Jurgen Klopp has reacted with disbelief after FIFA revoked USA striker Folarin Balogun’s one-game suspension to allow him to play against Belgium in the Round of 16.

Balgoun was given his marching orders in the United States’ 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the last round for a ‘serious foul’ on Tarik Muharemovic, which meant he was supposed to be missing for the next game.

However, FIFA announced on Sunday that the Monaco star will be able to play after they invoked Article 27 to suspend his ban for up to one year on a probation, sparking fury across the sport, with the Belgium FA confirming they were seeking legal advice on the matter.

Klopp Blasts Infantino and Trump for Involvement

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

GIVEMESPORT sources reported that Donald Trump and The White House made a call to FIFA to get them to review the red card, with US lawyers putting together a case that included disputing the use of slow motion replays.

Belgium’s FA released a statement stating that they were ‘astonished’ by the decision, with FIFA’s own ruleset stating that there is no appeal process for red cards during the tournament and that all referee decisions on the pitch are final.

Now Klopp, who looks set to take over as the next Germany manager following Julian Nagelsmann’s resignation after they were eliminated in the Round of 32 on penalties against Paraguay, has gone viral for his thoughts on the situation.

“If Trump and Infantino really sorted this out between themselves, that’s crazy, it calls everything into question,” he said, as relayed by Yahoo Sports.

“Let’s just say: this is our game, not theirs. These two people, who both have no idea about football, should have nothing to do with that. That was a red card. There’s no two ways about it. We’re sorry for Balogun because he didn’t mean to do it. But that’s what the rules say.

“There really aren’t two opinions about it. If that’s really what happened, there is still the possibility that the USA won’t play him anyway because they say, ‘We don’t want it like this.’

“We all suffer from wrong decisions. Even so, we all learn over the course of life to live with them. And this is simply a decision on a matter of fact.”

Klopp Joins Fury Over FIFA Decision

REUTERS/Hannah Mckay

Klopp’s words show that there is clear anger about the decision to allow Balogun to play in the next round, despite his red card, and he isn’t the only one to vent publicly.

Ian Wright described the decision as ‘shameful’, while Wayne Rooney described it as a ‘disgrace’ and said that it brought the sportsmanship of the game into question.

The USA are obviously delighted that their top attacker in this tournament will be able to help them chase a quarter-final spot in the tournament, but there will now be a major stain on that achievement if they are successful as a result of this farce.

Folarin Balogun’s availability for the United States of America for the World Cup clash against Belgium has sparked controversy in world football.

The former Arsenal striker was dismissed in the Round of 32 win against Bosnia & Herzegovina after finding the net earlier in the same match. However, the red card caused outrage among US supporters, as Balogun appeared to accidentally land on his opponent’s ankle.

While it was widely seen as the wrong decision by the referee and VAR on the day, the way the ban has now been suspended for a year hasn’t gone down well.

FIFA denied the US government played any part in the decision, but it has become public knowledge that a call was made from the White House.

Trump Admin Brought in ‘Expert Lawyers’ For Balogun Case

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

It has now been claimed that White House officials were a bit more involved than anyone is admitting. In fact, OutKick’s Clay Travis has reported that Trump’s administration took legal steps to ensure the striker would be available for the next game.

That involved gathering ‘expert lawyers’ to present evidence to FIFA. Their biggest argument was that slow-motion replays violated rules set by football’s governing body.

Travis posted on X: “President Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and White House task force head Andrew Giuliani put together a team of elite lawyers — from outside the government — to challenge the Flo Balogun red card.”

He then added that Trump even alerted Gianni Infantino that the appeal was filed and let him know his feelings on the matter. Although it is still maintained that FIFA’s independent committee made the final call:

US President Thanked FIFA For Balogun Ban Decision

Mandel Ngan via Reuters

Immediately after Sunday’s news broke that Mauricio Pochettino would have his star striker available for the last-16 tie against Belgium, the country’s president was quick to post a social media message.

Trump thanked FIFA ‘for doing what was right’. Doing so only fuelled the outcry that something suspicious may have happened behind the scenes between known friends Trump and Infantino.

The 80-year-old posted: “Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”

Wayne Rooney has torn into FIFA president Gianni Infantino, telling him he should be “ashamed of himself” for the decision to suspend Folarin Balogun’s red card ban for a year.

The USA striker, who has impressed at his home World Cup, scoring three goals and providing one assist in the three matches he has played thus far, was sent off against Bosnia & Herzegovina in the round of 32 match last week.

Balogun was initially not sent off, but after a VAR review, referee Raphael Claus deemed it to have been serious foul play, with the replays showing the striker planted his studs down the back of Tarik Muharemovic’s achilles and turning his ankle.

Balogun felt red card decision was harsh

Carlos Barria via Action Images via Reuters

It was an innocuous incident, with Balogun clearly showing no intent as he vied for the ball, trying simply to plant his foot in the ground as he challenged for possession, but the rules are clear and the incident did not look good when watched back.

Speaking after the game, Balogun said: “I think as you all saw, if there’s nowhere else to put your leg, it’s going to be unavoidable. I’ve seen many different opinions and takes, but, for me personally, I think a yellow card would have been fair.”

Balogun was expected to miss the USA’s round of 16 clash with Belgium as a result of the sending off, but FIFA have suspended the ban for a year, with US president Donald Trump thanking them for “doing what was right”.

It is understood that Trump lobbied FIFA to lift the ban. FIFA have stated that the ban was suspended “in line with Article 27 of the FIFA disciplinary code, which allows it to suspend red cards so long as the discipline is not related to match-fixing”.

Speaking on the BBC, Rooney could not believe the decision.

He said: “I think it’s an absolute disgrace, I really do. I know it was UEFA but I got a three-game ban before Euro 2012 so I was due to miss the three group games and I got asked, or basically told that if I go over to Switzerland and do a training session with a bunch of kids the third game gets taken off.

“I agreed to do it because I didn’t want the three-game ban but I thought it was wrong. But for this to be suspended, they either take the red card away, which I think is probably the right decision and then he can play but to suspend it for a year I think is an absolute disgrace.

Rooney takes aim at FIFA president

REUTERS/Henry Romero

“Infantino should be ashamed of this because I think the sportsmanship of this game is in question here and if I’m one of the USA’s opponents I would be absolutely fuming, I think it’s wrong in every way.”

Belgium were fuming, with a statement reading: “The Royal Belgian Football Association is astonished by FIFA’s decision to declare suspended United States player Folarin Balogun eligible to play in the USA-Belgium match on Monday.

“In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options.”