In a major boost for the United States ahead of their FIFA World Cup round-of-16 match against Belgium, forward Folarin Balogun will be available after FIFA suspended his one-match ban on Sunday.Balogun, the USA’s leading scorer in the tournament with three goals, had received a red card during the Americans’ 2-0 round-of-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday after stepping on the foot of Tarik Muharemović.His suspension meant he was set to miss Tuesday’s knockout match against Belgium, but FIFA’s disciplinary committee overturned that decision under Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.According to FIFA, the suspension has been put on hold for a probationary period of one year. If Balogun commits another offence of a similar nature during that period, the suspension will be restored and he will have to serve the one-match ban, along with any punishment for the new offence.“The implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year,” FIFA announced Sunday. “If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.”The United States Soccer Federation welcomed the decision and confirmed that Balogun will be available for the Belgium game.“We accept the decision of the disciplinary committee and are pleased that Folarin Balogun is eligible to compete tomorrow,” US Soccer said in a statement. “Our full attention is focused on the Round of 16 match against Belgium in Seattle, and we look forward to the continued support of our amazing fans.”FIFA has previously used the same Article 27 provision to allow Cristiano Ronaldo to play in Portugal’s opening match of the World Cup after his red card against the Republic of Ireland.The United States are aiming to reach the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time since 2002. Since then, they have been knocked out in the round of 16 by Ghana in 2010, Belgium in 2014 and the Netherlands in 2022. The Americans also exited in the group stage in 2006 and failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
