Trump called FIFA president asking to review USMNT star Folarin Balogun’s red card suspension

the President of the United States, in the middle of everything else on his desk, picks up the phone to call the head of FIFA about a red card. That's either the most relatable thing a soccer dad has ever done or a genuinely strange use of the office. We're not fully sure it's not both.

Here's the thing though. Say what you want about the optics, but the instinct underneath it is pretty simple: this is our guy, on our team, ahead of a tournament we're hosting, and the President wants him on the field. That's not some grand abuse of power. It's a guy who watches the games caring about the outcome, the same way he'd yell at the referee from his couch if he weren't, well, the President.

Would we prefer he spend that political capital on trade or the border? Sure. But there's something almost charming about a head of state who still gets worked up over a suspension call instead of pretending sports are beneath him. Most politicians perform disinterest in things like this. Trump just picked up the phone.