The USMNT should have star striker Folarin Balogun, who has three goals in three appearances, for tonight's World Cup knockout matchup. In a stunning and unprecedented decision, FIFA opted to suspend Folarin Balogun's red card.
The USMNT should have star striker Folarin Balogun, who has three goals in three appearances, for tonight’s World Cup knockout matchup. Should is the operative word. This has been a whirlwind news cycle with rather unprecedented twists and turns, but it all should add up to no missed time for the American forward.
In a stunning and unprecedented decision, FIFA opted to suspend Folarin Balogun’s red card, which essentially means it’s not rescinded but pushed back. He is now on probation for one year. Any red-card incidents will be met with an immediate penalty, including the one he would’ve faced for his foul against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The red card was widely viewed as a shocking and inaccurate decision from the VAR, and it was reported after the match that the VAR misused protocols to determine it a red card. The referee was shown slow-motion and still image clips, which are not to be used in decision-making with a challenge of this nature.
In essence, FIFA is saying that they understand that the referees made that mistake and are seeking to rectify it with a catch-all provision in the bylaws that allows them to suspend bans like this. It’s not an outright reversal, but it is FIFA seemingly reinstating Balogun because he shouldn’t have been sent off in the first place.
The Royal Belgian Football Association and UEFA have criticized this move heavily, with UEFA’s harsh statement concluding, “We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”
It is not set in stone that Folarin Balogun will play, though. Belgium was granted the right to appeal the decision, and they and the US Soccer Federation had until 8 am ET on Monday morning, just 12 hours before the match, to make submissions, and it appears that both did.
FIFA may or may not make a decision before the match tonight, in which case, Balogun would suit up for the USMNT. It is extremely unlikely that FIFA will reinstate Balogun’s one-match ban at this stage, especially after US President Donald Trump’s personal intervention to get FIFA to review the red card.
Essentially, the card was handed down, and then it was appealed (though no official appeal could have come from US Soccer). Now, while Belgium can appeal, that is like appealing the appeal. The decision has already been reversed in a sense, so reversing it again just before the match is difficult to imagine.
In many ways, this is unprecedented. Folarin Balogun is set to be the first player with a red card in a World Cup to play in the next match. But he’s not the first person to benefit from FIFA pulling strings as it pertains to red cards. Neither will he be the last.
Cristiano Ronaldo missed zero World Cup games. This is despite receiving a three-game ban during qualifiers for elbowing an opponent in the head. The same Article 27 that allowed FIFA to suspend Balogun’s ban is what they used for Ronaldo.
Argentina defender Nicolás Otamendi and Ecuador midfielder Moisés Caicedo earned one-game bans in April, and their penalties were suspended so that they could be present for World Cup openers for their countries.
Brazil’s Garrincha got ejected from a 1962 semifinal, but he was allowed to play in the World Cup final against Chile thanks to some intense political pressure.
