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SHAH ALAM - US President Donald Trump reportedly made calls to FIFA that led to US player Folarin Balogun’s one-match ban being rescinded, giving the US a major boost ahead of their Round of 16 clash with Belgium.
The striker was shown a red card for what was said to be a harmless challenge on Bosnia and Herzegovina defender Tarik Muharemovic, shortly after scoring the USA’s opening goal in their 2-0 Round of 32 victory on Wednesday.
The incident resulted in a red card and an automatic one-match suspension.
Trump's intervention
Hours after the match ended, multiple reports claimed that Trump contacted FIFA president Gianni Infantino and urged him to review the incident as many experts and fans alike condemned the decision, stating it as extremely harsh.
Reports also emerged on Sunday night that the White House World Cup Task Force, chaired by Andrew Giuliani, had effectively launched a legal challenge against Balogun's suspension.
FIFA rescinds the ban
On Monday, FIFA announced on its official website that Balogun's suspension had been lifted, allowing him to play against Belgium on July 7.
"By operation of Article 27 FDC, the implementation of the automatic match suspension for USA player Folarin Balogun is suspended for a probationary period of one (1) year," FIFA said in a statement.
Trump welcomed the decision in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.
"Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right and reversing a great injustice!" he wrote.
Belgium's response
The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) criticised FIFA's decision, saying it was "astonished" by the governing body's move to overturn Balogun's suspension.
"We are astonished by this decision."
The RBFA also argued that FIFA had failed to apply its own disciplinary regulations consistently.
"The automatic nature of such a suspension was also explicitly reaffirmed in World Cup 2026 Circular No. 16, which was distributed to all participating member associations on May 12.
"The same rule is reiterated at every match coordination meeting before each match and in all World Cup 2026 workshop presentations.
"Article 66.4 of the same FIFA Disciplinary Code clearly provides that a red card (sending-off) automatically results in a suspension for the team's next match, as has been the case for all previous red cards issued during this FIFA World Cup."
The RBFA said it was reviewing FIFA's decision and would consider all available options to safeguard the integrity of the competition.
"In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options."
Has this happened before?
This is not the first time FIFA has overturned a suspension.
Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo previously had a three-match suspension reduced to a one-match ban after he was sent off against the Republic of Ireland in a World Cup qualifier last November.
He served the reduced suspension in a subsequent qualifying match before returning to action.
The USA will face Belgium in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup on July 6.
