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Two staff members of the USA’s backroom team were suspended by FIFA for Monday’s round of 16 game against Belgium.
Co-hosts USA were dumped out of the World Cup with a 4-1 hammering by the Red Devils, with the build-up to the clash marred by controversy.
The narrative was dominated by the availability of Folarin Balogun, whose red card suspension was pushed back by FIFA after an intervention from president Donald Trump.
Balogun had been due to sit out his side’s knockout clash, thanks to a straight red card in their last-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
But the striker was given a reprieve after the US president called FIFA chief Gianni Infantino asking for the sending-off to be reviewed.
Balogun subsequently had his one-match ban suspended for 12 months – sparking widespread uproar, not least once it became clear Trump himself had lobbied FIFA.
It meant the game was played under a microscope like never before, only for Trump’s intervention to have little effect on the outcome.
Mystery absence
While Balogun’s involvement against Belgium was given the green light, the same couldn’t be said for two others in the US camp.
According to a disciplinary preview supplied by FIFA, team manager Sam Zapatka and US Soccer Federation (USSF) vice president of security Frank Pannell were both suspended for the game.
The official document simply names both team members as ‘suspended’, alongside a record of the players carrying yellow cards heading into Monday’s games.
No explanation is offered as to why Zapatka and Pannell had been banned from the USA’s knockout game.
The USSF has also not disclosed the full reason for this, but confirmed it was not related to Balogun’s red card suspension.
Zapatka has been the team’s administrative manager since 2020 and has worked for the USSF since 2015.
He was responsible for telling players they made the team’s 26-man World Cup squad, and was on the sidelines for the USMNT’s first four games.
But both Zapatka and Pannell had no part to play in Seattle, as Mauricio Pochettino’s side saw their tournament hopes ended.
Malik Tillman’s deflected freekick drew USA level, only for De Ketelaere to net his second two minutes later.
Substitutes Hans Vanaken and Romelu Lukaku added second half goals as Belgium showed their quality to dump the US out of the World Cup at Lumen Field.
Drama-fuelled occasion
It is perhaps unsurprising that the suspension of two members of the US team flew under the radar, given the huge focus on the Balogun saga ahead of the game.
The decision to suspend the USA star’s ban was widely criticised, with the Belgian FA voicing their bemusement ahead of the game.
European football’s governing body, UEFA, were also among those to vocally criticise FIFA’s ‘unprecedented’ move to suspend Balogun’s ban.
Their statement read: “When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined.
“Equally, such a decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition.
“We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”
Meanwhile, talkSPORT host Jeff Stelling called on FIFA president Infantino to resign immediately, insisting the decision raises eyebrows over corruption.
Two staff members of the USA’s backroom team were suspended by FIFA for Monday’s round of 16 game against Belgium.
Co-hosts USA were dumped out of the World Cup with a 4-1 hammering by the Red Devils, with the build-up to the clash marred by controversy.
The narrative was dominated by the availability of Folarin Balogun, whose red card suspension was pushed back by FIFA after an intervention from president Donald Trump.
Balogun had been due to sit out his side’s knockout clash, thanks to a straight red card in their last-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
But the striker was given a reprieve after the US president called FIFA chief Gianni Infantino asking for the sending-off to be reviewed.
Balogun subsequently had his one-match ban suspended for 12 months – sparking widespread uproar, not least once it became clear Trump himself had lobbied FIFA.
It meant the game was played under a microscope like never before, only for Trump’s intervention to have little effect on the outcome.
Mystery absence
While Balogun’s involvement against Belgium was given the green light, the same couldn’t be said for two others in the US camp.
According to a disciplinary preview supplied by FIFA, team manager Sam Zapatka and US Soccer Federation (USSF) vice president of security Frank Pannell were both suspended for the game.
The official document simply names both team members as ‘suspended’, alongside a record of the players carrying yellow cards heading into Monday’s games.
No explanation is offered as to why Zapatka and Pannell had been banned from the USA’s knockout game.
The USSF has also not disclosed the full reason for this, but confirmed it was not related to Balogun’s red card suspension.
Zapatka has been the team’s administrative manager since 2020 and has worked for the USSF since 2015.
He was responsible for telling players they made the team’s 26-man World Cup squad, and was on the sidelines for the USMNT’s first four games.
But both Zapatka and Pannell had no part to play in Seattle, as Mauricio Pochettino’s side saw their tournament hopes ended.
Malik Tillman’s deflected freekick drew USA level, only for De Ketelaere to net his second two minutes later.
Substitutes Hans Vanaken and Romelu Lukaku added second half goals as Belgium showed their quality to dump the US out of the World Cup at Lumen Field.
Drama-fuelled occasion
It is perhaps unsurprising that the suspension of two members of the US team flew under the radar, given the huge focus on the Balogun saga ahead of the game.
The decision to suspend the USA star’s ban was widely criticised, with the Belgian FA voicing their bemusement ahead of the game.
European football’s governing body, UEFA, were also among those to vocally criticise FIFA’s ‘unprecedented’ move to suspend Balogun’s ban.
Their statement read: “When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined.
“Equally, such a decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition.
“We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”
Meanwhile, talkSPORT host Jeff Stelling called on FIFA president Infantino to resign immediately, insisting the decision raises eyebrows over corruption.
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| đź“° PublicaciĂłn: | talksport.com |
| ✍️ Autor: | Martha Riley |
| đź“… Fecha Original: | 2026-07-07 23:16:00 |
| đź”— Enlace: | Ver artĂculo original |
Nota de transparencia: Este artĂculo ha sido traducido y adaptado del inglĂ©s al español para facilitar su comprensiĂłn. El contenido se mantiene fiel a la fuente original, disponible en el enlace proporcionado arriba.
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