Belgium’s football federation has expressed outrage over FIFA’s decision to permit United States striker Folarin Balogun to feature in Monday’s World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium, despite the forward receiving a red card in the previous round.

The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) said Sunday it was “astonished” by the ruling, while Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia delivered a sharp criticism of football’s governing body.

“I didn’t know July 5 was actually April 1 at the World Cup. This is an April Fools’ joke,” Garcia said following FIFA’s announcement that Balogun’s automatic one-match suspension had been placed on hold for a one-year probationary period.

The decision clears the 25-year-old striker to play in Monday’s knockout-stage clash in Seattle.

The RBFA said FIFA based its decision on Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code but argued that Article 66.4 of the same code states that a red card automatically results in a suspension for the team’s next match.

It also cited Article 10.5 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Competition Regulations, which says a player sent off by a direct or indirect red card is “automatically” suspended for the team’s subsequent match.

The RBFA noted that the automatic nature of the suspension had been reaffirmed in FIFA World Cup 2026 Circular No. 16, distributed to all participating associations on May 12, and reiterated during match coordination meetings and tournament workshops.

“In order to safeguard the legitimate rights of all participating teams and to protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport, both at this FIFA World Cup and at future editions of the tournament, the RBFA is investigating all potential options,” the federation said.

The New York Times reported that US President Donald Trump called FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Wednesday to seek a review of Balogun’s suspension, citing three people familiar with the conversation.

Trump welcomed FIFA’s decision on his Truth Social platform, writing, “Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!”

The White House has not confirmed that Trump contacted Infantino or claimed credit for the decision.

Politico later reported that US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick was involved in behind-the-scenes conversations with FIFA to get Balogun’s red card ban suspended, citing two people familiar with the matter who were granted anonymity to discuss private deliberations. It noted that Lutnick has developed close ties with the leadership of soccer’s governing body.

The ruling marks the first time since 1962 that FIFA has allowed a player sent off at a World Cup to play in the next match.

Balogun was shown a red card in the 64th minute of the United States’ 2-0 Round of 32 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1 for awkwardly stepping on the back of Bosnian defender Tarik Muharemovic’s leg while jockeying for a bouncing ball.

The American striker has scored three goals at the tournament as the US seeks its first World Cup quarterfinal appearance since 2002.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticized the red card Thursday, telling reporters that the team was “treated unfairly.”

“I wish there were an appeals process for it. But it’s probably too late now,” he said.

Source: Press TV

Messi’s sublime control and finish for his seventh goal at this tournament in four games put the defending champions in command, but the Blue Sharks doggedly refused to go away.

Deroy Duarte’s strike on the hour mark forced Argentina to expand more energy than they would have wanted in the sapping Miami heat.

Lisandro Martinez briefly restored Argentina’s lead early in extra time before Sidny Lopes Cabral’s stunning shot rocketed into the top corner.

Another Argentina corner finally got the job done when Cristian Romero rose highest to head Messi’s corner, the ball going in off a deflection from Diney Borges for an own goal.

La Albiceleste will face Egypt on Tuesday in Atlanta, but there were concerns for Lionel Scaloni on his 100th match in charge despite what appears a favourable draw.

Scaloni said it “would have been madness” to lose to the underdogs.

“A very tough match; you always have to take the positives—this team (Argentina) never gives up,” he said.

“We have to congratulate the opponent. When people say there are no easy opponents, they proved today that they are a great team,” he added.

“We finished very tired… they gave it their all.”

Cape Verde had served warning of what they were capable of by holding European champions Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia to draws in Group H to reach the knockout stages in their first World Cup appearance.

The Blue Sharks coach Bubista said the meeting with the world champions would be “the game of our lives” and it showed in a spirited display that had Argentina sweating.

On his return to the city where he plays his club football for Inter Miami, Messi’s every move was greeted like a god by the nearly 65,000 crowd, mainly in Argentina shirts.

Moments of magic

The 39-year-old produced a moment of magic with a feather-like touch from Lisandro Martinez’s pass to set up a high finish past Vozinha to open the scoring.

In doing so Messi also extended his own record of scoring in eight consecutive World Cup games and opened up a two-goal cushion once more over France’s Kylian Mbappe in the battle to be the competition’s all-time top goalscorer.

Emi Martinez had been a spectator in the first half, but the Aston Villa goalkeeper was forced into a smart save by Duarte as Cape Verde started the second period with more attacking intent.

Martinez was powerless for the equaliser moments later when Duarte was picked out by Ryan Mendes and rifled a low shot into the far corner.

Cape Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha became an internet sensation after his man-of-the-match showing against Spain last month.

His nearly 18 million Instagram followers will have enjoyed him winning a one-on-one battle with Messi when the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner seemed certain to restore Argentina’s lead.

Irish-born Pico Lopes was next to be a Cape Verdean hero with a crucial intervention to deny Enzo Fernandez a tap-in after more inspiration from Messi created an opening.

Lisandro Martinez’s rising drive after a corner fell the Manchester United defender’s way two minutes into extra-time looked to have swung the momentum decisively in Argentina’s favour once more.

But again Cape Verde refused to bow and levelled with one of the goals of the tournament when Lopes Cabral smashed into the top corner.

The full-back ran off into the stands to celebrate with his partner.

Elsewhere around the crowd, the boisterous atmosphere that had accompanied most of the evening gave way to nervous tension as penalties approached.

Scaloni could only wipe his furrowed brow with relief when Messi’s corner was turned in for an own goal by the unfortunate Borges.

Yet an exhausted Argentina still had to ride their luck from a Cape Verde onslaught in the final seconds.

Emi Martinez this time won the battle with Lopes Cabral by tipping over another sweet strike that was headed for the top corner.

“I’m taking away the contribution from everyone; we finished very tired… they gave it their all.”

Source: AFP

France defeated Sweden 3-0 in a dominant round of 32 performance on Tuesday evening, with Kylian Mbappé’s brace and Michael Olise’s assist setting the tone for a comprehensive victory. The French superstar struck twice, first from close range after Olise’s through ball, as Les Bleus overwhelmed their opponents with superior skill, movement, and execution.

Mbappe finished a superb move to break the deadlock just before half-time in the last-32 tie watched by 80,663 at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, after France had already hit the woodwork twice, once through Mbappe and once through Olise.

The French were on top throughout against a limited Swedish side, utterly dominating in terms of possession and shots on goal.

Olise set up Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola for the second on 53 minutes, and then delivered a delightful pass for Mbappe to complete a convincing victory.

Mbappe’s 18th World Cup goal

Mbappe’s strikes saw him move level with Lionel Messi on six goals in the all-star golden boot race at this World Cup.

The France captain now has 18 World Cup goals in total, meaning he is just one behind Messi’s overall record of 19, a mark which 27-year-old Mbappe will keep chasing.

He celebrated his first goal by running across to embrace coach Didier Deschamps, who missed France’s final group game against Norway to travel home for his mother’s funeral.

Deschamps will step down at the end of the competition after 14 highly successful years in charge.

Going out in the last 32 would have been such an anti-climactic way to depart for Deschamps, who captained the first France team to win the World Cup in 1998 and coached them to glory in 2018.

In 1998, France’s run to victory on home soil included a 1-0 last-16 win over Paraguay, when Laurent Blanc scored a golden goal in extra time.

Les Bleus will face the South Americans in the last 16 again this time, on Saturday in Philadelphia.

France will be fully expected to win and march on.

Mbappe and Olise were again central figures, with Ousmane Dembele also showing flashes of his brilliance while Barcola was preferred to Desire Doue as the fourth forward.

Sweden have quality in attack too, with the Premier League trio of Viktor Gyokeres, Alexander Isak and Anthony Elanga. But they couldn’t get enough of the ball to create chances and Graham Potter’s team now go home.

Getting this far should really be seen as a success for them, however, after they only made it to North America through the back door of the play-offs.

Intense pressure 

Olise released Mbappe through the middle to put the ball in the net in the 20th minute, only for a tight offside call to cut short the celebrations.

However, that sparked an intense spell of French pressure which eventually resulted in the opening goal.

Some of their football was mesmerising, as Mbappe hit the post from a Jules Kounde ball across the face of goal and Adrien Rabiot fired narrowly over.

Olise then struck an upright with a breathtaking overhead bicycle kick before Dembele put the rebound wide.

The opener came right on half-time, after an Olise effort was tipped behind by Swedish ‘keeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.

Dembele and Olise combined at the resulting corner before finding Mbappe, and he did the rest.

Sweden needed the interval to regroup, but they conceded again eight minutes after the restart as the magical Olise threaded a pass through the legs of Gustaf Lagerbielke for Barcola, who lashed in.

Olise couldn’t score when clean through, but soon after he delivered an exceptional assist for Mbappe to curl in again on 74 minutes.

France look untouchable even if the toughest tests are still to come, although Paraguay will find it hard to live with them.

Source: AFP

England suffered a World Cup setback on Tuesday as Thomas Tuchel’s side were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw by Ghana, leaving them with work still to do as they bid to progress to the knockout stage as Group L winners.

Nico O’Reilly came closest to scoring with a late header that hit the bar, but after the promise of their opening 4-2 win over Croatia, this was a performance that will raise doubts about their chances of going all the way and winning the tournament.

They dominated possession and had 19 shots to their opponents’ two, yet rarely looked like scoring past Ghana’s stand-in goalkeeper Benjamin Asare in a match watched by 63,983 fans at Gillette Stadium near Boston.

Both teams have four points with one game still to play in Group L, with progression to the next round all but assured but their final positions still in the balance.

In damp, cool conditions, England delivered a stodgy performance that echoed some of their faltering displays during Euro 2024.

However, there are no dramatic consequences, as England take a step closer to the last 32. All they need to do now is safely negotiate their final group fixture against Panama at MetLife Stadium on Saturday, and they will be able to turn their attention to the knockout rounds.

England have still never lost to African opposition at the World Cup, and that record was rarely at risk of ending here.

Ghana nevertheless battled brilliantly, as the nation ranked 73rd in the world – 69 places behind England – put up a determined defensive display.

Partey plays, Kane quiet

The late decision by the Black Stars to appoint Carlos Queiroz as coach is looking increasingly justified, with this result following their opening 1-0 win over Panama. The 2010 quarter-finalists face Croatia next in Philadelphia.

Thomas Partey returned for Ghana after missing the Panama match in Toronto because Canadian authorities denied him a visa – the former Arsenal midfielder is facing trial on rape charges in the UK.

Asare of local side Hearts of Oak started in goal for the Ghanaians after coming on for the injured Lawrence Ati Zigi against Panama.

England’s inability to regularly test him will be a source of concern, as Harry Kane was kept quiet and failed to add to his 10 World Cup goals – he remains level with Gary Lineker as England’s all-time top scorer at the tournament.

Noni Madueke and Anthony Gordon were unable to make the difference on the wings and their substitutes could not, this time, have a decisive impact.

Jude Bellingham won his 50th cap as Marc Guehi and Djed Spence replaced John Stones and O’Reilly in defence.

A Declan Rice free-kick that sailed just over was about as close as England came in the opening half. In fact, it took almost an hour for Asare to make a notable save, but it was a comfortable one to deny Gordon.

Ghana may feel Jordan Pickford should have been punished for charging out of his box and crashing into Prince Adu without touching the ball – but instead the goalkeeper was awarded a free-kick.

There was also panic for England when substitute Adu ran through into the area but could not get a shot away.

Then the pressure was turned up a notch in the closing minutes, as Asare denied Bukayo Saka with a good stop low to his left before O’Reilly headed against the woodwork from close range and Kane blazed over.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

Goal-scoring records have been tumbling at the 2026 World Cup – and the world’s most prolific strikers have another milestone in sight.

Usually a subplot, the race for the World Cup Golden Boot is one of the main talking points at this year’s tournament as the top marksmen set a blistering pace.

The overall record has already been broken by Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, who now has 18 goals over six World Cups after adding five in two games in the United States.

But he is being chased hard by Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland – who have four goals apiece – with Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Kane also in the mix.

The long-standing single-tournament record of 13 goals set in 1958 by France’s Just Fontaine appears vulnerable.

German great Gerd Muller was the last man to hit double figures, at the 1970 tournament in Mexico, when he scored 10 goals.

Since then, at all but three tournaments, the leading scorer has hit six goals or fewer.

Messi, who turns 39 on Wednesday, has been the standout performer so far at the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

He struck a memorable hat-trick against Algeria before scoring twice in a 2-0 victory over Austria, accounting for all five of the defending champions’ goals so far.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said it was “hard to explain” the genius of the veteran forward after their opening match in Kansas City.

“We are amazed with him still, although we get to see him on a daily basis and he’s been the best for 20 years,” he said. “He still pulls it off every single match.”

Messi’s most likely challenger, based on the prospect of a deep run in the tournament, is Mbappé, who scored eight goals four years ago in Qatar to win the Golden Boot.

The 27-year-old, now France’s record goalscorer, is just two goals behind Messi’s career total.

The Real Madrid star said, perhaps unconvincingly, that chasing Messi was not top of his mind after his team’s 3-0 stroll against Iraq in their second game.

“Leo always scores goals and always will,” he said. “So I am not looking at what he is doing, I’m just focusing on helping my team.”

‘They’re so inevitable’

Level with Mbappé on four goals is Manchester City forward Haaland, who has scored in his past 12 competitive appearances for Norway.

The giant forward, 25, played down his extraordinary talent after taking his international tally to a remarkable 59 goals in 52 games.

“It’s like many other things, I’m just really good at scoring goals and I’m quite lucky,” he said. “I don’t know what I’m doing. It’s just how it is.”

Germany’s Deniz Undav and Canada’s Jonathan David have three goals each and Kane and Ronaldo are among a clutch of players with two.

Portugal’s Ronaldo briefly stole the spotlight from long-time rival Messi on Tuesday when he became the first man to score in six different World Cup tournaments.

The 41-year-old roared, “I’m back, I’m back” after his two strikes in the 5-0 romp against Uzbekistan, which followed an insipid performance from him in their opening 1-1 draw against DR Congo.

Ronaldo, the leading scorer in men’s international history, with 145 goals, said: “I always arrive, even if it’s later, but I’m there.”

Kane, whose six goals won him the Golden Boot at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, is stuck on two after missing a golden chance during England’s goalless draw against Ghana on Tuesday.

US striker Folarin Balogun, who has netted twice, has set his sights on matching the world’s elite but realises he has a tough act to follow.

“Seeing players like Messi, Mbappe, Haaland – they’re so inevitable. I think they’re scoring a goal a game, sometimes more,” he said.

“For me, it’s just about trying to get to that level – to be inevitable as well, to be consistent.”

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

Algeria scored off two corner kicks in the second half to rally from an early deficit and defeat Jordan 2-1 on Monday night to bolster its chances of advancing to the knockout round of the World Cup.

Second-half substitute Nadhir Benbouali headed in a corner kick in the 69th minute and Amine Gouiri provided the game-winner in the 82nd to give Algeria its first win at the World Cup since 2014.

The Jordanians had taken the lead for the first time at a World Cup on a first-half goal by Nizar Al Rashdan but couldn’t withstand the continual pressure from Algeria in the second half.

This marked the first time Algeria had ever won a World Cup game after conceding the first goal. They had seven losses and two draws previously when that happened.

Algeria bounced back after a 3-0 to Argentina in its opening game and can finish second in Group J – and clinch a spot in the knockout round – with a win on Saturday against Austria.

Jordan is out of contention for the knockout rounds with a second straight loss. It opened with a 3-1 defeat to Austria but put up a strong effort in its first appearance on soccer’s biggest stage.

Momentum clearly swung after Benbouali equalized when Riyad Mahrez’s corner kick found him in the middle of the box and he sent a header into the corner that Yazeed Abulaila couldn’t stop.

Algeria kept up the attack and took the lead when Gouiri got a touch on a ball in the box that deflected off Abulaila and into the net, setting off an Algerian celebration with their fans just behind the goal at Levi’s Stadium.

Source: AP