UEFA slams FIFA’s ‘incomprehensible’ U-turn over Balogun red card at World Cup

UEFA has launched an extraordinary attack on FIFA, branding the decision to overturn Folarin Balogun’s red card as “incomprehensible” and warning that a “red line” has been crossed at this summer’s World Cup.

European football’s governing body took aim at Gianni Infantino’s organisation after FIFA suspended the automatic one-match ban that follows a red card, allowing the USA forward to be available for the tournament fixture against Belgium. The reversal came after lobbying from US President Donald Trump, according to the Daily Record.

The unprecedented U-turn has caused uproar across the game, with even former FIFA president Sepp Blatter publicly criticising the move. UEFA has now gone further than any previous public rebuke of its global counterpart, rejecting suggestions that the decision complies with FIFA’s own disciplinary code.

UEFA accuses FIFA of undermining the rules

In a statement, UEFA said: “Yesterday’s decision to suspend for a probationary period of a year the implementation of the one-match automatic suspension following the red card issued to the player Folarin Balogun crossed a red line.”

The statement continued: “Football, like any other sports, relies on rules, which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition. Sometimes rules are open to interpretation. In this case not. A minimum automatic suspension of one match following a red card is not a discretionary option and does not require the decision of a competent body to be enacted. It is a principle embedded in regulations, which cannot be made subject to exceptions, let alone in the middle of a tournament where several other players have been in the same situation and regularly served their suspension.”

UEFA went on to warn of the wider consequences for the tournament, arguing the ruling now sets a precedent that could force officials to treat future red cards inconsistently. “When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined,” the statement read. “Equally, such decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition.”

‘Unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable’

UEFA’s statement concluded with a direct appeal to football’s global reputation, insisting the sport’s popularity is built on consistent laws applied everywhere. “Football is the most loved sport in the world because it is a beautiful game and is trusted because it is played everywhere with the same laws,” it said. “A tournament is never a pure standalone and, if the tournament in question is the World Cup, it has the power to drive positive or negative consequences on the game as a whole. We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”

The row marks one of the most public clashes between UEFA and FIFA in recent memory, coming in the middle of a World Cup already dominated by refereeing controversy. England boss Thomas Tuchel has previously voiced frustration at FIFA’s handling of disciplinary matters during the tournament.

Read more: Tuchel blasts FIFA over Balogun U-turn: ‘Where does this end?’

FIFA has yet to respond publicly to UEFA’s statement, but the intervention is likely to intensify scrutiny of Infantino’s leadership as the tournament continues.