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The United States men’s national team earned arguably its biggest victory in recent history, but it came at quite a cost.
In the midst of its 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday night, Folarin Balogun, the team’s leading goal scorer in this World Cup, who found the back of the net in the first half, was handed a controversial red card.
In going for a loose ball, Balogun and an opponent got incidentally tangled up to the point where Balogun stepped on the opponent’s ankle, causing it to roll awkwardly. The video assistant referee (VAR) ordered the play to be looked at, and Balogun’s transgressions were deemed “serious” enough for the red card.
The red card meant that not only was Balogun ejected from the game and the USA was forced to play the rest of the match with 10 people, but Balogun will also miss the team’s Round of 16 match against Belgium on Monday.
Almost immediately, the outcry over the red card was extreme, and fans were hoping for some sort of appeal process to take place, but it does not exist.
Article 9.6 of the 2026 World Cup regulations reads, “No protests may be made about the referee’s decisions regarding facts connected with play. Such decisions are final and not subject to appeal, unless otherwise stipulated in the FIFA Disciplinary Code.”
“If a player or team official is sent off as a result of a direct or indirect red card (second caution), they will automatically be suspended from their team’s subsequent match,” Article 10.5 states.
In fact, punishments can only increase. For example, Qatar midfielder Assim Madibo was suspended for five games after breaking the leg of Canada’s Ismaël Koné. While it’s unlikely in Balogun’s case, it actually isn’t off the table.
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There are many different opinions out there as to whether VAR was applied to the situation properly, but unfortunately for the United States, it can simply be used to determine whether a red card should be given out. And ultimately, after looking at the footage, the decision is up to the head referee, although the referee can receive input from the video assistant referee and/or other officials.
The International Football Association Board states that slow-motion replay should generally be avoided in VAR, but it could be used to determine “facts, e.g. position of offence/player, point of contact for physical offences and handball, ball out of play (including goal/no goal); normal speed should be used for the ‘intensity’ of an offence or to decide if it was a handball offence.” So, this incident may fall under the “physical offences” portion of that bylaw.
And ultimately, according to the IFAB, “Any player who lunges at an opponent in challenging for the ball from the front, from the side or from behind using one or both legs, with excessive force or endangers the safety of an opponent is guilty of serious foul play.”
So, despite it not looking like Balogun had any ill intent, it is the unfortunate, unlucky hand the USMNT has been dealt. The United States will have no choice but to find a replacement for someone who has probably been in its best player in what is now perhaps the most important game in United States soccer history.
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The United States is favored ever so slightly to defeat Belgium on Monday night in Seattle, but the odds undoubtedly have taken a hit.
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