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One World with Zain Asher

FIFA Reinstates USA's Balogun Despite Red Card; Trump To Join Summit After Calls With Zelenskyy, Putin; CNN Inside Iran For Funeral Of Slain Supreme Leader; Fears For Life Of Gazan Doctor In Israeli Custody; Wildfires Rage Across Parts Of Europe Amid Heat Wave; Seine River Is Open To Public Swimming For Second Year; Aired 12-1p ET

Aired July 06, 2026 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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[12:00:19]

ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Coming to you live from New York, I'm Zain Asher.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. You are watching the second hour of "One World."

We typically open with that animation towards the end of the show. We're starting this hour with it though.

A cloud of controversy now looms over the USA's World Cup match against Belgium tonight. For the first time in more than six decades, FIFA has

rescinded a player suspension during the World Cup.

The USA's star striker for Folarin Balogun was sent off in the team's last match triggering an automatic suspension. And then on Sunday, FIFA

announced the ban was lifted.

ASHER: Yes. U.S. president Donald Trump says that he asked the president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, to review the suspension.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So, I saw the play, and I'm a person that loves sports and was a good athlete. And I understand sports

really well, really well. And that wasn't a foul. That wasn't even an infraction. That was two guys running full speed that happened to crash

into each other.

People in Belgium, if they win the game, they can be very proud. If they would win the game with a player missing, it would have been a different

feeling. You can't do that. And I'm very glad. All I did was asked for review. I didn't say, you have to do this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ASHER: Fans, as well as past and present football authorities, are crying foul. The former FIFA president Sepp Blatter writing on X, "Red cards are

not overturned by political phone calls. They are overturned by rules, evidence, and independent bodies."

GOLODRYGA: Belgium, also, is now appealing FIFA's decision to allow Balogun to play.

But before we get to that another high stakes clash, we got about this game, Portugal is taking on Spain in Dallas for a place in the

quarterfinals.

Let's go to our Amanda Davies who is tracking all of this drama from Atlanta. And, Amanda, there had been some reporting last night that the

president had gotten on the phone with the head of FIFA and actually made or made the case for this red card to be overturned.

And now, he came out directly and acknowledged that he has a very close relationship with the head of FIFA. But just talk about how unusual all of

this is.

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yes. I mean, I think the important thing here is not, as President Trump was alluding to, in that soundbite, whether

the red card should have been given or not.

The facts of the matter was it was given against Bosnia. And as sure as a spade as a spade as buttered bread always falls face down. What that means

in black and white, in the rules, is that if a player is sent off in a game, they will miss the next match. And that has always been the case at a

World Cup.

But what we are talking about here is FIFA, world football's governing body, essentially breaking its own rules. It has written in its statutes a

ban against political interference in football.

Member associations, national associations from countries like Kenya and Zimbabwe and Pakistan have been banned in the past.

And what we have here is the president of the United States, Donald Trump, publicly admitting that he phoned the president of, world football's

governing FIFA -- body, FIFA, Gianni Infantino, to ask for a review of the decision.

And, you know, when we say unprecedented, we are sitting here what just under eight hours ahead of kickoff.

And we still don't know whether Folarin Balogun will or will not be playing for the United States, because of, as you rightly mentioned, that appeal

from the Belgium F.A.

And Belgium themselves are saying they have not been given any explanation by world football's governing body, FIFA, that in fact they have almost

been forced into this appeal, simply by asking for the information as to the details of what has happened and why Balogun's red card has been

overturned.

It's -- it is absolutely unprecedented. And we're talking about integrity. We're into talking about fairness of the world's biggest football

competition. And we're talking about setting a president with two of the top teams in the world, looking for a place at a World Cup quarter final.

I think without question, you have to call it a mess when you have Rudy Garcia, the Belgian coach, talking about it perhaps being an April Fool's

joke.

[12:05:09]

You have European football's governing body, UEFA, calling it unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable, talking about a red line

being crossed in football.

Yes, UEFA is the confederation that Belgium play their football for. But I think there is some serious raised eyebrows and some serious concern across

world football at how we have got to this point.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, especially since Balogun, Team USA really handled this, I think, masterfully the last few days. I watched that game. I was one of the

many who did not think that that play or foul deserved a red card, but nonetheless, they accepted it. And it does raise the question of whether

this tarnishes at all team USA is just standing among spectators.

That is not the place we want to be right now. This is a beloved team with a beloved coach. So perhaps even more added pressure on the team tonight,

even if Balogun will be playing.

We'll see. We'll see how all this lands.

Amanda Davies, thank you so much.

ASHER: All right. Our next guest is Sophia Cai, White House reporter for "POLITICO." Sophia, thank you so much for being with us.

One of the points that Amanda Davies just raised towards the end is, how on earth did we get here? I mean, obviously, we do know that Infantino has

been trying to win over Donald Trump's friendship for many years.

We saw the FIFA Peace Prize that he awarded Donald Trump, the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize. We saw him show up at a Gaza Peace Summit as well, which

was, for a lot of people, quite random that Infantino would be there.

But just give us some insight into this friendship. Because I think that for many people, just especially given what happened on this phone call,

that friendship that Infantino has been trying to sort of grease with Donald Trump is now perhaps starting to backfire.

SOPHIA CAI, WHITE HOSE REPORTER, POLITICO: Yes. So, this relationship goes back eight years to President Trump's first term when the U.S. found out

that it had won the rights to host the World Cup.

And at the time in the Oval Office, Gianni and Trump met for the first time. But Trump didn't even know that he'd be back in 2026 for the World

Cup as it was going on.

And here we are now two years after Gianni Infantino has started to come back into the Oval Office, making almost a dozen visits. That's more than

any head of states. We're now in the middle of the World Cup.

So, it's very normal for a call like this to happen. But what's not normal is the circumstances around this, that President Trump is placing a call

about a specific case and a red card. And we heard from President Trump today, he took credit for the decision to overturn the red card.

And I think that's what's really incredible is that even without Trump, a decision to suspend a ban is a huge one. It's even more stunning that it

came after a call between President Trump and Gianni Infantino.

GOLODRYGA: And, Sophia, you're reporting as the White House offer to make its own attorneys available to assist the U.S. soccer's appeal. I don't

recall the last time that type of resource was offered.

But the president, just this morning, said he doesn't believe that Infantino alone made that decision in reference to the committee that he

said did.

Per your reporting, can you support that? Was this decision made by the governing committee?

CAI: FIFA tells us that it was an independent decision made by this 18- member disciplinary committee.

Now, FIFA has not answered my questions as to whether there was a vote. Whether how many of the 18 members was involved in this decision. And we've

not seen a report out of the committee outlining how it came to this conclusion.

What I do know is that a man named Emilio Garcia -- Garcia, who is the head of FIFA's legal -- legal department was involved in advising Gianni

Infantino of the various options. He was very involved.

And with a lot of things in this FIFA, decisions are made at the highest levels among a small group of Infantino advisor. And that has upset people,

even in the FIFA council, which is about two dozen people.

And this is just the latest of a number of decisions. Another one being the decision to create and award the peace prize to President Trump.

ASHER: And just in terms of how this affects Infantino with his reputation, you know, we know that he's up for reelection in 2027. There have been a

lot of complaints that he was cozying up to Donald Trump far too much, that FIFA was becoming a little bit too political. Give us your take on that,

Sophia.

[12:10:07]

CAI: So, that's been bubbling under the surface for the better part of the last 18 months. This may be a tipping point, because there have been rumors

of, oh, should we find a challenger to Infantino?

So far, no one has stepped forward to challenge him. And he has announced his run for reelection. He has a pretty strong hold on the more than 200

federations that make up his constituency.

But now, we're going to see renewed calls for challenges to Infantino. He's up for reelection next year in 2027.

GOLODRYGA: And we should note that we're just being told that Infantino has posted on FIFA as I believe, social media site that he is defending there.

You can see it. "I have seen the public comments regarding the decision of the independent FIFA disciplinary committee related to the suspension of

Folarin Balogun. And I would like to reiterate a fundamental principle of FIFA's governance."

I think it goes on. I can't read the bottom there.

CAI: Yes. I have seen that statement.

GOLODRYGA: But anyway, he's -- he's defending their decision.

CAI: What he's trying to argue is that both -- he's trying to say that both things can be true. He did confirm that he spoke to President Trump. And

he's saying that that's not the reason he's saying that the decision was made by the independent committee.

Now, it's really up to, you know, FIFA -- FIFA and football fans to decide whether they believe that. But that is the first statement that we've seen

publicly from the FIFA president, Gianni Infantino since the decision was made yesterday.

ASHER: Yes. He says, I did receive a call from President Donald Trump, just as I received -- just as I received calls from heads of states, government

officials, football stakeholders, business executives from around the world, and many different issues during our conversation.

I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA's independent judicial bodies. And the case would be decided in due course by

the competent bodies. That is how FIFA's systems works. And it is a principle that I will always uphold.

So, essentially, he's saying that he didn't unilaterally make that decision that it was essentially a group effort, and FIFA's independent judicial

bodies assisted in that effort.

So, that is Gianni Infantino, essentially defending his decision making there and defending the fact that he got that president -- that he got the

phone call, rather, from President Trump saying that, you know, he gets phone calls from other heads of states all the time.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. Due course happening some 24 hours before this pivotal game tonight.

Sophia, thank you so much. Thank you for your reporting.

CAI: Thank you.

ASHER: All right. President Trump heads off to a critical NATO summit in Turkey in a few hours where Russia's war on Ukraine will be a key focus.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. It comes as Kyiv reels from another deadly attack from Moscow in just hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy once

again called on Western allies to do more.

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(EXPLOSIONS)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Explosions lit up the sky as missiles and drones hammered the Ukrainian capital, killing at least 19 people in the region. All of the

ballistic missiles launched by Russia struck their targets.

ASHER: Ukraine, meantime, hit Russia's largest oil refinery for the first time as Kyiv ramps up its attacks on Moscow's energy infrastructure and

then he worsening fuel crisis.

GOLODRYGA: Senior White House reporter Betsy Klein joins us now.

Betsy, the White House itself had been gearing up for this NATO summit calling it one of the most consequential in history, the president's

leaving tonight.

He was asked today, this morning, about the war in Ukraine, saying that once again, he thinks he can come to an end quite quickly. And he spoke

with both President Putin and Zelenskyy over the weekend. What was the outcome of those calls?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, it's really a very critical moment for this alliance as President Trump gets ready to travel

to Turkey a little bit later today.

Trump's long simmering feud with NATO has been really no secret. It started back in his first term. And at the root of this issue here is his view that

the U.S. is disproportionately spending on NATO defense that other countries are not spending their fair share.

But this war with Iran has really intensified that disconnect between the U.S. and the European allies who have declined to get directly involved in

that conflict.

Now, we do expect, even though there is that fragile ceasefire, we expect the security and the Strait of Hormuz to be a major topic for discussion as

these leaders convene in Turkey starting tomorrow.

Now, the president is attending after some uncertainty about whether he would even participate in this summit. He says that he is doing so because

of Turkish President Erdogan.

[12:15:01]

But as you mentioned, Ukraine is also expected to be a major topic for these leaders to sort through. And we are seeing this conflict intensify in

recent weeks, including those strikes in Kyiv overnight.

Now, President Trump spoke by phone this weekend with both Ukraine's President Zelenskyy and then separately, Russia's President Vladimir Putin,

to talk about a potential end to this conflict.

We'll be waiting to see if there's any new momentum toward getting an end to this war that's been so elusive for President Trump in his second term,

something he said he could do on day one.

We're also going to be watching President Trump's relationship with these NATO leaders. There have been a lot of fraught and contentious

relationships here, particularly with Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni.

The president posting overnight a photo with her that says, restraining order needed. He also has a contentious relationship with British Prime

Minister, Keir Starmer, who is, of course, outgoing there. Spain's Prime Minister Sanchez has also been very critical of the war with Iran.

And then we also have the leader of Belgium, as the president has taken aim at that FIFA World Cup red card call for the USA star player, Balogun.

Now, looking at the agenda, the president is expected to leave later this evening. He's going to be watching the World Cup expected to be watching on

Air Force One as he travels to Turkey, arriving in the afternoon time on Tuesday local time.

He's going to be greeted by President Erdogan. The two of them will have a bilateral meeting before the world leaders all convene for what's being

described as a social dinner.

Then on Wednesday, they get down to business with working sessions. The president is also expected to meet on the sidelines of that meeting with

Zelenskyy, along with the president of Syria.

And then before heading back to Washington that evening, he is expected to take questions from reporters at a unilateral press conference.

So, so much to look ahead to here. We'll be watching it all very, very closely, Zain and Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, from politics to -- to personal, to -- to sports. There is going to be a lot happening in Turkey over the next few days.

Betsy Klein, thank you.

ASHER: All right. Large crowds pack the streets of Tehran on Monday as the late ayatollah's coffin is carried on a 10-kilometer journey through the

capital. Iran's president joined the hundreds of thousands of people attending the funeral procession for Ali Khamenei.

GOLODRYGA: Many there grieving and angered shouting death to America and vowing revenge against the U.S. and Israel.

Fred Pleitgen reports from the charged up crowds in Tehran. And remember, CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government but

maintains full editorial control of its reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is truly a historic moment that we're witnessing here in Tehran as scores of people

have come out to commemorate Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who, of course, was killed in the U.S.-Israeli airstrike, along

with several family members at the beginning of the U.S. and Israel's war against Iran.

And as you can see on the ground here, there is a lot of sorrow, but there is also a lot of anger. The chants of "Death to America," you're hearing

right now and "Death to Israel" has been going off almost nonstop with people vowing revenge against the United States.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text through translation): We have come here to seek the revenge for the blood of our leader and we will not abandon this goal

for a second. We will continue until we take the revenge from the killer of our leader.

PLEITGEN: Of course, we always have to point out, not everybody is mourning today, not everybody is out here. There are people who were deeply opposed

to the rule of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

But as you can see here, right now, the government has galvanized its supporters. They have come out here on mass. And the message that they're

saying they were forced is also directed at the United States that if negotiations fail, Iran is ready for another fight.

Now, this processions are going to go on for another several days and then culminate and the supreme leader is laid to rest in the city of Mashhad in

Eastern Iran.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: Another news, a lawyer for Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya says that he's at risk of being killed in Israeli custody. The Israeli prison service did

not respond to CNN's requests for comment.

ASHER: He's been in detention for at least 556 days or more than a year and a half.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Prominent Palestinian pediatrician, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya is in imminent risk of death in Israeli

custody, according to his lawyer who met with him on Thursday.

Lawyer, Nasser Odeh, told CNN that he barely was able to recognize Dr. Abu Safiya, that his physical and psychological condition had seriously

deteriorated over the past few weeks.

NASSER ODEH, LAWYER FOR DR. HUSSAM ABU SAFIYA (through text translation): He was brought to the visiting room with his hands and feet shackled. Signs

of violence more visible on his face and around his eyes. He was unable to breath or walk.

KARADSHEH (voice-over): Israel has accused him of being a Hamas operative but has never charged him.

[12:20:04]

Dr. Abu Safiya told his lawyer that shortly after hearing on an appeal to his detention, before Israel's Supreme Court last month, which the court

denied, while he was being held in solitary confinement, four or five prison guards entered his cell and beat him all over his body using a

hammer.

After being transferred to the underground rec-fit prison facility, his lawyer says he told him he'd suffered daily beatings and that he lost

consciousness several times.

KARADSHEH: The Israeli prison service that is repeatedly denied abusing prisoners and insists that it abides by international humanitarian law did

not respond to CNN's request for comments.

KARADSHEH (voice-over): Dr. Abu Safiya was the director of Gaza's Kamal Adwan Hospital. He was detained by Israeli forces in December 2024. We

profiled Dr. Abu Safiya that year before his detention. He shared with us his diaries from inside his hospital that was under siege, despite the

risks and despite his immense loss after his son was killed in an Israeli strike, he refused to leave, insisting he would not abandon his patients.

KARADSHEH: The rights group, Physicians for Human Rights-Israel and his lawyer are urgently calling for a judge to visit him for an independent

medical examination and for his immediate transfer to a different facility before it's too late, they say.

KARADSHEH (voice-over): His lawyer says Dr. Abu Safiya told him, quote, "This is the last time you will see me. They brought me here to kill me. I

don't see myself surviving. This is the end."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: Wildfires continue to rage across parts of Europe as another wave of extreme heat grips the continent. In Eastern Spain, firefighters

worked through the night to battle the fast moving flames under tough conditions.

ASHER: Yes. Strong winds in Greece hampered efforts to contain wildfires there. Over the weekend, just north of the Thessaloniki, authority say more

than 100 emergency alerts were issued forcing evacuation.

CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins us live now with more. Just update us on the situations in both Spain and Greece, Derek.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Well, here's what it looks like in the south of France as well. So, it's not just localized to Spain and

Greece. It's a widespread area that has an increased risk of fire because of the excessive heat that we've been dealing with.

Look at the firefighters battling these blazes. This is in Perpignan, the south of France. Beautiful area. I've been here, but extremely dry, very

Mediterranean type climate and lots of steep rugged terrain as well. So, it allows these wildfires, when they get pushed in from an easterly breeze off

of the Mediterranean to help spread additional spot fires.

[12:25:15]

Firefighters are really working there absolute best to try and control those blazes, which by the way has a perimeter of 18 kilometers long

stretch for that particular fire.

So, this additional heat wave that is coming, we want to preface this with it is nothing near what we experienced a couple of weeks to go in June with

the thousands of fatalities that were forced across Western Europe because of that incredibly volatile heat ridge and heat dome that formed.

However, this is something we want to take very seriously, especially as it settles into some of these hardest hit areas, central France, into the

Iberian Peninsula.

Of course, this is going to increase the fire risk. We're already extremely dry throughout these locations. You start to see the temperatures climb

into the middle and upper 30s and you have the potential here for additional wildfire spread.

This is a Copernicus fire danger forecast, kind of has a fire index and, of course, anywhere you see shading of red. That's where we have our greatest

risk of fires going forward.

But that's where we also have the red alerts for places like Spain and orange alerts. That's the level two of three across much of France. That's

where temperatures here are going to skyrocket into the middle and upper 30s.

But again, nowhere near the record breaking territory that we saw in June. You can see these temperatures here, middle 30s. We'll keep them there,

but, of course, it's tough to stay cool when you have so little access to air conditioning across this part of the world.

Bianna, Zain.

ASHER: Yes. And that is -- that is the saddest part of all of this that there is really no respite for people who are living under this kind of

heat.

VAN DAM: Exactly.

Derek Van Dam, live for us there. Thank you so much.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. And in the evenings, evening hours, temperatures are grueling.

Well, Parisians are dealing with record-breaking heat scorching Europe this summer by diving into the Seine. The river was once an urban cesspit. Now,

it is a popular swim spot.

ASHER: Got to get cool somehow.

For centuries, swimming there was actually banned until the 2024 Paris Olympics sparked a massive cleanup effort. Here's our Melissa Bell with

more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Forget climbing the Eiffel Tower. The cool new thing to do in Paris is to swim

beneath it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's very quiet. Yes, very nice, and you can see some very little fish in the water. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We swim in Copenhagen, where we come from as well, so.

BELL: OK. So, you're used to this (INAUDIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't really -- we don't really mind, actually.

BELL (voice-over): Others are still a little hesitant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I -- I have not, like, entered the water, but I think the idea of, like, lounging by the Seine is really cool.

BELL (voice-over): It's hard to imagine that the Seine River was once a toxic mess, home to half of Paris' untreated wastewater. In fact, for a

hundred years, swimming in it was strictly prohibited.

Now, for the second year in a row, public swimming areas will be open till the end of August.

EMMANUEL GREGOIRE, PARIS MAYOR: First, I would like to guarantee Seine that the quality of the water is very good. Secondly, it's an amazing occasion

to discover Paris in a different way.

BELL (voice-over): A swimmable Seine was one of the pledges of the 2024 Paris Olympics. 1.4 billion euros were spent getting the river clean enough

for the athletes to compete in it, but the idea was always to give ordinary Parisians their river back, too.

BELL: A few years ago, the idea of swimming in the Seine River would have seemed crazy, but then again, this is a city in which it is often said that

the only sane thing is the river.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ASHER: She had to do it, did she?

GOLODRYGA: She really goes in a hundred percent for every story she does, Melissa.

ASHER: All right. President Trump is stepping in over the USA's next World Cup match.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I didn't think it was a foul. And, you know, again, I'm good at this stuff. I didn't think it was a foul.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ASHER: After the break, why, his critics say, he simply went too far.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:30:04]

ASHER: This year's World Cup gets more interesting by the day. In just a few hours from now, neighbors, Portugal and Spain, will face off in Dallas

to see who will advance to the quarterfinals.

We'll get to see Spain's 18-year-old sensation, Lamine Yamal, take on Portugal's 41-year-old legend Ronaldo.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. But no one's really talking about that story right now because, of course, the president has weighed in.

FIFA has stunned the soccer world by allowing U.S. player, Folarin Balogun to play in tonight's match against Belgium.

It lifted his one-match suspension after an appeal to the president of FIFA from his friend, the president of the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: All I did, I asked for a review because I didn't think it was a foul. And, you know, again, I'm good at this stuff. I didn't think it was a

foul. I thought it was two great athletes that crashed into each other and got entangled. That was not a -- that was not a guy punching somebody in

the face or anything, you know, would be different.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Let's bring in CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan. You can't help but feel for Michael Dell in the background there. Just wanted to do a

good thing and -- and donate money to millions of kids in the United States and now spending his day having to react to this and the president weighing

in, and once again, causing an uproar.

Christine, in all fairness, I was floored by that call. I'm not a soccer expert, but I've watched enough games to view that is not deserving of a

red card last week.

That having been said, Team USA handled it, I think, with stride, in a respectful manner, took that red card and fought on the rest of that match,

one man down. And we're going to perhaps go to this game today without Balogun.

And now the president has entered and now Sepp Blatter, of all people, says "Red cards are overturned, quote, by rules, evidence and independent

bodies, not political phone calls."

When Sepp Blatter is a voice of institutional integrity, what does that tell you about the concerns that this has raised for FIFA, for the World

Cup now and the games ahead?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: Bianna, this is unprecedented to have a U.S. president enter into a field of play decision. That is, as you

know, I've covered the Olympics and international sports for a long time, well, back -- going all the way back to the mid-80s.

And I've covered so many scandals, so many -- so much shenanigans and ridiculousness and cheating and corruption, figure skating, gymnastics,

FIFA, you name it. And yet, I have never covered anything quite like this.

Now, far be it from me to defend Sepp Blatter or FIFA, it is one of the most corrupt organizations we have ever seen, certainly in sports. And the

Department of Justice in the United States investigated, indicted, there were arrests, and there were times when FIFA officials felt they couldn't

even come into the United States and get on U.S. soil because they knew they might get arrested.

[12:35:05]

So, FIFA is -- does not deserve our praise. The difference here -- you can be -- there are people who felt that red card decision was terrible. I

thought it was a bad decision. There are a lot -- I'm sure people were fine with it around the world.

That's not what we're talking about here. I mean, it is part of it. But the real story is how a head of state has now gotten into the decision making.

And because of the friendship and the peace prize and which, of course, FIFA made up to give to Trump and all of the things that have gone on

between Trump and Infantino, it all comes back into play in a way in this story, just remarkable.

And, of course, it's opening a can of worms, as you both know that what's the next step? The Olympics are coming in two years and eight days to the

United States, Los Angeles.

Well, Donald Trump want to overturn a swimming ruling if someone is called for an illegal turn or will he get involved in a gymnastics controversy?

That's -- those are the kind of questions that I -- I -- I care about.

And I think all of us should looking down the road of what this means, not just for tonight's game, which is huge, but obviously moving forward to

have a president so involved in this way.

ASHER: Christine, what is this going to be like for Folarin himself? Because, you know, it's one of those things where you have now become a

household name. And, literally, everybody is talking about you, but the conversation has very little to do with your talent.

You know, you're in the middle of a controversy that you didn't really create at all. And when you think about, you know, if he ends up playing,

he already -- I mean, as a star striker, he's already under an enormous amount of pressure.

And now, he's going to feel the need to justify the fact that he was put back on the pitch, that he was sort of -- it's just -- I just imagine that

this whole thing from his sort of psychological perspective with the pressure is just going to be really, really difficult then.

BRENNAN: Zain, I agree. I mean, he just turned 25 three days ago. And, of course, he is a birthright citizen as that controversy has exploded.

You know, the fact that his mom and dad were Nigerian, they happened to be visit -- lived in London, happened to be visiting the United States. The

airline wouldn't let his mom travel because she was so close to giving birth and he is then born in the United States.

So, the birthright citizenship argument that Donald Trump was against, well now he, of course, is defending someone who is -- is a birthright citizen

of the United States. So there's that. I mean, this story has everything.

And -- and I'm not making fun by any means. It's just remarkable the various tangents in this story. That's a ton of pressure, as you said. He

is the leading scorer for the U.S. He's the best player for the U.S., certainly in this tournament.

The -- unless they appeal, it goes through with Belgium and -- and UEFA. The Europeans are furious, absolutely furious. The words, I wrote them

down, unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable from the -- the -- the Mecca, the center of men's soccer, Europe, UEFA, furious with Gianni

Infantino and what FIFA did.

So, assuming, though, and we have no idea the next few hours, assuming that Balogun is playing in the game, the pressure is extraordinary. There will

be, I believe, an asterisk or some kind of a sense about this -- the rest of the tournament for the U.S. that -- that it's -- it -- there will those

-- those, of course, will say it wasn't fair.

Obviously, a classic of appall, a cloud over the U.S. team, that's all there because of Donald Trump's phone call.

It's very similar to the men's hockey in Milan, where he called in, created a huge controversy. The women did not get that call and then the outpouring

of support for the U.S. women's hockey team as that controversy brewed over a few days.

And, you know, Donald Trump's involved in sports in all ways, golf courses, wanted to own an NFL team. So, this is what he does.

And I think it is a very unfortunate set of circumstances for Balogun, not that he would play the pressure and all of the attention and how his name

will be known probably forever.

ASHER: Horrible.

BRENNAN: Yes. It's --

ASHER: Yes. It's -- it's horrible. Horrible.

GOLODRYGA: And yet, we have the U.S. team coach defending, not necessarily defending the president's phone call, but this decision and talked about

the fact that they had already played the rest of that game last week, one man down, that the pressure had been on them there, that they were prepared

today to go without Balogun and that this was ultimately the right call.

As a coach, Christine, of a team that has become so beloved in this country, they didn't force the president to make this call. This is not

their fault.

What is the message he should be sending those players today? Because so many are saying that momentum, perhaps, is on Belgium's side to go out and

win. How do they reverse that and once again make the American team feel like this is theirs to grab?

BRENNAN: You know, score the first goal, you know, you know, get -- strike first. Don't let it be zero-zero at halftime. All the things that then can

increase the nerves. Obviously, it's pretty obvious it's sports and you want to score, but I do think that will be crucial for the U.S. team.

[12:40:11]

There will be a lot of people, not in the arena, in the stadium, in Seattle. That's -- that's almost all U.S. for sure. It will be raucous.

They will be, of course, either pro-Donald Trump, obviously, certainly pro- U.S., wanting to support this U.S. team no matter what, including the controversy will probably certainly help them be a cause celeb for so many

American fans. That's great. That's exactly what you expect in sports.

But then Belgium, it's kind of like, OK, the underdogs, and they've thrown this at us, assuming, again, that nothing has changed between now and the -

- the start of the game. And Belgium will probably be playing as underdogs and wanting to beat the U.S. and beat the U.S. president who has been

involved now with the team.

So, it is hard to separate the team from the president. I'm sure, Pochettino, the coach, is going to absolutely try to do that. This is the

team. This is one of the best U.S. men's teams we've ever seen. Maybe the best. They know what to do. They know how to put the blinders on and -- and

play soccer and not worry about all of this.

But it's got to impact that locker room, that clubhouse, that team meeting. No doubt about it. This is so big. It is such an important story with so

many tentacles, as I said, that this has to affect the young men who are wearing the red, white, and blue. For sure, you just cannot avoid it.

GOLODRYGA: Yes.

ASHER: Especially Folarin. And, you know, I'm sure he's going to want everyone to sort of move on quite quickly.

I was -- you know, I'm -- I'm British Nigerian as well. And so I'm -- I'm really proud of him, but this is not how I would have wanted him to become

a household name. That's just --

GOLODRYGA: And American, we should note. So we are --

ASHER: We are both British, Nigerian, Americans. We have three passports.

GOLODRYGA: Listen, they are the last team standing of the host countries. I am rooting for Team USA. I was hoping to also talk to you about Cape Verde

and their incredible Cinderella story and goalie.

ASHER: And England and Mexico.

GOLODRYGA: Yes.

ASHER: Despite altitude.

GOLODRYGA: Another time. Another time.

All right. Christine, good to see you.

BRENANN: Great to see both of you.

GOLODRYGA: We'll be watching tonight.

BRENNAN: Thank you very much.

GOLODRYGA: All right. That does it for "One World" today. I'm Bianna Golodryga.

ASHER: I'm Zain Asher. Marketplace Africa is next. Bianna will be back in about 15 minutes with "Amanpour."

GOLODRYGA: So much to talk about.

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