Fifa overturned Folarin Balogun’s suspension on Sunday, and the United States striker became eligible for the knockout match against Belgium. The decision arrived on the eve of the game and put an England red card-style disciplinary reversal at the center of a World Cup dispute.
The Royal Belgian Football Association said it was astonished and said it was investigating all potential options to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and protect fair play. Rudi Garcia went further, calling Fifa’s move an April Fools’ Day joke and saying, “I didn’t know that 5 July was equal to 1 April [April Fools’ Day] at Fifa.”
Balogun Becomes Eligible
Balogun’s status changed immediately when Fifa reversed the suspension and declared him available. The timing mattered because Belgium had already prepared for a knockout match in which one player’s eligibility could change the match plan on short notice.
Garcia tied the issue to the Belgian federation’s response, saying, “The federation does not defend itself, it does not defend the national team – it defends football in general. It defends its integrity. It defends its ethics.”
Courtois Sees the Timing
Thibaut Courtois said the decision “surprises you a bit, especially because it’s the day before the game.” He added that the United States would have to be beaten on the field and that Belgium would have to do its work there.
“That’s a question for the football world, not for me as a player,” Courtois said when asked about the timing. He also said the Belgian group had to “win the game on the field” and that the side deserved it with its football.
Solbakken’s Article 27 View
Ståle Solbakken gave the sharpest rule-based objection after Norway’s 2-0 win over Brazil in the last 16. He said Fifa’s decision was “a big mistake” and argued that Balogun got a red card, VAR concluded it was a red card, and that a player is suspended for one game after such a dismissal.
His criticism went beyond the individual case. Solbakken said the ruling would hurt the World Cup and the United States, and warned that if the United States beat Belgium, the Belgians would always carry the issue with them.
Fifa’s use of Article 27 had already cleared Cristiano Ronaldo to start Portugal’s opening World Cup game after a November qualifier red card, and that history now sits beside Balogun’s reversal. Belgium’s federation has already put fair play and ethics at the front of its response; the next pressure point is whether the same rule path keeps producing arguments instead of clarity.
