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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian took a swipe at the US over the red card controversy in the FIFA World Cup that has become a global talking point and brought fierce condemnation in the sports world. Drawing parallels with America's foreign policy, he claimed that the US President Donald Trump-led government's conduct defined "bullying rivals" and "cheating", which is their "MAGA playbook".
"The US government's conduct as World Cup host follows its familiar foreign policy: bending rules, bullying rivals, creating obstacles, and cheating. This is their MAGA playbook. Iran rejects such games. We stand firmly for our rights," Pezeshkian tweeted.
Interestingly, his tweet came minutes apart from Trump blasting Tehran and saying that Washington's interim peace agreement with them "is over".
The controversy emerged after Trump informed on Truth Social that he had intervened and asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review a red card and a subsequent one-match ban handed to US forward Folarin Balogun ahead of their clash with Belgium. Though the 80-year-old US President insisted that he simply asked for the decision to be reviewed and did not demand an outcome, the development drew severe backlash.
The Belgian football federation challenged Balogun's eligibility to play, and the UEFA in Europe blasted FIFA's "incomprehensible and unjustifiable" decision. The forward still played in the Round of 32 clash wherein the US was thrashed by Belgium 1-4. The Belgian players celebrated in front of American fans by performing Trump's famous 'YMCA' dance move, which quickly went viral on social media. The Belgian football body also posted a picture of their star striker Romelu Lukaku celebrating after his goal in the match with the caption, "Overturn this" on Instagram.
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Published On:
Jul 8, 2026 15:10 IST
