily, with several Belgian players mocking Trump in celebration.The backlash has been swift. Jurgen Klopp, Gary Lineker, Sepp Blatter and senior British politicians have all joined calls for Infantino to resign, accusing him of breaching Fifa’s own neutrality rules for the sake of a friendly US president.Independent readers agree emphatically. In yesterday’s poll on whether Fifa made the right call, more than 5,000 people voted – and 93 per cent said no. Just 5 per cent backed the decision, with 2 per cent unsure.Readers want Infantino gone, and some think Fifa should be dismantled altogether or that Uefa should walk away from the organisation entirely. Others put the blame closer to home, arguing the USA squad – and Balogun himself – should have refused to play on regardless of the ruling.Here’s what you had to say:Fifa needs purging, top to bottomHonestly, what does it take to get genuine, sincere operators at the top of Fifa? Why am I thinking, “bent as a nine-bob note”, and that's both Donnie and Jonnie? The problem is… who else within Fifa is this bad? If they are (which wouldn't surprise me in the least), then, as others have said, they need purging, as this World Cup has highlighted how bad Fifa are… and for all the wrong reasons.SFBWorse than Blatter, and that takes some doingInfantino has done something I never thought possible – been a worse president of Fifa than Blatter, and that takes some doing.JoeNinetyThis business stinksThis Balogun business stinks more than a tin of Swedish fermented herrings.Infant-ino is due to be re-elected next year. So, if there’s any integrity remaining at Fifa, he’ll be turfed out, and replaced by someone with strong morals and a principled mandate.That said, I won't be holding my breath.BaxterThe rules are the rulesDelighted to see the US crash out, and crash out badly, in the meekest way possible. The contrast with co-hosts Canada and Mexico could not be greater, both of whom went down fighting with pride and dignity. I had absolutely nothing against this US team – they are not their government – but they happily accepted the most blatant cheating imaginable, as did Balogun, so they are as culpable as the Orange Utan.Even if the red card had not been deserved, the rules are the rules, and they should apply equally to everyone. No one thinks there was intent in Balogun’s tackle – it was clumsy, but that’s irrelevant. Clumsy doesn’t mean he didn’t deserve red. He nearly broke the guy’s ankle, and it was a stonewall red.MikaelWaiting for the Olympics with trepidationThe USA should never have been awarded the competition in the first place. And now we await the Olympics with trepidation: which countries, which players, which officials, which supporters will pass the Trump Test and be allowed in?Klingsor2Political meddling in football is nothing new – but this is worsePolitical interference is by no means unprecedented in the history of the sport, though it has rarely been so brazen. Argentine dictator Jorge Videla visited Peru’s locker room ahead of a decisive 1978 group match Argentina needed to win by four goals; Argentina won 6–0. In 1973, Fifa gave Chile a forfeit victory after the Soviet Union refused to play a qualifier in the National Stadium, freshly used by Augusto Pinochet’s junta as a torture and execution centre. In 1982, a Kuwaiti sheikh stormed the pitch to browbeat a referee into disallowing a legitimate French goal. Mussolini, who privately held the sport in contempt, used propaganda and allegedly pressured officials to secure Italy’s 1934 title. In 1974, Zaire’s Mobutu Sese Seko allegedly threatened his own players with exile if they lost to Brazil by more than three goals; they lost 3–0.What distinguishes the Balogun affair is its scale and brazenness.The episode is riddled with contradictions. Balogun plays for the US team because he was born in Brooklyn in 2001, when his Nigerian mother was unable to fly home to London while seven months pregnant – the result of birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment that Trump’s administration is actively suing to abolish, not to speak of Trump’s travel bans targeting Nigeria and other majority-Muslim and African countries.The president who mobilised the machinery of the US state to keep a Nigerian-American striker on the field is simultaneously working to ensure children like him are never recognised as citizens at all.sinisterfootwearToo much money, too much corruptionNot at all surprised by the Orange One, but Fifa should hang their heads in shame. There is too much money in sport, and it’s corrupting.AnyoPochettino was unsporting to field him at allKarma indeed! The fact that Pochettino still fielded Balogun was unsporting under the circumstances, and not fair at all on the player. As the precedent is set by Fifa, Quansah’s card should be suspended too, but Tuchel shouldn’t field him, out of respect for the rules…After that, Infantino should go. He’s totally sold out international football – a disgrace!nicksbFifa’s ethics code, broken in plain sightUnfortunately, as much as I would like it, rather than jail time, the primary mechanism for holding Infantino accountable is through the Fifa Ethics Committee.The rule broken: Fifa Article 14 explicitly mandates absolute political neutrality.The precedent: former governance committee chairman Miguel Maduro and other international experts have publicly noted that bending rules or aligning decisions directly with a political leader’s intervention is a text-book violation of Fifa statutes. If an independent investigation is launched, the Ethics Committee has the absolute power to ban Infantino from football entirely, similar to how they banned Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini in 2015.Blue3LeeTime to call it what it isHe added: “No matter where it’s held, the World Cup belongs to the fans – not gangsters like Trump.”This is the sort of language we and the media should have been using. The world is being run as a racket by gangsters, and it’s time we can all see how very naked this emperor – and others casting themselves in his mould – actually is.BiancaFielding a team of cheatsGary Lineker is absolutely right: the “Corinthian” response would have been for the US squad to leave Balogun on the bench anyway. They would have won the respect of the world, despite their loathsome president. As it is, they will be remembered for fielding a team of cheats. For a very long time.SteveHillThe tournament is compromised beyond repairThe tournament is now completely compromised. In any ethical world, it would have to be abandoned. One of the most depressing things about it is its utter predictability. National associations must dissociate from Fifa and create an alternative body.NeuendorfBlatter, of all people, comes out looking betterEverything Trump touches… can you believe that between them, he and Infantino have managed to return Sepp Blatter to a seat amongst the morally right? Surely worthy of a large, gold trophy.CarnabyswhiskersTime to start a new traditionUefa should do something besides being upset. Withdraw from Fifa effective immediately, and invite South America to join a new World Football Alliance.GerhardiusThe US can’t be trusted with the tournament againIf you think just how corrupt this is in a game of football, in full view of the world to see, you can imagine what other corruption could be going on behind the scenes.The US cannot be trusted to hold a simple football tournament: banning fans from around the world from attending, banning officials because of their nationality, and hassling some players and adding restrictions on their movements.TV18Some of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.Want to share your views? Simply click ‘log in’ or ‘register’ in the top right corner to sign in or sign up. Once registered, you can comment on the day’s top stories for a chance to have your opinions showcasedWant your voice to stand out? Independent Premium subscribers enjoy priority for featured comments. 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