The Royal Belgian Football Association, RBFA, has expressed disappointment over FIFA’s decision to declare United States forward Folarin Balogun eligible for Monday’s( Today) match against Belgium, despite the player receiving a red card earlier in the tournament.
In an official statement on X, the RBFA said FIFA based its decision on Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, which allows the Disciplinary Committee to suspend enforcement of a previously imposed sanction. However, the Belgian federation argued that Article 66.4 of the same code “clearly provides that a red card automatically results in a suspension for the team’s next match,” as has been applied for all previous sendings-off at the FIFA World Cup.
The RBFA further cited Article 10.5 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Competition Regulations, which states: “If a player or team official is sent off as a result of a direct or indirect red card, they will automatically be suspended from their team’s subsequent match. In addition, further sanctions may be imposed.” The federation noted that the automatic nature of the suspension was also reaffirmed in FIFA World Cup 2026 Circular No. 16, distributed to all participating associations on 12 May 2026, and repeated at every Match Coordination Meeting and workshop.
“The decision is in direct contradiction with the provisions of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Competition Regulations,” the statement read. Belgium faces the United States on Monday, 6 July at 5:00 p.m. Seattle time, in a match where Balogun’s availability has now become a major talking point.
To safeguard the rights of participating teams and protect fair play, the RBFA said it “is investigating all potential options” in response to the ruling. The federation warned that the precedent could have implications for this World Cup and future editions of the tournament.
The United States’ World Cup campaign took an extraordinary turn when FIFA made the unprecedented decision to suspend Folarin Balogun’s automatic red-card ban, clearing the striker to face Belgium in the July 6 last-16 clash after US President Donald Trump personally urged FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review the case
