2026 World Cup: Belgium Ready to Take Action on the Balogun Case

FIFA’s decision to suspend Folarin Balogun’s ban, allowing the U.S. forward to play in the Round of 16 match against Belgium, has drawn a strong reaction from the Belgian Football Association (KBVB), which issued an official statement openly contesting the decision.

“The KBVB is dismayed by FIFA’s decision that the suspended U.S. player Balogun will nevertheless be allowed to play in the match between the United States and Belgium on Monday, July 6, at 5:00 p.m. (Seattle time),” the statement reads.

According to the Belgian federation, FIFA justified its decision by referring to Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, which grants the Disciplinary Committee the authority to suspend the enforcement of a sanction that has already been imposed. However, Belgium believes that this interpretation is incompatible with other applicable regulations.

“FIFA bases its decision on Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. The article states that the FIFA Disciplinary Committee may decide to suspend the application of a disciplinary measure previously adopted,” the statement continues. The KBVB then cites another provision of the same code. “Article 66.4 of the same FIFA Disciplinary Code, however, stipulates that a red card (expulsion) automatically results in a suspension for the next match. See what happened with all the other red cards in this FIFA World Cup”

The Belgian federation also emphasizes that the decision would conflict with the official regulations of the 2026 World Cup. “Notwithstanding the above, the decision directly contradicts the provisions of the 2026 FIFA World Cup regulations, as set forth in Article 10.5: “If a player or staff member is sent off following a direct or indirect red card (second yellow card), they will be automatically suspended for their team’s next match. In addition, further sanctions may be imposed.”

The statement also highlights that the principle of automatic suspension has been reiterated in all official communications addressed to participating federations. “The automatic nature of the suspension was also expressly reiterated in FIFA World Cup 2026 Circular No. 16, sent on May 12, 2026, to all participating federations. The rule is also reiterated at every ‘Match Coordination Meeting’ preceding the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches and in all presentations during the competition’s official workshops.” Finally, the Belgian Football Association announces that it does not intend to stop at verbal protests and that it will evaluate all possible courses of action. “To protect the legitimate rights of all participating countries and the principle of fair play, both in this and in future editions of the FIFA World Cup, the KBVB will continue to thoroughly examine this matter and is evaluating all possible options.”