A day after the Belgian Football Association strongly reacted to the controversy, UEFA also broke its silence. In a sharply worded statement released on Monday, European football’s governing body criticized FIFA’s decision to suspend the enforcement of the red card shown to United States forward Folarin Balogun during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, arguing that it undermines the integrity and credibility of the tournament.
FIFA has " crossed a red line " by suspending the automatic sanction attached to Balogun’s red card, UEFA said, describing the move as " unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable. "
" Football, like any other sports, relies on rules, which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition. Sometimes rules are open to interpretation. In this case not, " UEFA said in one of its strongest public statements in recent years.
Without referring to the phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and FIFA president Gianni Infantino—confirmed to AFP by two sources familiar with the matter—UEFA instead focused on the regulations themselves.
" A minimum automatic suspension of one match following a red card is not a discretionary option and does not require the decision of a competent body to be enacted, " the organization stressed.
Balogun was sent off during the United States’ round-of-32 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina after stepping on defender Tarik Muharemović’s leg while landing from a jump. Speaking to reporters on Friday, the striker said the red card was something he simply had to " accept. "
According to UEFA, Balogun’s suspension for the round-of-16 match against Belgium is " a principle embedded in regulations, which cannot be made subject to exceptions, let alone in the middle of a tournament where several other players have been in the same situation and regularly served their suspension."
" When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined. Equally, such decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition, " UEFA added.
