FIFA Clears Balogun to Play Against Belgium After Red Card Reversal

The United States will have striker Folarin Balogun back on the field Tuesday after FIFA decided to put his red card suspension on hold, opening the door for him to play in the round of 16 match against Belgium.

FIFA announced the decision in a statement on its website Sunday. The organization pointed to a rule that let it pause the automatic one-game ban, putting Balogun on a kind of probation for the next year instead of sitting him out.

The U.S. plays Belgium at 1:00 a.m. WAT Tuesday in Seattle. A win would send the Americans to their first World Cup quarterfinal since 2002.

Balogun was sent off in the 64th minute of the U.S.'s 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina on Thursday, after stepping on defender Tarik Muharemović during a challenge for the ball. He had scored the game's opening goal just before halftime.

U.S. Soccer said in a statement that it respects the ruling and is glad Balogun can take part in Tuesday's game, adding that the team's focus is now on Belgium and the fans backing them.

Balogun spoke to reporters Friday, before the ruling came down, and said the red card felt harsh. He argued that some things happen in the middle of a physical battle for the ball that can't really be helped, and that context should count for something when a play gets reviewed.

He hasn't commented publicly since the suspension was lifted, though he did post a photo on Instagram without any caption shortly after the news broke.

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A post shared by @balogun

President Donald Trump also jumped into the story, posting on his social media site Truth Social to thank FIFA for what he called fixing "a great injustice."

USA-USA-USA 🦅 https://t.co/yKnJxew9tU pic.twitter.com/75KmExgrUJ

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 5, 2026

The comment drew attention partly because of Balogun's background. He was born in New York in 2001 after his British mother was kept from flying home late in her pregnancy. That gave him U.S. citizenship at birth, on top of citizenship in the U.K. and Nigeria, and he chose to play for the U.S. after being recruited by all three national teams.

Trump has spent much of his time in office pushing against birthright citizenship. Earlier in the week, the Supreme Court ruled against his administration's attempt to limit it, and Trump responded by calling on Congress to pass new legislation ending the practice.

His praise for FIFA also comes against the backdrop of his friendly ties with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who handed Trump a newly created FIFA Peace Prize last year.