Folarin Balogun will be available for the United States against Belgium in the World Cup Round of 16 on Monday, after FIFA’s disciplinary committee set aside the automatic one-match ban tied to the red card he received against Bosnia and Herzegovina. The governing body announced the decision on Sunday.
The committee did not wipe out the sanction.
Citing Article 27 of its disciplinary code, it suspended enforcement of the suspension for a one-year probationary period. If Balogun commits a comparable offense within that window, the original ban can be revoked and enforced alongside any new penalty.
The reprieve carries weight because the U.S. had no way to fight the call. A red card triggers an automatic one-game suspension under Article 10.5 of the tournament rules, with no appeal available to the federation. Balogun is now free to start at Lumen Field in Seattle, where the United States is seeking its first World Cup quarterfinal since 2002. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. Eastern.
The sending-off was disputed from the moment it happened. Balogun was shown a straight red early in the second half of the Round of 32 win in Santa Clara after a video review flagged his challenge on defender Tarik Muharemović. Replays showed him landing on the back of the defender’s leg and stepping down on the ankle; the referee ruled it a serious foul.
U.S. Soccer said it accepted the committee. The ruling also drew a public response from President Donald Trump, who posted on Truth Social, thanking FIFA for what he framed as correcting an injustice.
FIFA has taken this route before. In 2025, a three-match ban handed to Cristiano Ronaldo was cut to a single game plus probation.
Criticism of the original decision came quickly from the U.S. camp. Coach Mauricio Pochettino argued after the Bosnia match that the play did not warrant a red card, describing it as a routine collision between players contesting the ball. Midfielder Weston McKennie questioned the call given the stakes of the round. Christina Unkel, a former FIFA referee now working as a rules analyst, told NBC News the incident was subjective enough that it should not have gone to video review at all.
Balogun, 25, has been one of the tournament’s breakout figures. Born in Brooklyn to Nigerian parents and raised in London, he represented England through his youth career before committing to the United States at the senior level — a path that echoes the immigrant-rooted communities following this World Cup. He has scored three times in the campaign, more than any U.S. teammate, according to NBC4.
Belgium, ranked ninth in the world, is the toughest opponent the U.S. has drawn so far and holds a heavy edge in the all-time series.
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