American team player Barlogon's red card suspension has been delayed, which has stirred up public outrage among European countries.
On July 6 local time, the European Commission stated: “We respect the autonomy of sports organizations and the FIFA’s right to decide on the competition standards for participants. However, any such decisions should clearly be based on objective and transparent criteria. We support the principles of fair competition and transparent competition.”
European News Network pointed out that the European Commission's involvement in football matches is 'extremely rare'. Although the spokesperson refused to comment on individual cases, this statement can be seen as a subtle criticism of FIFA's decision.
According to reports, Glen Mickalev, the European Commission official in charge of sports affairs, condemned the decision even more harshly, calling it ‘wrong’.
"My stance has always been clear: the authority to make decisions about sporting rules and affairs belongs to sports organizations, not politicians," Mikalev wrote on social media. "Interfering in sports decision-making will harm the autonomy of sports. We should focus our efforts on the real governance challenges facing sports, including weaponizing sports for political purposes."
Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao commented that as the geopolitical tensions between the US and Europe have intensified, the FIFA Federation allowed American forward Barrogo to postpone his suspension after President Trump's intervention, leading to further escalation of tensions between the US and Europe.
On the 6th local time, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken stated that the U.S. might discuss the incident involving the red card given to American players at the NATO meeting on the 7th, with allies including Belgium being involved.
The involved American player, Barlogon, Oriental IC
On July 2nd, in the semifinal match between the United States team and Bosnia and Herzegovina team, Barrogon was sent off with a red card for trampling on the ankle of opposing player Tarik Muharemojić. According to the rules, Barrogon will be automatically suspended and will miss the next game of his team.
On the 5th, FIFA announced that American player Fularin Balongon, who was sent off with a red card during the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, will be suspended for one match. However, the suspension will be postponed by one year. This means that Balongon will be able to play in the World Cup quarter-final match against Belgium.
On the 6th, U.S. President Donald Trump stated in the Oval Office that he had personally asked Infantino to review the suspension of Barologon. “What I did was request a review. I didn’t say ‘you must do this’.”
International Football Federation President Gianni Infantino spoke with Trump on the same day, but insisted that the FIFA's judicial body is independent.
Trump met with Infantino at the White House; video screenshot
But Euro News Network said that FIFA's decision sparked widespread indignation and quickly dominated European news headlines and political discussions.
UEFA severely criticized this decision, calling it "unprecedented, incomprehensible, and unreasonable."
Especially in Belgium, where the FIFA headquarters are located, public anger is even stronger. The Belgian Football Association said they are “shocked” by this decision and have formally questioned Balotrogno’s qualification to compete. Meanwhile, Belgium’s Prime Minister De Vlaembeeck and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pervo both expressed doubts about this decision, arguing that it violates the principle of fairness.
According to the American newspaper The New York Times, on July 6 local time, the FIFA Appeal Committee ruled that the appeal filed by the Belgian Football Federation regarding the temporary exemption of Balongon from sanctions was ‘inadmissible’. FIFA explained in a statement that the Belgian Football Federation is not a party to the matter, and therefore has no right to appeal against this decision.
According to statistics, since the introduction of the red and yellow card system during the 1970 World Cup, no player has ever continued playing in the next World Cup match after receiving a red card. Balotrogno could become the first player to continue playing after being sent off in a World Cup match.
