FIFA's decision to lift the suspension on American Folarin Balogun, striker for his country's national football team, sparked a storm of criticism, with the European Union (UEFA) describing the decision on Monday as a 'crossing of red lines', while Belgium, the United States' opponent in the round of 16, saw the decision as 'incomprehensible'. FIFA's decision, taken after the intervention of US President Donald Trump, allowed Balogun to participate with the US team in the match against Belgium in the round of 16, scheduled for Tuesday morning. UEFA said in a statement: 'Yesterday's decision to suspend the automatic one-match ban arising from the red card received by the player Folarin Balogun and place it under a one-year probation period crosses the red line.' UEFA added in its statement: 'Football, like any other sport, depends on rules that form the basis of fair, honest, and transparent competition. Some rules may be open to interpretation, but this is not one of them.' The European Union warned of the decision's repercussions on the game as a whole, saying: 'Football is the most popular sport in the world because it is a beautiful game, and it enjoys everyone's trust because it is played everywhere according to the same laws.' It added: 'No tournament is a separate event, and if the tournament is the World Cup, its decisions may have positive or negative effects on the entire game.' The statement noted: 'We express our astonishment at this unprecedented, incomprehensible, and unjustifiable decision.' Balogun, who scored three goals in the World Cup, was set to miss the match against Belgium in Seattle after being sent off with a straight red card following a VAR review for stepping on the foot of a Bosnia and Herzegovina defender during the round of 32 match which the United States won 2-0. According to FIFA regulations, a straight red card automatically leads to a one-match ban. Informed sources revealed to AFP that US President Donald Trump contacted FIFA President Gianni Infantino, asking him to reconsider Balogun's punishment, while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly called for the red card to be overturned. FIFA's Disciplinary Committee decided to suspend the punishment for one year, a surprising step for which the International Federation provided no specific explanation. Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social: 'Thank you FIFA for doing the right thing and correcting a great injustice!' Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot considered FIFA's decision to suspend Balogun's red card 'incomprehensible', and questioned the role of political intervention by US President Trump in the case. Prévot said in a statement, carried by his media services: 'If it is indeed a phone call that explains this incomprehensible decision, then that means a violation of the simplest rules of football and sport.' He added: 'That would be very serious. How can FIFA continue to talk about fair play with credibility?' European responses continued to criticize, as Glenn Micallef, the European Commissioner for Sports, affirmed that 'decision-making on sports rules belongs to sports bodies, not politicians.' Micallef said in a post on platform X: 'Any influence on sports decisions would undermine the independence of sports.'