Folarin Balogun got suspended from the World Cup. Then he didn't. FIFA reversed the red card suspension before the United States played Belgium on Monday. Trump thanked them for it.
The President of the United States issued public gratitude to an international soccer organization for overturning a disciplinary decision about one player. Not a hostage release. Not a trade deal. A red card.
Balogun plays striker for the USMNT. He switched from representing England to the United States in 2023. Apparently he picked up a red card at some point that would have kept him out of a World Cup match. FIFA looked at it again. Changed their minds. Trump saw this as a diplomatic victory worth acknowledging on the record.
The Belgium match happened Monday. Someone in the White House communications team had to draft talking points about a soccer suspension appeal. Someone had to brief the President on why this mattered. Someone nodded along as Trump decided this was worth his time.
Retail traders saw the headline and immediately checked if there was a DraftKings angle. There wasn't. They bought shares of Manchester United anyway because they thought Balogun played there. He doesn't. He never has. They're now down 11% and blaming the referee from a match they didn't watch.
The USMNT got their striker back for one game against Belgium because FIFA reversed a decision they made days earlier. Trump took a victory lap. Somewhere a day trader is Googling whether you can buy FIFA stock and discovering it's a nonprofit. He's trying to short Belgium instead.
Balogun better have scored or this is the most pointless presidential statement since Carter talked about his hemorrhoids.
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