'Infantino should be ashamed': Wayne Rooney fumes as FIFA overturns Folarin Balogun's red card ahead of RO16 clash vs Belgium

In a series of interesting events, FIFA has revoked Folarin Balogun's suspension, which makes him available to represent USA in their Round of 16 game against Belgium on Tuesday, July 7 at the Seattle Stadium in Seattle. The decision was taken under Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary code after the governing body checked the red card on Balogun during USA's 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Notably, this is the second instance in the history of the FIFA World Cup when a red card has been overturned.

How Donald Trump played a rolse in Balogun's red card removal?

As per several reports, the decision was an outcome of a series of calls made by US President Donald Trump to FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The decision to overturn Balogun's red card has faced harsh criticism from the entire footballing community, as many believe it is the murder of sportsmanship.

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In an interaction with BBC Sport, the former England skipper Wayne Rooney has slammed the FIFA President Gianni Infantino for overturning the red card while drawing a parallel with his example. The former England forward was handed a three-game ban just before the UEFA Euro 2012 and suggested that steps could have been taken to deal with Balogun's case.

"I think it’s an absolute disgrace, I really do. I know it’s UEFA, but I got a three-game ban before Euro 2012. I was due to miss the three group games and I was told if I went over to Switzerland and did a training session with a bunch of kids, my third game would be taken off. I agreed to do it because I didn’t want a three-game ban, but I thought that was wrong," said Rooney.

While continuing, Rooney suggested that the red card should have been taken away but suspending it for a year is totally unfair to the sportsmanship of the game. Before concluding, the former Manchester United star said that the FIFA President should feel ashamed of this act done by him.

"For this to be suspended, they either take the red card away, which is probably the right decision, and then he can play. But to suspend it for a year? I think it’s an absolute disgrace. Infantino should be ashamed of this,” concluded Rooney.

How has Folarin Balogun performed so far in the FIFA World Cup 2026?

The USA striker Florian Balogun has been in top-notch form in the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026, as the forward has managed to smash three goals in three outings for his side.

Currently, he is the top scorer for the USMNT in the ongoing edition of the tournament, surpassing Landon Danovan's 2010 record of scoring two goals. Now, he is chasing Bert Patenaude, who scored four goals for the USMNT in the inaugural 1930 World Cup.