Folarin Balogun etched his name into the record books in the most bittersweet of circumstances, becoming only the third American to score three goals in a single World Cup edition — only to be sent off just after the hour mark in a moment that could define the United States’ tournament.
The PSV forward might have had a hat-trick on the night, firing one effort wide of the near post, seeing another ruled out for offside, and slicing a shot onto the bar from close range. But the evening turned on an innocuous-looking tussle with Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic for a looping ball down the left channel. As Balogun attempted to shield the ball, Muharemovic got in front of him, and as the forward’s boot returned to the ground it landed on the back of the Bosnian’s ankle, causing it to twist gruesomely. Brazilian referee Raphael Claus reviewed the incident on the monitor before showing a straight red card.
In real time, and in all likelihood in reality, it looked entirely accidental — but the slow-motion replay left Claus little choice. The dismissal placed Balogun in rare company: he became only the fourth player to score and be sent off in a knockout match, joining Brazil’s Garrincha in the 1962 semi-final, Ronaldinho in the 2002 quarter-final against England, and Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 final against Italy.
The sending-off carries an automatic one-game ban, ruling Balogun out of the match against Belgium. FIFA officials could yet extend the suspension further, potentially keeping him out of the quarter-final and semi-final should the United States progress. His last international goal before this tournament had come in a Nations League game in November 2024.
Crystal Palace and US defender Chris Richards moved quickly to rally around the stricken forward. “We told him we have got his back,” Richards said. “We are a team of 26, not just one. Ultimately we are going to miss him for the next game but we know whoever is going to step up is going to do a job just as well as he did. One man is down, the next guy steps up.” Coach Mauricio Pochettino had posed his own rallying question back in March when discussing the United States’ chances of lifting a first World Cup on home soil — a phrase that has since become a battle cry for the squad and even adorns a motivational poster in his office. Twenty-one days and four matches into the tournament, that question remains unanswered.
Image credit: BBC Sport / BBC Sport
