Belgium Challenges Folarin Balogun Eligibility: 'Deeply Concerned' About Process

Despite being issued a red card and a subsequent one-game suspension in the round of 32, USA star Folarin Balogun was cleared on Sunday to play in the team's round of 16 matchup against Belgium (Monday at 8 p.m. ET on FOX). That said, Belgium, which has officially challenged Balogun's eligibility, is determined to have the final word on the matter. "As its only response, FIFA sent a letter to the RBFA stating that it considered this correspondence to constitute an appeal, that a judge had been appointed, and that the RBFA had only a few hours to complete that appeal. No information whatsoever was provided by FIFA," the Royal Belgium Football Association said in a statement on Monday morning. "For an appeal to be admissible, FIFA’s own regulations state that the reasoned decision must first have been communicated to the appellant. While the RBFA was merely seeking legitimate explanations, FIFA itself created an appeal and immediately ensured that it would be declared inadmissible. All of this occurred while FIFA simultaneously refused to respond to the RBFA’s legitimate requests. "Furthermore, during the match coordination meeting, FIFA deliberately removed the section concerning the automatic suspension of players from its presentation. This topic had nonetheless been part of all such meetings before each of the previous four matches. The RBFA questioned FIFA, both orally and in writing, about the reasons for this change, yet once again received no response." As part of the statement, Belgium also stated it "still" has "not received any decision or any explanation from FIFA," has "no alternative but to challenge the player's eligibility for the upcoming match" and is "deeply concerned" about FIFA's process. Speaking on Balogun's revoked suspension on Sunday, Belgium manager Rudi Garcia expressed that he "didn't know the fifth of July corresponded to the first of April" in the "FIFA office." Balogun, who scored in the 45th minute of USA's round of 32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, was handed the red card in the 64th minute; he has scored a team-high three goals for Team USA in the 2026 World Cup.