Milan, 7 July (LaPresse) – A group of MEPs has written a letter addressed to the EU’s football associations urging them to “call for an investigation to ascertain whether FIFA President Gianni Infantino was involved in the decision to suspend the automatic one-match ban imposed following the red card shown to US men’s national team player Folarin Balogun, and whether pressure exerted by the US administration influenced that decision”. The letter – whose first three signatories are Barry Andrews of Renew (Ireland), Lara Wolters of S&D (Netherlands) and Niels Fuglsang of S&D (Denmark) – points out that “last week, 50 MEPs wrote to President Infantino and the FIFA Council, urging the FIFA Ethics Committee to conduct an investigation as swiftly and thoroughly as possible into the awarding of the FIFA Peace Prize to President Trump and other potential breaches of political neutrality, but we have not received any adequate response”. “In light of Sunday’s decision to suspend the application of an automatic one-match ban, we believe the time has come for the European football associations, all of which are members of FIFA, to intervene and call on FIFA to investigate the aforementioned decision-making processes,” the letter states.
2026 World Cup: MEPs’ letter on the Balogun case: “Investigate Infantino’s role”
Milan, 7 July (LaPresse) – A group of MEPs has written a letter addressed to the EU’s football associations urging them to “call for an investigation to ascertain whether FIFA President Gianni Infantino was involved in the decision to suspend the automatic one-match ban imposed following the red card shown to US men’s national team player Folarin Balogun, and whether pressure exerted by the US administration influenced that decision”. The letter – whose first three signatories are Barry Andrews of Renew (Ireland), Lara Wolters of S&D (Netherlands) and Niels Fuglsang of S&D (Denmark) – points out that “last week, 50 MEPs wrote to President Infantino and the FIFA Council, urging the FIFA Ethics Committee to conduct an investigation as swiftly and thoroughly as possible into the awarding of the FIFA Peace Prize to President Trump and other potential breaches of political neutrality, but we have not received any adequate response”. “In light of Sunday’s decision to suspend the application of an automatic one-match ban, we believe the time has come for the European football associations, all of which are members of FIFA, to intervene and call on FIFA to investigate the aforementioned decision-making processes,” the letter states.
