FIFA gonna FIFA

“You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.”

Welcome to FIFA’s World Cup — where they make up the rules as they go along. The latest example of FIFA gonna FIFA is the “suspension” of the red-card suspension American Folarin Balogun was facing after receiving the ejection in Wednesday’ Round of 32 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina.

First things first. Balogun absolutely deserved that red card. He raked Bosnia player’s calf, down to his Achilles before stepping on his ankle and putting a 90 degree kink in it.

American soccer fans lost their collective minds. “He didn’t mean it!” critics wailed.

But intent does not matter. A player is responsible for his body — and boots and studs — at all time. If this same foul and subsequent red card was committed against an American player, everybody would have agreed it was deserved.

A lot of people have been playing the “What about?” game when Argentina legend Lionel Messi had a similar play in which he stepped on the back of the leg of an Algeria’s Aissa Mandi and no foul was called at all.

I’m sure Messi didn’t mean to do that. The same could be said of England’s Jarell Quansah, who went studs up into the ankle of a Mexico player that earned him a straight red card (I don’t how to indicate sarcasm in print).

The first problem with FIFA is its inconsistent interpretation of the rules. VAR — Video Assistant Referee — was implemented to get calls right. Instead, it is an absolute crapshoot about what the center referee will eventually rule. So they let slide Messi’s moment, but hammer Balogun in the most penal way possible.

The second problem is the lack of transparency.

In the aftermath of the Balogun foul, it was ruled that there was no path for appeal which created more uproar. But then Sunday morning rolls around and out of the blue, FIFA went against its own punishment, reinstating Balogun to the roster for Monday’s Round of 16 match against Belgium.

Not surprisingly, Belgium lost its collective minds — as did a lot of people in the soccer world. UEFA, the Union of European Football Associations, railed against the decision. That’s a little bit of the pot calling the kettle black, because right below FIFA on the list of corrupt organizations, UEFA is only slightly behind.

There were initial reports that President Donald Trump intervened on Team USA’s behalf, putting a call into FIFA president Gianni Infantino, presumably to ask the Trump sycophant to reverse the decision.

Conspiracy theorists love this one, but ensuing reports say it had to do more with the U.S. Men’s National Team, led by CEO JT Baston, threatening to take the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sports, the international court to decide sporting decisions.

It was at that point that FIFA changed its mind.

The irony of all this is that FIFA has two, competing clauses in their bylaws, which is just so FIFA. The one originally used is the one soccer fans are familiar with and it’s the same at the youth level all the way to the World Cup — red card means not only automatic ejection from that game, but an automatic one-game suspension for the following game.

Article 10.5 of the official FIFA 2026 World Cup rulebook states: “If a player or team official is sent off as a result of a direct or indirect red card (second caution), they will automatically be suspended from their team’s subsequent match.”

But later in the FIFA rulebook, the organization gives itself an out, one that was used to keep Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo eligible to play during World Cup qualifying last winter and the same one that suspends Balogun’s suspension.

Article 27 states that FIFA’s judicial committee has the power to “fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure.”

So let me get this straight: automatic red card means automatic suspension for the following game, unless FIFA decides otherwise.

Two wrongs do not make a right but if you learned anything about international soccer, it’s that FIFA doesn’t care what you think. It does what it wants. FIFA taketh away and FIFA giveth.

This all may be maddening to new soccer fans, but longtime fans will see this as just par for the course.

Nathan Mollat has been covering high school sports in San Mateo County for the San Mateo Daily Journal since 2001. He can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com.