AMERICAN fans are fuming after star striker Folarin Balogun was sent off against Bosnia and Herzegovina – for a tackle Lionel Messi got away with.
Mauricio Pochettino‘s side booked their place in the last-16 with a 2-0 win in Santa Clara regardless, with Monaco striker Balogun scoring the first.
Sign up for the Football newsletter
Thank you!
USMNT star Folarin Balogun was sent off for a foul on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Tarik Muharemovic Credit: Getty
Fans are furious after Lionel Messi escaped punishment for a similar tackle earlier at the World Cup Credit: Getty
But he was shown a straight red card in the 64th minute and will now miss the next round’s clash with Belgium on Tuesday due to suspension.
And many are furious with Fifa and the officials after Brazilian ref Raphael Claus opted to overturn his on-field decision and send Balogun off.
The former Arsenal forward was trying to win the ball in a battle with Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic when Balogun’s right foot scraped down the back of his opponent’s calf.
Both players went down in pain after the collision as Balogun also rolled his ankle in the incident and Muharemovic’s leg buckled.
READ MORE ON THE WORLD CUP
KATE & THE GREAT
Hero Kane kisses wife Kate as relieved stars & Wags celebrate DR Congo win
BET BOOSTER
Best bet builder sites in the UK for 2026
VAR checked the foul and officials Juan Soto (Venezuela), Nicolas Gallo (Colombia), and Jerome Brisard (France) urged a review.
Claus went with it, causing shock at the Levi’s Stadium.
Those watching were angry at the call after Messi escaped a similar situation in the group stage against Algeria.
There, Argentina icon Messi ran into Aissa Mandi half-an-hour in and didn’t even get a booking.
WORLD CUP 2026 FREE BETS AND SIGN UP OFFERS
Brazilian ref Raphel Claus shocked watchers and players with his decision Credit: AP
Former Arsenal No9 Balogun will now miss the last-16 tie with Belgium next week – he was heartbroken Credit: Getty
Despite his boot raking down Mandi’s leg, Uefa ref Szymon Marciniak let Messi off, causing great debate.
And USMNT supporters think there was some preferential treatment at play.
One wrote online after the Balogun red: “Red card for that means you’ve lost the plot. Completely lost the plot.”
The same person then added, posting the Messi tackle: “Hey @FIFAcom where was VAR on this?!”
Another said: “Two relatively similar incidents… Flo Balogun: red card. Lionel Messi: unpunished.”
A third commented: “Come on. It’s Messi. Of course he’s going to get away with it. We can’t expect star treatment.”
Some on social media have even asked for Claus to be punished.
He explained his decision via the stadium mic, saying: “After review, the No20, United States, committed a serious foul. Final decision is red card.”
It led to boos and jeers from the stands with Balogun immediately shocked and stunned.
He put his shirt over his face whilst walking off and was consoled by Christian Pulisic.
Ex-Arsenal man Saed Kolasinac, playing for Bosnia, gave him a pat on the head and appeared to share the pain.
USA did find a second late on through Malik Tilman to ensure they got through.
American Balogun, who was a red hot No9 for England at age group level before transferring allegiances in 2023, has bagged three times at the tournament already.
World Cup 2026 – all the info
IT’S A KNOCKOUT
The knockout stages of the World Cup are hotting up.
England believe football might finally be coming home after 60 years of hurt, with Harry Kane on fire.
But the likes of France, Spain, Brazil and Argentina are all serious contenders to go all the way.
Heavyweights Germany and the Netherlands have both been knocked out on penalties in the Round of 32.
LATEST NEWS
KEY INFO
VIDEO
TIPS AND BETTING
If you click a link in this article, we will earn affiliate revenue.
He finished coolly here to put USA in front and had already been disallowed one earlier for offside.
Poch will instead have to turn to PSV’s Ricardo Pepi against Belgium, who dramatically scraped through from 2-0 down against Senegal.
They needed a 125th minute penalty to win a fiery contest on Wednesday night.
Messi‘s unpunished challenge meant he could go on and complete a remarkable hat-trick in Kansas.
It left Algeria to COMPLAIN about the standard of officiating.
And former Prem ref Mark Halsey exclusively told JattvibeSport: “When you look at the incident, Messi did endanger the player’s safety, Aissa Mandi.
“When you look at the incident, the ball is not within playing distance so it’s not serious foul play.
“It has to be violent conduct because it comes down as a stamp. It’s classed as a stamp.
“I was really surprised that VAR didn’t recommend a review.”
