UEFA president skipped the World Cup final because of FIFA’s decision, as his disagreement with Gianni Infantino grows stronger
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin reportedly chose to skip the World Cup final to protest FIFA’s decision to lift Folarin Balogun’s one-match ban.
Balogun, a forward for the USA, was involved in some controversy before the US lost 2-0 to Belgium in the World Cup round of 16. The AS Monaco player had been sent off for a tackle on Tarik Muharemovic during the US’s win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32. Normally, FIFA rules meant he should have missed the next game against Belgium.
But then, former US President Donald Trump stepped in and spoke directly with FIFA boss Gianni Infantino. After that, FIFA decided to suspend Balogun’s ban for 12 months, meaning he could play against Belgium. This was done based on Article 27 of FIFA’s Disciplinary Code, which allows suspensions to be paused if no similar offenses happen during the probation period.
FIFA explained this in a July 5 statement, saying if Balogun commits a similar offense during the year, the suspension would be enforced right away. Despite many fans, players, and experts protesting, Belgium’s appeal to reverse this decision was rejected.
Trump said he contacted FIFA because he didn’t think Balogun’s challenge was a foul, explaining, “I didn’t tell him what to do. I can’t tell him what to do.” He described it as just two players running fast and accidentally crashing into each other.
UEFA wasn’t happy with FIFA’s decision and criticized it strongly. They said football depends on rules for fair play, and a red card should always lead to a one-match ban. They called FIFA’s action “incomprehensible and unjustifiable” and warned that changing rules during a tournament hurts the game’s integrity and fairness.
According to The Times, Ceferin was still upset over this whole issue and skipped the World Cup final partly because of it. Relations between UEFA and FIFA seem tense, also because of the US blocking Somali referee Omar Artan from entering the country. Artan will now referee the UEFA Super Cup final in August.
Other issues, like FIFA not treating Iran fairly, introducing hydration breaks, and having a longer half-time during the final for the show, have also bothered UEFA. Ceferin, who was at the opening match between Mexico and South Africa, has also criticized FIFA’s ticket pricing system.
So, it looks like UEFA chief Ceferin is standing firm on his views, hoping for a fairer and clearer future in football.