Norway’s football chief has told The Times daily they are set to make a formal complaint to FIFA over the suspension of Folarin Balogun’s World Cup ban because it has put “the whole game at risk”.
Lise Klaveness, the president of the Norwegian football federation (NFF), says she will seek the backing of her board to lodge the complaint with FIFA’s Ethics Committee over an incident that “should not have happened”.
The United States striker was sent off against Bosnia-Herzegovina but was free to play in the World Cup round-of-16 win over Belgium after FIFA’s disciplinary committee suspended his automatic one-match ban.
U.S. President Donald Trump told the media prior the World Cup match vs. Belgium that he asked Infantino to review the red card given.
The decision followed a phone call between Trump and Infantino, with Trump later saying FIFA had made a “great decision.” Infantino has maintained that FIFA’s judicial bodies operate independently.
“When you bend a rule like this, you’re on a slippery slope that will put the whole game at risk. It is a worry for the game when you compromise fundamental rules of the game,” Klaveness said.
Klaveness also questioned why such a controversial case was decided by a single member of FIFA’s disciplinary committee. “When there has been an external, very powerful voice in your ear, it’s very important that you have more voices making the decision,” she said. “If you don’t, it’s a mistake.”
She added that trying to “sweep this under the carpet” would not succeed because “too many” people in football had been troubled by the case.
