FIFA Reverses Red Card Decision Against US Striker Folarin Balogun Amid Controversy

When the US striker Folarin Balogun received a straight red card and a one-game ban for fouling Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Tarik Muharemovic last week in the Round of 32 knockout game of the ongoing FIFA World Cup, popular reaction suggested that the dismissal was harsh for a rather innocuous tackle. The US managed to win 2-0. Controversy, however, erupted after FIFA, the world’s top footballing body, reversed the red card decision ahead of the crucial Round of 16 game between the US and Belgium late Monday — seemingly at the behest of US President Donald Trump . The controversy News reports emerged Sunday that Trump had made multiple calls, including one to FIFA president Gianni Infantino as part of a behind-the-scenes lobbying effort to change the decision to suspend Balogun. This reportedly involved the White House even engaging a group of lawyers to help the US soccer association legally challenge the decision. Both FIFA and the White House are yet to comment. The announcement invited criticism from the Belgian football federation, which said Monday it would challenge FIFA’s decision. UEFA, European football’s governing body, said the decision had “crossed a red line”. Trump, whose absence from the World Cup has not gone unnoticed and had until then posted only once about the tournament since it kicked off on June 11, was quick to respond to the lifting of Balogun’s suspension. “Thank you to Fifa for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!” he wrote on Truth Social. In reversing Balogun’s red card decision, FIFA’s Independent Disciplinary Committee cited Article 27 of the FIFA disciplinary code, which states that the judicial committee is authorised to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure or sanction (such as a match ban), whereupon the measure itself remains in force but does not have to be served immediately unless the suspension is revoked later. The sanctioned player is then put on a probationary period of between one and four years — Balogun was placed on a one-year probation — and if the player commits a similar offence during this period, then they will have to serve the suspension. The code does not mention the circumstances wherein a judicial body may decide to suspend a disciplinary measure. But such a measure cannot be suspended if the offence is related to match fixing . Law 12 of the International Football Association Board’s Laws of the Game 2026-27 governs rules pertaining to “Fouls and Misconduct”. The laws empower the referee to broadly take four kinds of disciplinary action against offences committed by either players (including substitutes) or team officials: warning, caution, yellow card, and red card. This extends “from entering the field of play for the pre-match inspection until leaving the field of play after the match ends (including penalties)”. For minor offences such as less dangerous fouls or instances of delaying play or unsporting behaviour, referees tend to first communicate a warning or caution to the players or officials concerned; should they repeat such offences, the referee can issue a yellow card — also called a “booking”. While a player can continue on the pitch after being booked once, a second yellow card in the same match — which equals one red card — means they would have to leave the field. A red card communicates graver offences such as dangerous challenges, abusive behaviour towards match officials, denying an open goalscoring opportunity by fouling one’s opponent, or handling the ball. As it happened in Balogun’s case, the video assistant referee can step in to award missed red card incidents and even overturn a second yellow, if considered necessary.