A VAR expert has provided a strong verdict after USA forward Folarin Balogun was controversially shown a straight red card during the 2026 World Cup Round of 32 clash against Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday night.

Balogun, the former Arsenal and England youngster who currently plies his trade at club level for AS Monaco, put the USA 1-0 up on the stroke of half-time.

But he was left heartbroken midway through the second half when Brazilian referee Raphael Claus showed him a straight red card for a foul on Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic following a VAR review.

While the incident looked relatively innocuous in real time, slow-motion replays made the incident appear far more serious. “I think it is accidental, but that looks horrible,” BBC Sport commentator Jonathan Pearce said at the time. “I think there is only one outcome here.”

The referee then announced to the crowd: “The number 20, United States, committed a serious foul. The final decision is red card.” Watch the incident below:

Pochettino: It’s Never a Red Card

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Despite playing the final 25 minutes with 10 men, the USMNT secured an impressive 2-0 victory at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium, with Malik Tillman doubling the joint-hosts’ advantage late on.

The USA will now be without Balogun, their top scorer at this summer’s tournament with three goals, when they face Belgium in the last 16 on Monday night.

“For me it’s never a red card,” USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino said in his post-match press conference, per the Independent. “Watching after on TV… there was never intention to step on the player.

“I think today, the 50/50 decisions, not one went for us. The players reacted very well, we controlled that emotional part of the game, how they managed the situation was amazing, we were mature enough to continue competing.”

VAR Expert Casts Clear Verdict Over Balogun Red Card Decision

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Amid the intense debate over whether or not Balogun deserved a straight red card, VAR expert Andy Davies has provided a firm verdict in his ESPN column. Davies says:

He continued: “With both players challenging for ball, the contact from Balogun on Muharemovic, while it looked bad in slow motion, was purely accidental and an unfortunate result from two players challenging for possession of the ball in a normal football movement.”

Curiously, it’s suggested that a VAR protocol was broken with this particular review. Davies adds:

“Once at the screen, however, it would have been a surprise if the referee did not send off Balogun considering the pictures he was presented by VAR.”

Meanwhile, a FIFA official has confirmed to The Athletic that a team cannot appeal against a red card of subsequent suspension. The official pointed to its regulations and Article 66.4, which states: “A sending-off automatically incurs suspension from the subsequent match. The FIFA judicial bodies may impose additional match suspensions and other disciplinary measures.”

As a result, Balogun is currently ruled out of the Belgium fixture and could miss further games – provided the US reach the quarter-finals – should FIFA’s disciplinary committee choose to extend the suspension.

Roy Keane has given his verdict on who he expects to battle it out in the World Cup final after watching England reach the knockout rounds.

The tournament’s group stage concluded on Sunday (June 28th), and most of international football’s heavyweights advanced to the Round of 32. That included Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions, who won Group L and met DR Congo in their first knockout game.

England came from behind to beat the Congolese 2-1 on Wednesday courtesy of a Harry Kane brace. This came a day after France proved their worth as tournament favourites with a sensational 3-0 win over Sweden.

Keane Rules England out of World Cup Final

Thomas Tuchel via Reuters/Jim Rassol

Keane doesn’t expect England to reach the final on July 19th but he is backing France to compete in their third consecutive final. The former Manchester United midfielder gave a glowing verdict of Didier Deschamps’ Les Bleus while speaking on ITV:

“The French attacking players are as good as any. But then we saw that with Brazil. We’ve seen it with England’s main lads turning up against Panama.”

Keane has also been impressed by Argentina, whom Lionel Messi continues to captain and help make history for. The reigning world champions face Cape Verde in the Round of 32 on Friday:

Mike Segar via Action Images via Reuters

If France and Argentina were to meet in New York New Jersey Stadium later this month, it would be a repeat of the classic played out at the 2022 World Cup. Messi fired his nation to glory with a penalty shootout victory following a pulsating 3-3 draw over 120 minutes.

Kylian Mbappe is in red-hot form for the French, and he’ll be eyeing revenge for the heartbreaking defeat in Qatar. He’s battling Messi in the Golden Boot race with both sat on six goals.

Who France and Argentina Could Meet Ahead of Final

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France eased past Sweden in the Round of 32 and booked themselves a last-16 meeting with Paraguay on Saturday (July 4th). Deschamps’ men come up against one of the tournament’s surprise packages, who saw off Germany on penalties.

Should Les Bleus win, they will face the winners of Canada vs Morocco in the quarter-finals on July 9th. A semi-final meeting against one of Portugal, Croatia, Spain, Austria, the USA, Bosnia, Belgium or Senegal then awaits.

Argentina needs to beat Cape Verde to advance to the Round of 16, where they could face Australia or Egypt on July 7th. Should Lionel Scaloni’s men win that game, they’d face either Switzerland, Algeria, Colombia or Ghana in the quarter-finals on July 11th.

There is a chance the Argentines meet England in the semi-finals or even Brazil. Other possibilities include Mexico and Norway, who face the Three Lions and Selecao in their respective Round of 16 matches.

An apoplectic Thomas Tuchel lost his head at one of his England players during the nervy 2-1 comeback win over DR Congo.

The Three Lions needed Harry Kane to come up with a brace to beat the spirited African nation, who led for 75 minutes. Brian Cipenga gave the Congolese a shock lead in the seventh minute, and Tuchel’s men were poor during the first half.

Kane’s first goal came in the 75th minute when he met Anthony Gordon’s cross with a superb header. The Bayern Munich frontman then fired home an 86th-minute winner to send his country through to the last 16 of the World Cup where they meet Mexico on Monday.

England got the job done, but there are now widespread debates over who should start at the Azteca. Judging by Tuchel’s reaction during the game, he might be about to wield the axe on one of his starters.

England 2-1 DR Congo: Tuchel Furious With Spence

REUTERS/Peter Cziborra

With England chasing the game on the hour mark, frustration was written all over Tuchel’s face. He lost his temper at Djed Spence while shouting orders to the Tottenham Hotspur man.

Spence started the game at right-back due to the injury crisis, which has seen Tino Livramento withdraw from the squad. Reece James is unavailable due to a hamstring injury, limiting Tuchel’s options.

Tuchel opted to bring Spence off minutes after his angry outburst at the Spurs star, who is being used as a makeshift right-back. It’s raised doubts over the 25-year-old continuing in the starting lineup ahead of the trip to the Azteca to face Mexico.

You can watch the incident involving Tuchel and Spence below:

This isn’t the first time Tuchel has lost his patience with Spence, as he angrily ordered the full-back to ‘give and go’ in the 0-0 stalemate against Ghana. His decision to pick the Spurs defender in his 26-man squad caused debate before the tournament and there are now question marks over his place in the starting lineup.

England’s Right-Back Dilemma

Brett Davis via Action Images via Reuters

England headed into the tournament with two right-backs selected as Livramento and James made Tuchel’s 26-man squad. That’s despite the pair enduring recurring injuries in recent seasons and concerns about their fitness for the World Cup.

Tuchel claimed that nobody saw James’ hamstring injury coming, which surprised many English fans who are well aware of his injury record. The Chelsea captain rarely plays more than once a week for his club, and his injury is a massive blow.

Livramento withdrew ahead of the opening 4-2 win over Croatia due to a calf injury. Instead of calling up Trent Alexander-Arnold, Tuchel turned to Trevoh Chalobah, a decision that has proven costly.

Jarell Quansah is another option for Tuchel, as the Bayer Leverkusen centre-back can play at right-back. But he, too, missed the DR Congo win due to a twisted ankle sustained in the 2-0 win against Panama last Saturday.

Tuchel has a big decision to make for the encounter with Mexico on Monday and whether to continue with Spence at right-back. He opted to use Declan Rice in the position after bringing the Spurs man off in the second half today.