Although it feels more like a year, it’s been only one week since it became crystal clear that President Trump called FIFA president Gianni Infantino regarding the one-game suspension that U.S. striker Folarin Balogun was due to serve for the Round of 16 match against Belgium.
Infantino issued a statement insisting that “FIFA’s judicial bodies are independent,” creating the unmistakable impression that the FIFA Disciplinary Committee decided the case.
It was reportedly a committee of one.
Via Martyn Ziegler of the Times of London, the decision was made by the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, Mohammad al-Kamali of the United Arab Emirates — with no input from any of the other 17 members.
Ziegler notes that “many” decisions of the Disciplinary Committee have been made by one member, but that in important cases three members are “often” involved. Also, the decisions made by one member of the committee are usually made by the deputy chairman, Jorge Palacio of Colombia. Al-Kamali, per Ziegler, has not been the sole decision-maker based on published findings from more than 100 prior cases decided by the committee.
The report undercuts the notion that, by involving more people, the potential for untoward influence was diminished. Which makes it more likely, not less likely, that the influence of Trump on Infantino may have trickled from Infantino to al-Kamali.
The issue became academic once Belgium blew out the U.S. last Monday night, 4-1. Still, it’s important in situations of suspected shenanigans that any such shenanigans be fully explored and exposed and that changes be made to ensure there will be no similar shenanigans in the future.
