There are diplomatic interventions that produce the desired outcome and there are diplomatic interventions that produce Folarin Balogun playing the full 90 minutes against Belgium in Seattle while Charles De Ketelaere scores twice, goalkeeper Matt Freese gifts Belgium a third, Romelu Lukaku adds a fourth in stoppage time, and the United States exits the World Cup they hosted 4-1, in front of their own fans, in a tournament their president arranged, which is the kind of outcome that the word “intervention” does not fully cover.
Trump called FIFA to seek a review of Balogun’s red card, which the Brazilian referee Rafael Claus had issued against Bosnia and Herzegovina last Tuesday in what Trump described as a decision by a referee who is “a little bit suspect,” per Breitbart. FIFA overturned the suspension, citing Article 27 of its own Disciplinary Code in a decision that contradicted, per the Belgian Football Association’s furious statement, Article 66.4 of the same FIFA Disciplinary Code, as well as Article 10.5 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Competition Regulations, as well as FIFA World Cup 2026 Circular No. 16, distributed to all participating associations on 12 May 2026, and the explicit instructions given at every Match Coordination Meeting before each game. Belgium announced they were investigating “all potential options,” including challenging the result at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. In the end, no legal challenge was required because Belgium won by three goals, which is the kind of margin that tends to render legal challenges unnecessary.
Coach Mauricio Pochettino, whose team conceded in the second half through a Matt Freese goalkeeping error, responded by kicking a rack in front of the bench and sending four water bottles flying, per HuffPost, which is the precise moment at which the coaching staff has accepted that the tactical adjustments are no longer the primary issue. The United States conceded two goals in the first half, allowed a third 61 seconds after equalizing through Malik Tillman, and were eventually put out of their misery by Lukaku in stoppage time.
Social media users, per HuffPost, revived Trump’s January 6, 2021 Truth Social post about Mike Pence and adapted it to read: “The United States can still win if Mike Pence finds the courage,” a joke that required no additional explanation and received approximately 400,000 likes.
Trump won the FIFA Peace Prize in February. He called FIFA to reinstate Balogun. The U.S. lost 4-1.
When the president intervenes with FIFA to keep his team’s star player on the field, the player plays, the team loses 4-1, and the intervention becomes the joke, what exactly was accomplished?
Sources
HuffPost: Belgium Dominates U.S. 4-1 To Reach World Cup Quarterfinals After Days Of Controversy
HuffPost: Trump’s Infamous Post Comes Back To Haunt Him After U.S. World Cup Loss
GB News: Donald Trump mocked by Belgium stars after FIFA controversy ends in crushing USA World Cup defeat
Breitbart: Belgium’s Soccer Federation ‘Astonished’ that FIFA Allowed Balogun to Play
Raw Story: Humiliated Trump ‘will surely go down’ with the USMNT after World Cup exit: op-ed
