Overview
- FIFA circulated a late-night draft this week that would bar panels from suspending automatic one-match bans for red cards and the FIFA Council is set to vote on the measure on Thursday.
- The change responds to the World Cup episode in which United States striker Folarin Balogun was sent off against Bosnia and Herzegovina and then cleared to play in the next round after his suspension was lifted.
- Reports say President Donald Trump phoned FIFA about the Balogun case and some sources claim Gianni Infantino agreed to ‘take care of it,’ but FIFA has disputed the unnamed-sources version of events.
- The disciplinary proposal arrives as pressure mounts over Infantino’s conduct from the aborted FIFA Forward Enterprise investor plan, leaked payment reports and formal ethics complaints from several federations.
- Infantino has confirmed he will run for re-election, the nomination deadline is 18 November, and member associations will watch for document disclosures or ethics findings that could sway votes ahead of the March 2027 election.