Belgium Appeals FIFA Eligibility Ruling for USMNT's Balogun

The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) has appealed FIFA's decision to allow U.S. Men's National Team (USMNT) striker Folarin Balogun to play in the upcoming World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium. The appeal, filed less than 12 hours before the game, challenges Balogun's eligibility.

The RBFA stated that it had "no alternative but to challenge" the ruling. The association further claims that FIFA "deliberately removed the section concerning the automatic suspension of players from its (pre-match) presentation," a section that had reportedly been included in all prior match presentations.

According to the RBFA, the organization questioned FIFA about this change both orally and in writing but received no response. Belgium was granted the right to appeal, with both parties required to submit documentation by Monday morning ahead of a hearing by a FIFA appeals committee member.

Prior to submitting its appeal, the RBFA sought a full explanation from FIFA regarding the "process" and "applicable regulations" but claims it did not receive one. Instead, FIFA reportedly sent a letter stating that the RBFA's correspondence constituted an appeal, a judge had been appointed, and the RBFA had only a few hours to complete the appeal, without providing further information. The RBFA contends that FIFA's own regulations require the reasoned decision to be communicated to the appellant for an appeal to be admissible, suggesting FIFA created the appeal to have it declared inadmissible.

The RBFA has been exploring all potential options to contest FIFA's decision, stating its actions are to safeguard the "legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play."

Belgium's coach, Rudi Garcia, publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the situation, remarking, "I didn’t know that July 5 was equal to April 1 at FIFA." UEFA, European soccer's governing body, also commented, calling FIFA's decision to allow Balogun to play "unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable" and stating it "crossed a red line."