Mauricio Pochettino and the United States national team have received a major boost ahead of their Round of 16 clash against Belgium.

Folarin Balogun has been cleared to feature for the USA in Monday’s encounter after his one-match suspension, imposed following a red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina, was officially suspended.

The striker was shown a straight red card during the Round of 32 fixture against Bosnia for a challenge on defender Tarik Muharemovic. The decision was made after Brazilian referee Raphael Claus reviewed the incident on the VAR monitor.

Ordinarily, a red card results in an automatic one-match ban, and initially, it appeared there was no avenue for appeal available to Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

However, on Sunday, FIFA issued a statement confirming that Balogun’s suspension had been deferred for a period of one year, allowing him to be available for selection.

FIFA’s statement read: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed the following sanction on United States national-team player Folarin Balogun, who was sent off as a result of a direct red card during the FIFA World Cup 2026™ match between the United States and Bosnia and Herzegovina played on 1 July 2026 at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium:

One-match suspension for breaches of articles 14 and 66 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC).

“In accordance with article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, the implementation of the suspension will be suspended for a probationary period of one year.

“If Folarin Balogun commits another offence of a similar nature and seriousness during the probationary period, the suspension will be enforced immediately, in addition to any further sanctions that may be imposed for the new violation.”

Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo previously benefited from a similar ruling before the start of a World Cup campaign, when FIFA handed him a three-match suspension but suspended the final two matches for a one-year probation period.

Balogun has been in excellent form at this World Cup, scoring three goals so far. He has started in all but one match for the tournament co-hosts, netting twice in their opening match against Paraguay. The forward was rested against Turkey in the final group-stage encounter before returning to score against Bosnia in the first half of the Round of 32 tie.

Remarkably, Balogun has contributed to at least one goal in every World Cup match he has featured in during this tournament.

The decision will come as welcome news to Pochettino, who had publicly disagreed with the red card decision after the Bosnia match. “For me? Never a red card,” he said. “There was never any intent to step on the player. It was a normal football action that happened accidentally.”

Christian Pulisic also expressed his disappointment with the initial ruling, stating: “It’s just so unfortunate, honestly. Looking back at it, it just seems so harsh. I told him he’s done so much for us, and now we’ve got his back.”

The United States will take on Belgium in the Round of 16 fixture in Seattle on Monday.