UEFA statement on World Cup controversy after Rooney disgrace comment | Football | Sport
Wayne Rooney’s comments have sparked a response from UEFA. (Image: Getty)
UEFA have issued a statement suggesting FIFA ‘crossed the line’ with their intervention to suspend Folarin Balogun’s one-match ban. It comes after the American striker was made available for the USA’s upcoming World Cup last-16 tie against Belgium despite being dismissed against Bosnia & Herzegovina. Balogun was sent off following a challenge on Bosnia’s Tarik Muharemovic in the second half of the game following a VAR review. The incident triggered outrage from all quarters, with the officials coming under fire for brandishing a red card for what appeared to be an innocuous challenge.
Despite going down to 10 men, Mauricio Pochettino’s side progressed to the next round following their 2-0 victory – meaning Balogun would miss the game due to an automatic one-game suspension per Article 10.5 of FIFA’s rules for the tournament. However, the world football governing body sprung a surprise when they confirmed Balogun’s punishment would be suspended for a year, citing Article 27 of their regulations to put the suspension on hold and therefore allowing Balogun to play.
It later transpired that U.S President Donald Trump made a personal appeal to FIFA supremo Gianni Infantino to review the ban which, under normal circumstances, could not be appealed. President Trump posted on social media: “Thank you to Fifa for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
When discussing the topic on live on BBC’s World Cup broadcast, former England striker Wayne Rooney labelled the intervention as a ‘disgrace’. Now, UEFA have joined the dissenting calls regarding the suspension of Balogun’s ban and claimed that the decision could put ‘the integrity of the game’ under threat.
The statement read: “Yesterday’s decision to suspend for a probationary period of a year the implementation of the one-match automatic suspension following the red card issued to the player Folarin Balogun crossed a red line. Football, like any other sports, relies on rules, which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition.
Folarin Balogun was shown a red card during the USA’s win over Bosnia. (Image: Getty)
“Sometimes rules are open to interpretation. In this case not. A minimum automatic suspension of one match following a red card is not a discretionary option and does not require the decision of a competent body to be enacted. It is a principle embedded in regulations, which cannot be made subject to exceptions, let alone in the middle of a tournament where several other players have been in the same situation and regularly served their suspension.
“When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined. Equally, such decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition.
“Football is the most loved sport in the world because it is a beautiful game and is trusted because it is played everywhere with the same laws. A tournament is never a pure standalone and, if the tournament in question is the World Cup, it has the power to drive positive or negative consequences on the game as a whole.
“We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”
Rooney had raged against the decision and personally called out Infantino, adding the Swiss chief should be ‘ashamed’ of his decision: “I think it’s an absolute disgrace, I really do,” Rooney said on the BBC on Sunday.
“I know it’s [not FIFA] UEFA but I got a three-game ban before Euro 2012. I was due to miss the three group games and I got told if I went over to Switzerland and did a training session with a bunch of kids, my third game would get taken off. I agreed to do it because I didn’t want a three-game ban but I thought that was wrong.
“For this to be suspended, they either take the red card away which is probably the right decision and then he can play. But to suspend it for a year? I think it’s an absolute disgrace. Infantino should be ashamed of this.
“The sportsmanship of this game is in question here. If I’m USA’s opponent, I’d be absolutely fuming. It’s wrong in every way. If you’re an England player tonight or a Mexican player, and you get a red card, do you expect to be playing the next game? Where does it stop?”
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Balogun, who scored a hat-trick for the U.S in their 4-1 win over Paraguay in their opening game of the tournament, admitted the whole saga had been ‘surreal’ for him but claimed he didn’t deserve to be sent off in the first place.
“It’s been a rollercoaster, there’s been lots of different emotions,” Balogun told reporters before training on Friday. “I’ve been sad, I’ve been happy, it’s been surreal to be honest.
“It’s important for me to say, obviously, first and foremost, it was totally unintentional, which I’m sure a lot of people know. I don’t think it was the correct call. I think a yellow card would have been fair.”
