After Balogun Pardon Controversy/Official: The Law That Favored Ronaldo Has Been Changed

FIFA will change its disciplinary code following the controversy surrounding the decision to suspend Flarin Balogun's automatic ban at the 2026 World Cup and allow him to accompany the United States against Belgium.

According to "Varzeh Se", this decision was taken after many criticisms of FIFA, which canceled the automatic suspension of one session due to the red card of the American striker, who was sent off against Bosnia, and allowed him to play in the round of 16 match. The story gained greater political and institutional dimensions when US President Donald Trump announced that he had personally asked FIFA President Johnny Infantino to review his punishment, raising doubts about the independence of disciplinary processes.

After the FIFA Council meeting held on Thursday in Zurich, Switzerland, Pascal van Dam, president of the Belgian Federation and a member of the FIFA Council, announced that this body will review Article 27 of the Disciplinary Code, which provides for the suspension of a penalty in exceptional circumstances. The final proposal of the amendment will be presented for approval on December 16 at the next meeting of the Council in Doha.

A law that also benefited Cristiano Ronaldo. It is important to remember that the captain of the Portuguese national team was sent off for a serious foul against the Republic of Ireland and served only one suspension and was cleared to participate in the World Cup. This Portuguese national team player was sent off during the preliminary stage of Portugal and sentenced to three sessions of suspension. After serving his first ban against Armenia, FIFA suspended him for the remaining two matches and placed the player on probation until the World Cup.

Pascal van Dam pointed out that FIFA's approval to change Article 27 is an important step following the request we made in July. The amendment proposal along with an explanation of the specific circumstances of the Balogun case will be presented in Doha.