After U.S. President Donald Trump called FIFA President Gianni Infantino, FIFA suspended the red card ban of U.S. national team star striker Folarin Balogun. The decision sparked major controversy at the 2026 World Cup.
Red Card and Trump's Intervention
In the round of 32 match where the U.S. defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0, Balogun received a red card after a VAR review for stepping on Tarik Muharemovic's ankle. The card automatically meant a one-match suspension. However, Trump called Infantino after the match and asked for the decision to be reviewed.
According to a report by the Associated Press citing an unnamed source, Trump asked Infantino to review the incident. Trump later said on social media, "I thank FIFA for doing the right thing and correcting a great injustice."
FIFA suspended the enforcement of the ban based on Article 27 of the Disciplinary Committee rules. This article allows a disciplinary sanction to be suspended in whole or in part, with a probationary period of one to four years.
Backlash Mounts
FIFA's decision drew sharp criticism from many quarters, especially the Belgian Football Association (RBFA). The RBFA described the decision as "astonishing," while Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia likened it to an April Fools' joke, saying, "I didn't know that in FIFA's offices, July 5th is April 1st in Europe."
UEFA also said in a statement on Monday, "Yesterday's decision crossed a red line," adding, "We express our astonishment at this unprecedented, incomprehensible and indefensible decision."
Sepp Blatter, who served as FIFA president from 1998 to 2015, said in a post on X, "Red cards are overturned by rules, evidence and independent bodies, not by political phone calls. If a U.S. President intervenes with the FIFA President and a player is suddenly cleared before a World Cup knockout match, the question is inevitable: Quo vadis, FIFA?"
Norway head coach Stale Solbakken called the decision "a bad, bad, bad, bad, bad decision," while England head coach Thomas Tuchel, though believing Balogun did not deserve the red card, questioned the suspension of the ban. Tuchel asked, "Who overturns this decision, when, and on what grounds? How far will this go?"
Former England footballer Ian Wright said, "We talk about integrity, transparency, but look at what's happening with some teams in this tournament... It's shameful," while former Ireland footballer Roy Keane commented, "It looks unfair because it is unfair."
Which Rules Did FIFA Violate?
The Belgian Football Association argues that FIFA violated its own rules. The RBFA pointed out that Article 66.4 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code stipulates an automatic one-match suspension after a red card, and that Article 10.5 of the 2026 World Cup organizational regulations contains the same provision. FIFA Circular No. 16 also confirms the automatic ban.
The RBFA requested the grounds for the decision from FIFA, but FIFA treated the request as an appeal, appointed an arbitrator, and gave the federation only a few hours to complete the appeal. The Belgian federation claims that FIFA itself initiated the appeal process and then ensured the appeal was declared inadmissible.
It was also noted that at the pre-match coordination meeting for the Belgium-U.S. game, FIFA removed the section on "automatic player suspensions" from the presentation that had been included in all previous matches, and when the Belgian federation asked about it, they received no answer.
Past Precedents
The last time a red card ban was suspended in World Cup history was in 1962. At the tournament in Chile, Brazilian star Garrincha received a red card in the semi-final, but under the rules of the time, no automatic suspension was applied, and the disciplinary committee released him with a warning. Garrincha played in the final and Brazil became champions.
More recently, after Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal received a red card against Ireland, the last two matches of his three-match ban were suspended by FIFA, allowing Ronaldo to play in the World Cup. On the other hand, Qatar's Assim Madibo received a five-match ban for injuring an opponent in a match against Canada.
Balogun's Post
While the U.S. Soccer Federation did not make Balogun available to the press, the player posted a photo of himself in front of fans on social media, set to Michael Jackson's "Bad."
FIFA's controversial decision overshadowed the round of 16 match between Belgium and the U.S. and became one of the tournament's biggest controversies.
