Folarin Balogun got suspended by FIFA. Then he got unsuspended by FIFA. The difference between these two states of reality was a phone call from Donald Trump. This is how international sports governance works now. A former president dials up soccer's least trusted organization and suddenly the rules change. Belgium is appealing because apparently they expected consistency from an organization that once gave Qatar a World Cup.
Trump reportedly intervened. That word doing a lot of work there. Reportedly. As if we're going to fact-check the chain of custody on a phone call that convinced FIFA to reverse a suspension hours before kickoff. The United States Men's National Team needed Balogun cleared. Trump made it happen. Belgium now has to play against a guy who was banned yesterday. They're mad about it. They should be.
FIFA reversed a World Cup suspension because a guy who is not currently president called them. Think about that. Not the sitting president. Not the State Department. Not whatever passes for diplomatic protocol when billions of dollars and national pride are on the line. Just Trump. On a phone. Doing what exactly? Threatening sanctions? Promising a Trump Tower Zurich? Offering to host the next World Cup at Mar-a-Lago?
Belgium is set to appeal. Good luck with that. They're appealing to the same organization that just folded like a cheap suit because an American real estate developer asked nicely. Or didn't ask nicely. Either way FIFA blinked first. The Belgians will file their paperwork and cite their precedents and make their case to a governing body that has already demonstrated it will change the rules mid-tournament if the right person calls.
Balogun plays Monday. Belgium can cry about it on the flight home.
Photo by Luiza Giannelli on Unsplash
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