According to a FIFA announcement, Balogun is still eligible to play even though he had previously received a red card in the victory over Bosnia & Herzegovina in the 1/16 round. This decision immediately caused much controversy as this is a rare case at a World Cup.
In an official statement, the Belgian Football Association (RBFA) expressed surprise at FIFA's decision.
RBFA was extremely surprised when FIFA announced that Balogun, a player who is serving a suspension, is eligible to participate in the match between the USA and Belgium," the RBFA's announcement stated.
Coach Rudi Garcia of the Belgian national team also expressed his opinion at the pre-match press conference. He said that it is important to ensure fairness and integrity of the tournament, instead of just looking at the issue from the perspective of the interests of a team.
Explaining its decision, FIFA said that the suspension of execution was made based on Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. This clause allows the FIFA Disciplinary Committee to suspend the execution of a penalty that has been issued in some cases.
However, RBFA believes that the above decision is not in accordance with the current regulations of the 2026 World Cup.
According to Article 66.4 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, players receiving red cards will automatically be suspended in the next match. The same content is also stipulated in Article 10.5 of the 2026 World Cup Regulations, which clearly states that players or coaching staff members who are sent off due to direct or indirect red cards will not be allowed to participate in the team's next match.
RBFA said that this regulation was also reiterated in Circular No. 16 sent to member federations before the 2026 World Cup kicked off, and was also disseminated at tournament technical meetings.
To protect the legitimate rights of all participating teams as well as the basic principles of fairness in football, the RBFA is considering all possible options," the Belgian Football Federation affirmed.
The confrontation between the US and Belgium in the round of 16 is therefore predicted to attract attention not only because of professional factors but also because of controversies related to FIFA's decision.
