The United States’ World Cup campaign took an unusual turn on Sunday when FIFA appeared to break its own rules to allow star player Folarin Balogun to play in Monday’s last-16 match against Belgium despite receiving a red card in Wednesday’s last-32 match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The international football federation announced it had suspended the red card against Balogun after US President Donald Trump personally asked FIFA president Gianni Infantino to reconsider the matter.
Balogun, who plays club soccer in Monaco, France, scored three goals for the U.S. team at this World Cup, making him the team’s top scorer at the tournament.
FIFA’s decision drew criticism from the Belgian Football Association, Europe’s top soccer body, a former FIFA president and several former top players. Critics argued that overturning a red card suspension after direct political interference undermined the integrity of the competition and set a dangerous precedent.
Let’s take a closer look at what happened and why it caused such a storm.
Why did Balogun receive a red card?
Balogun received an automatic one-game suspension after receiving a red card for awkwardly stepping on Tarik Muharemovic’s right ankle during the United States’ 2-0 win in the Round of 32 on Wednesday.
The 25-year-old was sent off after a review by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), with US manager Mauricio Pochettino saying there was no violation for a red card.
Fans and commentators were divided on the first red card, with some feeling it was justified, while others argued that Balogun lost his balance and made accidental contact rather than intentionally stepping on it. On Friday, Balogun said he thought a yellow card instead of a red “would have been fairer.”
Eventually, President Trump intervened on his behalf, and his red card suspension was lifted, allowing him to play in Monday’s World Cup game against Belgium.
FIFA lifted the ban under Article 27 of the Disciplinary Commission Regulations.
“The judicial body may decide to suspend, in whole or in part, the implementation of disciplinary measures,” the regulation states. “By suspending the enforcement of sanctions, the judicial body imposes a suspended sentence of one to four years on the sanctioned person.”
The U.S. Soccer Federation did not release Balogun’s comments Sunday, but the player posted a photo of himself on social media in front of U.S. fans overlaid to the music of Michael Jackson’s pop single “Bad.”
Has something like this happened before?
This is the first time since 1962 that a player was not suspended for a red card during a World Cup.
At the 1962 World Cup in Chile, Brazil star Garrincha received a red card during a 4-2 semi-final victory over hosts Chile. At the time, a red card did not lead to an automatic suspension from the next match, and a disciplinary committee was supposed to examine the evidence and decide on the sanction. In Garrincha’s case, the committee decided to send him off with a warning. Garrincha played in Brazil’s 3-1 final victory over Czechoslovakia, as the South American soccer giants won their second consecutive World Cup.
Most recently, Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo was allowed to play in the opening match of the World Cup after being suspended by FIFA for the last two of the three games he received after receiving a red card last year. Before receiving the reprieve, he was prepared to miss the first two games of the World Cup.
Meanwhile, Qatari midfielder Asim Madibo was given a five-game suspension after receiving a red card for a tackle that seriously injured Canadian midfielder Ismael Kone during a group match.
Monday’s match will be played against the backdrop of one of the tournament’s most contentious decisions, and the debate over FIFA’s authority is unlikely to end after the final whistle.
What was your reaction to the red card?
The decision to suspend Balogun for his red card sparked one of the tournament’s biggest controversies.
The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) said it was “surprised”.
“The RBFA is considering all possible options in order to protect the legitimate rights of all participating teams and uphold the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and in future tournaments,” the Belgian federation said in a statement.
Belgium coach Rudi Garcia ridiculed FIFA’s actions. “At the FIFA office, we didn’t know that July 5th is April 1st in Europe,” Garcia said through an interpreter during the April Fool’s comparison. “The Belgian federation does not protect itself, it does not protect the national team. She protects football in general, her integrity, her ethics.
“Yesterday’s decision to suspend the execution of Folarin Balogun’s one-year trial period following the red card he received crossed a red line that should not be crossed,” European football’s top body, the Confederation of European Football (UEFA), said in a statement on Monday.
UEFA added in a statement: “We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, inexplicable and unjust decision.”
Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who led FIFA from 1998 to 2015, also criticized FIFA’s decision.
“Red cards are not overturned by political phone calls. They are overruled by rules, evidence and independent bodies. If the President of the United States intervenes with the FIFA president and a player is suddenly cleared before the World Cup final, the question is unavoidable: ‘Quo Vadis, FIFA?'” he wrote to X.
Other soccer experts also weighed in.
“What about the next red card? What will happen then?” said Norway national team coach Starre Solbakken. “This is a bad, bad, bad, bad, bad decision that will have a negative impact on the World Cup.”
England manager Thomas Tuchel fears more decisions could be challenged in the future, including whether the yellow cards for England’s Declan Rice and France’s Michael Oliset will be overturned.
Tuchel said he believed Balogun did not deserve a red card, but questioned the decision to hold off on the penalty after having just seen defender Jarrell Quansah sent off in his side’s 3-2 last-16 win on Sunday.
“First of all, I want to make it clear that this is not a red card (for Balogun), but VAR was involved and obviously three people in VAR checked and there was an opinion that it was a red card, so the decision was taken,” Tuchel told reporters at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium.
“Who will reverse this decision and when? And on what basis? How far has this gone now? This is strange to me… where does this start and where does it end?”
Soccer experts condemned FIFA’s decision in an interview with British television station ITV.
Former England soccer player Ian Wright said: “We talk about integrity, people talk about transparency, but when you look at some of the things that have happened with certain teams in this tournament, it’s shameful how things can happen, especially as an American player, whether he’s guilty of what he did, whether we think he shouldn’t have done it. Some of the things that have happened in this World Cup are shameful.”
“It looks unfair because it’s unfair,” said Roy Keane, a former Irish professional footballer and television pundit.
What was Trump’s role in all this?
According to the Associated Press, President Trump called FIFA President Gianni Infantino after the game and asked FIFA to review the red card. The Associated Press cited a person familiar with the call who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
“Thank you FIFA for doing the right thing and reversing a great injustice!” President Trump wrote in a statement on social media.
US coach Mauricio Pochettino praised FIFA’s move.
“It was a completely unfair call and we were punished enough by playing 30 minutes with 10 men against Bosnia and Herzegovina,” he said, referring to the fact that the U.S. team had to play the rest of the game with one fewer man because Balogun was sent off with a red card.
Pochettino, who played for Argentina at the 2002 World Cup, was not surprised by Trump’s decision to call up Infantino.
“I come from a culture, whether it’s Argentina or Europe, where soccer, soccer, is a religion that transcends religion,” he said. “If we keep moving forward and keep moving forward, maybe tomorrow we’ll take another step and see that sport is magic, that sport is great, that it’s very powerful, that it brings people together, that it brings countries like ours together.”
What rules did FIFA violate, according to critics?
The Belgian Football Association has said it may appeal FIFA’s ruling, saying it breached a number of its own rules.
In justifying its decision, FIFA cited Article 27 of the Disciplinary Code, which allows for the suspension of enforcement of previously imposed disciplinary sanctions.
However, the Belgian federation pointed to Article 66.4 of the regulation, which automatically imposes a one-match suspension if a player receives a red card. The Royal Belgian Football Association also cited Article 10.5 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Laws, which states: “If a player or team official is sent off as a result of a direct or indirect red card (second caution), he will be automatically suspended from the team’s subsequent matches. Further sanctions may be imposed.”
Circular No. 16 for the 2026 FIFA World Cup also confirms the automatic one-match suspension in the event of a red card.
