{"id":356,"date":"2026-07-06T22:08:02","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T22:08:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/homemovechronicle.com\/?p=356"},"modified":"2026-07-06T22:08:02","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T22:08:02","slug":"what-trumps-fifa-scandal-says-about-his-politics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/homemovechronicle.com\/?p=356","title":{"rendered":"What Trump\u2019s FIFA Scandal Says About His Politics"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><em>A quick note before we dive in: Slate has been following the <\/em><em>troubled Senate candidacy of Graham Platner<\/em><em> for months. In a Politico story today, a Maine woman <\/em><em>credibly accuses Platner of sexual assault<\/em><em>. Platner denies it. But as a Mainer myself, my sense is that this story may be shifting fast. We plan to tackle it tomorrow, so email me your thoughts and questions at <\/em><em>theslatest@slate.com<\/em><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/homemovechronicle.com\/?p=354\">Two of John Roberts\u2019 Biggest Decisions This Term Directly Contradict Each Other<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Until last weekend, the World Cup had mostly been a refuge from the nightmare that is American politics. That changed when we learned that Donald Trump had called the president of tournament organizer FIFA in an apparent attempt to reverse the suspension of a star U.S. player. So today we\u2019re breaking down the controversy roiling what was supposed to be our happy place.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>Slate Video Content<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Back up. Who got suspended and why?\u00a0<\/strong><br \/>The U.S. made World Cup history last week, becoming one of the tournament\u2019s final 16 teams for the first time in decades after beating Bosnia and Herzegovina 2\u20130. But the victory came with an asterisk: Folarin Balogun, a Brooklyn-born striker who leads the team in goals, got a red card for fouling an opposing player. The foul came with a one-game suspension, barring Balogun from playing against Belgium tonight at 8 Eastern.<\/p>\n<p><strong>And so Trump \u2026 did what?<\/strong><br \/>According to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, top Trump officials conspired to challenge Balogun\u2019s suspension. They reportedly helped work the president up, casting the red card as a black eye for the U.S. Trump eventually called Gianni Infantino, who leads FIFA, urging him to review the call. On Sunday, FIFA said it would punt Balogun\u2019s suspension for a year, clearing him to play tonight. \u201cThank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!\u201d Trump crowed in response.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Why would Infantino cave?\u00a0<\/strong><br \/>Maybe because he\u2019s an assiduous Trump sycophant who recently made up a peace prize to give to our Nobel-craving president. Publicly, Infantino acknowledged their phone call but says it isn\u2019t why Balogun\u2019s suspension got bumped. Trump likewise claims he \u201cdidn\u2019t tell him what to do.\u201d Mm-hmm.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How are people reacting?\u00a0<\/strong><br \/>Belgium is, unsurprisingly, apoplectic; it unsuccessfully appealed FIFA\u2019s decision. The reversal has also angered soccer fans around the world, fueling claims that Trump used his clout as the leader of this year\u2019s host country to boost his team\u2019s chances. Norway\u2019s coach called it a \u201cbad, bad, bad, bad, bad decision that will hurt the World Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Is a global soccer tournament<\/strong><strong>ever <\/strong><strong>really<\/strong><strong> free of politics?\u00a0<\/strong><br \/>Despite Infantino\u2019s claim that FIFA\u2019s independence is \u201cessential to the credibility and integrity of football,\u201d the organization has had its share of scandals. Benito Mussolini used the World Cup to propagandize fascism when Italy hosted back in 1934. Argentina\u2019s military dictatorship papered over human rights abuses when it hosted in 1978, as did Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022. In 2015, a corruption scandal toppled a previous FIFA president. Trump\u2019s intervention arguably has lower stakes\u2014but it\u2019s striking in part because of how petty it is.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OK, but how are Americans feeling about it?\u00a0<\/strong><br \/>Some, presumably, are thrilled that Balogun is back. But the way it happened casts a shadow over tonight\u2019s match. And the whole thing is so Trumpian. As his former fixer Michael Cohen has explained, Trump rarely makes explicit demands; he instead uses coded language that leaves room for plausible deniability, \u201cmuch like a mobster would do.\u201d Now the whole world is getting a lesson in presidential coercion.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/homemovechronicle.com\/?p=352\">We\u2019re Not Doomed to Live Under the Supreme Court\u2019s Mistakes<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Whew! Now that you\u2019re caught up, it\u2019s time to unwind. Here are some fun reads to help keep the weekend energy going:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>A chatty debrief on Taylor and Travis\u2019 wedding: <\/strong>We have to hand it to Taylor Swift\u2014it\u2019s a real feat that she managed to keep many details of her Friday wedding to Travis Kelce under wraps. But after combing through the info we <em>do<\/em> have, Slate\u2019s Heather Schwedel renders this brutally honest verdict.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The origins of America\u2019s greatest cocktail: <\/strong>As part of Slate\u2019s celebration of 250 years of alcohol-soaked American history, Jordan Weissmann penned an ode to the drink that, he argues, captures the American spirit more than any other. His choice might surprise you.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The fascinating tale of how the U.S. earned its reputation for decadent fried food: <\/strong>Quick, close your eyes and think of the most American dish you can. Are you picturing something along the lines of, say, \u201cburgers stuffed with bacon folded into a pepperoni pizza, with wieners lining the crust\u201d?Chason Gordon asks whether there\u2019s more to American cuisine than amber waves of grease.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you know the name of this specific fear?<\/strong> It can be tough to get back into the swing of things after a long weekend. Warm up those brain muscles with our daily quiz, which tests the limits of your vocabulary.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Some Trump-free World Cup: <\/strong>Iberian neighbors Portugal and Spain faced off this afternoon, and the round of 16 continues tomorrow at noon Eastern with Argentina vs. Egypt. Here\u2019s the full tournament schedule.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Congratulations on making it through the first workday after a summer long weekend! We hope you have a great evening, perhaps with your favorite beverage in <span>hand.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/homemovechronicle.com\/?p=350\">We Need More Good Men<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Now the whole world is getting a lesson in presidential coercion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[158],"tags":[189,10,188],"class_list":["post-356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-slatest","tag-2026-world-cup","tag-donald-trump","tag-soccer"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Trump\u2019s FIFA Scandal Says About His Politics - Home Move Chronicle<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/homemovechronicle.com\/?p=356\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Trump\u2019s FIFA Scandal Says About His Politics - 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