The United States were set to face Belgium in the World Cup round of 16 in Seattle without star forward Folarin Balogun, who received a red card against Bosnia on July 2 in San Francisco. But in a last-minute reversal ahead of the knockout match, FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee suspended his one-match ban — a decision that has drawn fierce criticism.
UEFA said in a statement: “Yesterday, the automatic one-match suspension imposed on footballer Folarin Balogun following a red card was suspended on a one-year probationary basis. FIFA has crossed the line with this decision.”
FIFA said the suspension was issued “in line with Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code” and placed on a one-year probationary period. If Balogun commits a similar offense during the probationary period, the original suspension will be reinstated in addition to any new sanctions.
US President Donald Trump thanked FIFA after the decision was announced.
Balogun was initially not shown even a yellow card for his tackle on Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic during the round of 32 match. The referee reversed the decision after reviewing the incident on the advice of the video assistant referee (VAR) and issued a straight red card. The decision immediately sparked intense debate.
Balogun has scored 3 goals in 3 matches at the current World Cup.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report