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Balogun starts for USA against Belgium amid red card suspension controversy
07th July, 2026 02:29 AM
USA men’s national football team head coach Mauricio Pochettino has selected Folarin Balogun to start after FIFA suspended his one-match ban for receiving a red card against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
In a starting XI named on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, Pochettino included Balogun despite the red-card suspension controversy. This came even as the USA named the same starting XI for three different matches in a single World Cup for the second time.
USA XI: Freese; Dest, Richards, A Robinson, Ream, Freeman; Adams, McKennie, Tillman; Pulisic, Balogun.
Subs: Turner, Brady, Trusty, M Robinson, Arfsten, McKenzie, Scally, Reyna, Berhalter, Pepi, Aaronson, Wright, Weah, Zendejas.
Belgium Team news
On the other hand, Coach Rudi Garcia has made four changes to the starting XI that faced Senegal.
Most notably, Kevin de Bruyne is on the bench today, having started his last 37 appearances for Belgium, last coming on as a substitute against Italy in a 2021 Nations League match.
Amadou Onana, Nathan Ngoy, Dodi Lukebakio, and Nicolas Raskin replace Jeremy Doku, Arthur Theate, Hans Vanaken and De Bruyne.
Belgium XI: Courtois; Mechele, De Cuyper, Castagne, Ngoy; Tielemans, Raskin, Onana; Trossard, Lukebakio, De Ketelaere.
Subs: Lammens, Penders, Debast, Theate, Meunier, De Winter, Seys, Witsel, De Bruyne, Moreira, Vanaken, Saelemaekers, Lukaku, Doku, Fernandez-Pardo.
Trump controversy
Earlier, Trump confirmed he personally called FIFA President Gianni Infantino to complain about the controversial sending-off during the United States’ 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Following the high-profile call, FIFA’s disciplinary committee suspended Balogun’s mandatory one-match ban. This intervention cleared the three-goal star to play against Belgium on Monday, July 6, 2026, a move that has left football fans worldwide completely stunned.
“I didn’t know what the hell a red card was,” Trump told the press gathered at the White House. The American leader explained that the severity of the rule caught him completely off guard, adding, “When I found out, I said, ‘You got to be kidding.’”
He insisted his phone call to the game’s governing body was strictly about ensuring fair play for his team. “I asked for a review because I didn’t think it was a foul,” he explained.
