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WASHINGTON — The Belgians aren’t waffling about this.
The Brussels government blasted international soccer’s governing body FIFA Monday after it cleared the way for star US striker Folarin Balogun to face Belgium in the World Cup’s round of 16.
“As a former football referee, I have always been committed to upholding the rules and ensuring decisions are fair. This decision clearly raises many questions,” Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot fumed to Politico.
Brooklyn-born Balogun received a red card in the second half of the 2-0 US victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32 July 1, a sanction that typically carries a one-match ban.
However, US Soccer maintained that Brazilian referee Raphael Claus and the video assistant referee, Juan Soto of Veneuzela, improperly applied replay protocols to punish Balogun.
The controversy even reached President Trump, who called FIFA boss Gianni Infantino for an explanation of Balogun’s penalty.
On Sunday, FIFA announced that Balogun’s one-match ban had been suspended for one year, freeing the striker to play in Monday night’s game in Seattle.
The rare disciplinary decision boosted the US, who would reach the quarterfinals of the world’s biggest sporting event for the first time since 2002 with a win.
“If it really was a phone call [by Trump] that led to this incomprehensible decision, that would amount to undermining the most basic rules of football and sport,” added Prevot.
Early Monday, the Royal Belgian Football Association confirmed it was appealing FIFA’s decision, saying it had “no alternative.”
“Regardless of the sporting outcome of this match, the RBFA is deeply concerned by the course of events and will continue to fight in the coming hours, days and months in defence of the fundamental principles of ethics, fair competition, and the interests of football as a whole,” the group said in a statement.
The appeal will be heard by a FIFA member who does not represent a country in either the European or North American, Central American and Caribbean soccer federations — with no guarantee the issue will be settled before kickoff.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever took a more whimsical approach to the controversy, posting an image of his cat saying in a cartoon bubble: “Red card? I’ll play anyway.”
Belgium’s coach Rudi Garcia joked during a press conference Sunday in response to the ruling: “I didn’t know that July 5 here is the same as April 1 in Europe. That’s new to me.”
While rare, a FIFA decision to suspend a red card ban is not unpredecented.
Most notably, Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo had two matches on his three-match ban suspended after he was sent off for elbowing Ireland’s Dara O’Shea during a qualifying match in November, freeing him up to play all of his country’s group games.
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