2026 World Cup: USMNT striker Folarin Balogun available vs. Belgium after red card ban suspended

US Men’s National Team striker Folarin Balogun will be available for the team’s match against Belgium on Monday night, per The Athletic and confirmed by Yahoo Sports . Balogun was not expected to be available after receiving a red card in the U.S.’s win over Bosnia-Herzegovina. The striker was trying to make a play for the ball against defender Tarik Muharemovic, but was called for a foul that was reviewed. This play is being reviewed for a potential red card against the US pic.twitter.com/EdyPpgpycA — FOX Sports (@FOXSports) July 2, 2026 Upon review, which when slowed down showed Balogun clearly stepping on the defender’s ankle, he was shown a red card and sent off early in the second half of the match against Bosnia-Herzegovina. The red card came automatically accompanied by a one-game suspension, per Article 10.5 of FIFA’s World Cup rules . The Athletic also reported that after the match, multiple FIFA officials said teams were unable to appeal red cards or the resulting suspensions. Just a few days later, Balogun’s suspension has been…suspended. The reasoning likely lies within Article 27 of FIFA’s code of discipline . “The judicial body may decide to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure. If the person benefiting from a suspended sanction commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked by the judicial body and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.” FIFA released a statement about the ruling. “By operation of Article 27 FDC, the implementation of the automatic match suspension for USA player Folarin Balogun is suspended for a probationary period of one (1) year.” Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo faced a similar situation last year for this World Cup. He received a red card in his team’s qualifier against the Republic of Ireland. He was initially given a three-match ban for the incident. It was then shortened to the final Portugal qualifier and a “one-year probationary period.” This story will be updated.