FIFA quietly issued punishment to United States for Belgium match

Monday night’s round of 16 showdown between the United States and Belgium had no shortage of drama after FIFA allowed United States striker Folarin Balogun to play in the match despite receiving a red card in the previous match in a highly unusual and controversial decision. Now, a report has added more drama.

While Balogun may not have had to miss Monday night’s match against Belgium, two United States staff members were suspended for the match.

Two Staff Members Suspended

While Balogun was permitted to play, FIFA did quietly issue a different punishment to the United States for Monday night’s match.

According to a report from ESPN, FIFA suspended two USMNT staffers for Monday night’s match against Belgium as team manager Sam Zapatka and U.S. Soccer Federation vice president of security Frank Pannell were not available for the match.

FIFA did not explain why it imposed the punishment on the two United States officials, and the U.S. Soccer Federation did not give a reason other than that it was not related to having Balogun’s one-game red card suspension lifted.

ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle reported that the suspension related to an incident involving the mishandling of FIFA match protocols and people being in designated areas where they weren’t allowed.

Balogun and USMNT Fined

That was not the only punishment that the United States was given this week. While Balogun was permitted to play in Monday’s match, he did not escape punishment completely as FIFA announced in a lengthy statement on Monday that Balogun had been fined $40,000 in connection with the red card he received last week.

FIFA also found that United States Soccer Federation (USSF) “was declared jointly liable” for paying the fine, meaning that Balogun will likely not pay the full fine himself and will receive assistance from the USSF.

While the FIFA Disciplinary Committee did not clarify why exactly Balogun was issued a fine, the committee said that Balogun had been investigated by FIFA for the red card and then for re-entering the field to celebrate with his U.S. teammates after the win “despite his expulsion.”

The committee found him “guilty of both infringements,” though it’s not clear which infringement led to the fine.

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