'Crossed a red line': UEFA furious with FIFA's decision to hand Folarin Balogun reprieve

[p]FIFA's ruling, which came after the intervention of Donald Trump, permits [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/balgun-folarin/rVZLmUsU/"]Balogun[/a] to play in the co-hosts' last 16 match with [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/belgium/GbB957na/"]Belgium[/a] later [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/belgium-GbB957na/usa-fuitL4CF/?mid=xhRXm8PG"]on Monday[/a].[/p][p]"[b]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[/b]," read UEFA's statement.[/p][p]"[b]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[/b]."[/p][p]UEFA warned of the ramifications for the sport as a whole.[/p][p]"[b]Football is the most loved sport in the world because it is a beautiful game and is trusted because is played everywhere with the same laws[/b]," it said.[/p][p]"[b]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[/b].[/p][p]"[b]We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision[/b]."[/p][embed guid="3a6db20c-3de6-4df6-8192-ef82660bd0b1" url="https://x.com/UEFA/status/2074065860956729581" social-type="twitter" /][p]Balogun, who has scored three goals at the World Cup, had been set to miss the clash in Seattle after receiving a straight red card following a video review for stepping on a [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/bosnia-herzegovina/fqe7WYTr/"]Bosnia-Herzegovina[/a] defender's foot in the round-of-32 match the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/usa/fuitL4CF/"]US[/a] won [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/bosnia-herzegovina-fqe7WYTr/usa-fuitL4CF/?mid=A1Jughll"]2-0[/a].[/p][p]Under FIFA rules, a straight red card automatically triggers a one-game ban.[/p][p]Trump called FIFA chief Gianni Infantino asking him to review Balogun's punishment, two sources familiar with the matter told AFP.[/p][p]US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also publicly called for the card to be rescinded.[/p][p]The decision to suspend the ban was taken by FIFA's disciplinary committee.[/p][p]World football's governing body said Sunday the ban will now be suspended for a year, in a stunning move for which no specific explanation was offered.[/p][p]"Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.[/p][p]The Belgians were stupefied by the ruling.[/p][p]"I didn't know that at the FIFA World Cup, the 5th of July is now the 1st of April, and that it's April Fool's Day," Belgium coach Rudi Garcia told reporters.[/p][infobox id="4ccc1b10-d68f-4c97-bcf4-5e613c17c2e3" /]