The World Cup campaign of the USA football team took an extraordinary turn on Sunday when FIFA seemingly broke with its own rules to allow star player Folarin Balogun to face Belgium in Monday’s last 16 clash – despite receiving a red card in the Round of 32 match against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday.
The global football body announced that it had suspended the red card — which had meant an automatic one-match ban — after United States President Donald Trump urged FIFA chief Gianni Infantino to review the case.
The FIFA decision prompted criticism from Belgium’s football association, Europe’s top football body, a former FIFA boss, multiple top former players and many others. Critics argued that overturning a red card suspension after direct political intervention undermined the integrity of the tournament and set a dangerous precedent.
On Monday evening, the Belgian football association also accused FIFA of effectively killing any chance for it to challenge the global sports body’s decision.
Source: Websites