Full UEFA statement criticizing FIFA’s “incomprehensible” suspension of Balogun ban | OneFootball

Ollie Whitmore, Chief football news reporter

UEFA have laballed FIFA’s decision to suspend United States forward Folarin Balogun’s one-game ban “incomprehensible and unjustified” in an official statement.

The USMNT forward was sent off in their World Cup round of 16 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina for a foul on Tarik Muharemovic, but the 26-year-old’s suspension has been suspended for one year.

US President Donald Trump reportedly spoke with FIFA President Gianni Infantino about the ban, according to CBS, and later thanked him for “reversing a great injustice” in a post on Truth Social.

“In line with article 27 of the Fifa disciplinary code, the implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year,” world governing body FIFA said in a statement.

“If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.”

The Belgian Football Association – who the US play next in the quarter-finals – has said it is “astonished” by the decision and is exploring its options on how it will respond before the teams meet on Tuesday (01:00 BST).

FIFA did not give an official reason for the lifting of Balogun’s ban, citing their right to revoke the suspension under article 27 of their disciplinary code.

UEFA, European football’s governing body, has since released a statement in reaction to the decision. Here it is in full.

It reads: “Yesterday’s decision to suspend for a probationary period of a year the implementation of the one-match automatic suspension following the red card issued to the player Folarin Balogun crossed a red line.

“Football, like any other sports, relies on rules, which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition. Sometimes rules are open to interpretation. In this case not. A minimum automatic suspension of one match following a red card is not a discretionary option and does not require the decision of a competent body to be enacted.

“It is a principle embedded in regulations, which cannot be made subject to exceptions, let alone in the middle of a tournament where several other players have been in the same situation and regularly served their suspension.

“When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined. Equally, such decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition.

“Football is the most loved sport in the world because it is a beautiful game and is trusted because it is played everywhere with the same laws. A tournament is never a pure standalone and, if the tournament in question is the World Cup, it has the power to drive positive or negative consequences on the game as a whole.

“We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”

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