Malik Tillman Says What Many Were Thinking About Folarin Balogun Red Card

The USMNT striker’s red card was shockingly reversed at the World Cup—an unprecedented decision by FIFA that is still making waves.

Malik Tillman was the only bright spot for the U.S. in the round of 16. | Alex Grimm/Getty Images

When FIFA did the unexpected and suspended the red card of U.S. men’s national team star striker Folarin Balogun, it may have been the nail in the coffin.

Perhaps it’s long overdue that we reframe what we consider “unexpected” from soccer’s governing body. Nevertheless, the unprecedented decision to push Balogun’s one-game suspension, incurred in the round of 32, to the wayside for an entire year immediately evaporated the magic that had clouded the air for the American boys at the 2026 World Cup up until that moment.

And they were really going to need that magic. Coming face-to-face with top-10 Belgium in the round of 16, the USMNT was almost pegged to beat the global power and reach the quarterfinals for the first time in over 20 years, precisely because of its magical momentum leading up to that stage.

Although Mauricio Pochettino’s men gained their goalscoring machine, what they lost was their pride. It soon was revealed that U.S. President Donald Trump had gotten involved in the red card reversal, making a personal phone call to his close friend, FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The decision was met with widespread criticism from other nations, who raised questions not only about political involvement in soccer’s grandest tournament but also the general integrity of FIFA—the latter of which has continually sustained questioning in the wake of Infantino’s recent money-making schemes.

Gianni Infantino and Donald Trump have held a close relationship since 2018 when the U.S. won the joint-bid to host the 2026 World Cup. | Jia Haocheng/Pool/Getty Images

Star midfielder Malik Tillman, whose free kick goal against Belgium was the only bright spot for the USMNT in the emphatic 4–1 thumping, found the red card reversal likewise damning.

“Balogun is an important player for us and for the team. In hindsight, though, something like that shouldn't happen," Tillman said in an interview with the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger ahead of his new season with Bundesliga’s Bayer Leverkusen. “A red card is a red card and should stand. I don't know who had influence on it. But you shouldn't get involved in a discussion after a red card suspension and try to change the decision.”

The American team that took Lumen Field was a shell of what it had been all summer long, stripped of its spirit and underdog-ness that had come to define its very identity.

Balogun himself questioned the infamous reversal. “My initial reaction was I was happy to be back in the team, but when I kind of started to reflect, I knew it was going to cause a lot of controversy,” Balogun told CBS Mornings last month. “And I could almost see within my teammates a bit of nerves. Because it is something that is so unique.

“The closer we got to the game, I tried to just focus as best as I could, but it was difficult. A lot of outside noise and that’s hard to avoid.”

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Red Card Controversy Far From Over

The ticker-tape isn’t tumbling quite so readily for Gianni Infantino (right) anymore. | Catherine Ivill/AMA/Getty Images

In the wake of Infantino’s proposal to sell stakes of the World Cup to private investors, Balogun’s red card reversal has bubbled back to the surface.

Infantino is under heavy fire from several soccer confederations, especially UEFA, for his attempt to slap a “for sale” sign on soccer’s premier event, an initiative that would have seen Thrive Eternal, a venture capitalist firm founded and managed by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Trump’s son-in-law, “lead the proposed investor group.”

Although Infantino was forced to quickly rollback the plan, what has remained is the question mark surrounding his continued relationship with Trump and the role the U.S. president seems to have at the top of FIFA’s food chain.

Trump denied knowing about Infantino’s proposal prior to its leak to the media but has since defended the Swiss man, firing a warning at the power bloc currently moving against him ahead of the FIFA presidential election in March.

“FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino,” Trump posted on Truth Social this week. “He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup, by four times, ever presented. If he is gone, it will never be as successful or profitable again!”

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