White House Doubles Down on Trump’s Balogun Red Card Lobbying
Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House’s World Cup taskforce, has publicly defended Donald Trump’s decision to pressure Fifa over the red card shown to US forward Folarin Balogun during the group stage match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Speaking to reporters at the Foreign Press Center in Washington DC, Giuliani described Brazilian referee Raphael Claus’s involvement as “very, very highly suspicious”, citing two main grounds: Claus’s appearance in a 2024 Brazilian senate investigation into match-fixing, and what Giuliani claimed was an improper use of VAR slow-motion replay on a contact foul.
According to The Guardian, Trump himself suggested Claus was “a little bit suspect, if you check his past” — a reference to that same Brazilian senate inquiry. Crucially, the investigation examined how referees were assigned to matches and did not accuse Claus of any personal wrongdoing. Giuliani admitted as much when pressed by a Brazilian journalist, conceding: “He was not accused of crimes. We understand that.”
Both Fifa and the Brazilian Football Confederation have firmly defended Claus. Fifa stated this week that “throughout his career, he has consistently demonstrated the highest standards of professionalism and integrity,” while the confederation added there is nothing in his record that supports any suspicion of wrongdoing.
Balogun’s suspension was ultimately lifted in time for the round of 16 clash with Belgium — but it did little good. The US lost 4-1 and were knocked out of the tournament. Belgium’s players reportedly celebrated by parodying Trump’s YMCA dance in the dressing room, and critics have suggested the president’s very public intervention may have galvanised the Belgian squad and damaged the goodwill the US had accumulated as host nation.
Elsewhere in the briefing, Giuliani defended the logistical arrangements for the Iranian national team, who were based in Tijuana, Mexico rather than on US soil, citing a 27-minute flight time to Los Angeles and drawing comparisons to NFL teams travelling after matches.
On the tournament’s broader success, Giuliani reported that more than 6.5 million fans have already attended matches — nearly double the previous record of 3.5 million set at the 1994 World Cup in the US. He also noted that Fifa received more than 500 million ticket requests for just 7 million available tickets, with 4,547 tickets per match allocated to US military veterans.
For the full picture on the tournament as it reaches its final stages, visit our World Cup 2026 hub and keep an eye on the live standings with just eight matches remaining.