'Justice,' Folarin Balogun's Red-Card Controversy Addressed by Belgium's Raskin After Win vs. USMNT

Belgium's 4-1 victory over Team USA in the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Monday night featured some extra enthusiasm from the winning side amid the controversy of Folarin Balogun being allowed to play.

After the win, Belgian midfielder Nicolas Raskin said "justice" prevailed on the scoreboard.

"There's always a justice somewhere in life," Raskin said. "The fact that something happened like that, we don't think that was fair. And today, I think it just brings us a little bit of (motivation) that we needed to win the game."

Balogun was initially going to be suspended for the match after receiving a red card in the 64th minute of the United States' 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1.

The red card itself was the subject of controversy because the contact Balogun made with Bosnia's Tarik Muharemovic appeared to be incidental, but VAR's determination was it rose to the level of being a dangerous play and recommended a referee review.

ESPN's Mark Ogden reported the following day that the U.S. had "no route" to appeal the red card and FIFA's disciplinary panel was reviewing the play to determine if it warranted more than the automatic one-game suspension.

FIFA clarified on July 3 that Balogun would not receive additional discipline and he would be eligible to play in the quarterfinals if the United States defeated Belgium.

Then on Sunday, FIFA announced Balogun would be eligible to play against Belgium. FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement the organization's disciplinary committee made the decision independently after a review of the play.

The Royal Belgian Football Association filed an appeal of the decision that was denied.

Balogun, who was Team USA's leading scorer with three goals, was in the starting lineup and played 89 minutes against Belgium. He finished with three shot attempts (one on goal), but failed to score in the loss.

Charles De Ketelaere led the way for the Belgian squad with two goals. Hans Vanaken and Romelu Lukaku also scored in the win to send the team to the quarterfinals where they will take on Spain.

The four goals allowed by the United States matched its total from the first three World Cup matches combined. Team USA has not advanced beyond the Round of 16 at the World Cup since 2002.