The paper trail on that decision is the most explosive item on a longer list. FA chair Debbie Hewitt, who is also a FIFA vice-president, has told Infantino she wants full disclosure of the file before the FIFA Council meets on October 15 in Zurich.

Her letter, sent to Infantino and secretary general Mattias Grafstrom, points to what she calls “failures in governance and a fundamental breakdown in culture” at the world governing body, Al Jazeera reported.

Balogun was sent off in the United States’ round-of-32 tie against Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1, 2026, for stepping on defender Tarik Muharemović’s ankle. The Americans still won 2-0, and the striker faced an automatic one-match ban for the last-16 game against Belgium.

He played. FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee had suspended the ban for a one-year probationary period under Article 27 of its disciplinary code, Al Jazeera reported. It was the first World Cup red-card reversal since 1962, when Brazil’s Garrincha was cleared for the final after a disciplinary panel issued only a warning.

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Trump confirms the call

The reversal came after US President Donald Trump personally called Infantino. Trump then said so on camera at the White House.

“I saw the play. And I’m a person that loves sports and was a good athlete. I understand sports really well, really well. And that wasn’t a foul,” Trump said.

“So yes, I asked for a review by FIFA.”

Infantino has confirmed the phone call took place.

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“Yes, I regularly discuss matters related to the FIFA World Cup with the president of the United States, and on this matter, I did receive a call from President Donald Trump,” he said.

The sell-off file

The second file Hewitt wants opened is FIFA Forward Enterprise, an abandoned plan to spin the commercial and ticketing rights to FIFA’s biggest competitions into a new company, with a 21% stake sold to private investors. Infantino apologized for the process in August, and FIFA’s management board promised a review, without saying who is running it.

England is not alone in pushing. UEFA has filed applications in US courts seeking disclosure of documents on the same plan, and UEFA, CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation have accused FIFA of a “breach of trust driven by deception”, Goal reported. The English, Welsh and Scottish FAs have withdrawn their backing for Infantino’s re-election campaign at March’s FIFA Congress; the deadline for opposing candidates is November 18.

FIFA has said it followed due process on the Balogun decision, taken independently by its disciplinary committee, but has not published a written report on the hearing, according to inkl. The Council will meet in Zurich on October 15.

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