Folarin Balogun: Ban reversal caused ‘a lot of outside noise, and that’s hard to avoid’

US striker’s red card was suspended after Trump calls Fifa president accused of breaching neutrality rules The United States striker Folarin Balogun has revealed he predicted Donald Trump’s involvement in overturning his World Cup suspension would “cause a lot of controversy”. The Monaco forward was sent off with a red card in the United States’ round-of-32 meeting with Bosnia and Herzegovina, but Fifa’s disciplinary committee then suspended the one-match ban for a year, allowing Balogun to participate in the Americans’ last-16 loss to Belgium. Continue reading...

PA Media · Tue, Jul 14, 2026, 9:06 AM
US news | The Guardian

Folarin Balogun: Ban reversal caused ‘a lot of outside noise, and that’s hard to avoid’

US striker’s red card was suspended after Trump calls
Fifa president accused of breaching neutrality rules

The United States striker Folarin Balogun has revealed he predicted Donald Trump’s involvement in overturning his World Cup suspension would “cause a lot of controversy”.

The Monaco forward was sent off with a red card in the United States’ round-of-32 meeting with Bosnia and Herzegovina, but Fifa’s disciplinary committee then suspended the one-match ban for a year, allowing Balogun to participate in the Americans’ last-16 loss to Belgium.

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