'Good Decision': Trump On FIFA Chief Reversing US Player's Suspension

President Donald Trump praised FIFA President Gianni Infantino for intervening to help lift a red-card suspension for US player Folarin Balogun, revisiting a World Cup decision that outraged soccer fans across the globe."Gianni made yet another of his many good decisions," Trump said at a FIFA reception at Trump Tower in New York, while standing next to the organization's chief.It's a controversy Infantino and other FIFA officials likely want to move past as the tournament is about to conclude on Sunday with the final game between Spain and Argentina - a contest Trump will attend in person. Balogun's case became a flashpoint in the tournament, generating widespread criticism of FIFA's leadership and the US president.Balogun received a red card in the US match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, a decision that should have left him suspended for the team's next game against Belgium. Trump, however, reached out to Infantino asking for a review of the decision.FIFA overturned the suspension, allowing the US player to take the field, a decision that infuriated the soccer world. Belgium's football team said it was "astonished" by the move and even UEFA, the powerful European football organizer, called the reversal "incomprehensible and unjustifiable."Belgium went on to defeat the US in commanding fashion, 4-1.Earlier: FIFA Allows Balogun to Play After Trump Call Sparking UproarTrump on Friday insisted that FIFA had made the right call and that there would have been more of a dispute if the US had been forced to compete without one of their top players."It's so much better the way it worked out, because there's no controversy. They won the game, and our team had all of its players," Trump said."You made another great decision. If you think about, I know you'll never get credit," he continued. "Think of it. If he didn't allow him, and they lost, they'd say we would have won the game if we had our best player."Trump has hailed the World Cup, which the US co-hosted with Mexico and Canada, as a success - even as his administration has clashed with its historic allies and major economic partners over trade and immigration policy.The president took a jab at the co-hosts on Friday, asking FIFA to host the tournament in the US again - but without its continental neighbors."You should choose the United States of America again. This time we'll leave Mexico and Canada out," he said."I was very nice to get them in. What we do is you leave, you choose us, but you pick somebody else for the next one, and that will take some of the anger, hatred, and steam out of everyone," he added.(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)