Norway considers formal complaint to Fifa over Balogun red card incident

By Harry Sutton — 23 July 2026 — 3 min read

The Norwegian Football Federation is considering filing a formal complaint with Fifa‘s ethics committee regarding the decision to suspend Folarin Balogun‘s automatic one-match ban during the World Cup. This follows an intervention by US President Donald Trump, which allowed Balogun to play in a match he was otherwise expected to miss.

Folarin Balogun, a forward for the United States, was shown a straight red card during his side’s 2-0 victory against Bosnia-Herzegovina. This would typically have resulted in him missing the subsequent last-16 tie against Belgium. However, his one-match ban was suspended, with no specific reason provided beyond a general rule allowing for the suspension of punishments. Balogun subsequently started the match against Belgium, which the Belgian team won 4-1.

Lise Klaveness, president of the NFF, stated that the federation reacted with “strong concern.” A decision on whether to proceed with a complaint will be made at the NFF‘s next board meeting, which is likely scheduled for 6 August. Klaveness indicated that the Balogun case is appropriate to include in an existing inquiry to Fifa‘s ethics committee, which was initiated before the World Cup concerning Fifa‘s “peace prize” awarded during a draw in Washington.

Concerns over external influence

The NFF‘s consideration of a complaint stems from the belief that the verdict regarding Balogun’s ban was influenced by external forces. President Trump confirmed that he spoke with Fifa president Gianni Infantino, requesting a review of Balogun’s one-match ban. Trump later stated that Fifa had made a “great decision” by suspending the ban. He described the red card call as “horrible” and took credit for prompting Fifa to review what would typically be a routine one-game ban.

Klaveness, a lawyer and judge, expressed worry about compromising fundamental rules of the game. She noted that bending such a rule could put the entire game at risk and stated that such a ruling was unprecedented in the past 60 years of World Cups. She emphasized the need for Fifa‘s leader to acknowledge that an error occurred.

The Royal Belgian Football Federation also voiced its deep concern regarding the turn of events, stating its intention to “fight… in defence of the fundamental principles of ethics, fair competition, and the interests of football as a whole.” Fifa, however, ruled Belgium‘s request for an explanation of the suspended red card as “inadmissible,” meaning it had no grounds for appeal. Uefa, the governing body for European football, described Fifa‘s actions as having “crossed a red line” and characterized the decision as “unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable.”

Broader ethics inquiries

This is not the first time the NFF has raised concerns regarding Fifa‘s ethical conduct. The federation previously joined a complaint to the Fifa ethics committee alleging that Infantino breached a statutory duty of political neutrality. This complaint included the creation of a peace prize awarded to President Trump at the World Cup draw in December.

Reports also suggest that the International Olympic Committee could investigate Gianni Infantino, who has been an IOC member since 2020. Section two of the Olympic Charter specifies that IOC members should not accept mandates or instructions from governments or other parties that could interfere with their freedom of action and vote. A human rights NGO, FairSquare, has also filed an ethics complaint with the IOC regarding the Balogun incident, citing a breach of political neutrality rules.

Fifa and the IOC typically maintain confidentiality regarding potential cases before their ethics bodies. The independence of Fifa‘s process for handling ethics complaints has been questioned since the lead investigator and judge were replaced in 2017, during Infantino‘s presidency. Fifa has not yet published documents explaining how its disciplinary judges reached verdicts concerning Balogun or other World Cup players.

Source: bbc.com