Folarin Balogun, a star player for the USA World Cup team, received support from his teammates following a controversial red card during their 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina. The incident occurred on Wednesday night when Brazilian referee Raphael Claus issued a red card to Balogun after a VAR review. Balogun was penalized for stepping on defender Tarik Muharemovic’s ankle, leading to his suspension from the upcoming Round of 16 match against Belgium.

According to a FIFA official speaking to The Athletic, there is no appeal process available for Balogun’s red card or the suspension that follows. The official cited FIFA’s rules, which state that a sending-off leads to an automatic suspension for the next match. Additional disciplinary measures may be imposed by FIFA’s judicial bodies if deemed necessary.

“Obviously the ref made a decision that he made, but I think it’s questionable,” said Balogun’s teammate Weston McKennie. “I think there’s been many other plays like that throughout the tournament on other players that a card wasn’t given at all. It’s disappointing.”

U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino expressed his disagreement with the red card decision, emphasizing that Balogun’s actions were not intentional. Pochettino stated, “It’s never a red card. Never… If the intention is to damage the opponent, OK, I understand. But that never was. It was a normal action in football that you are fighting for the ball and your feet land.”

Balogun joins the rare list of players who have scored in a World Cup knockout match and subsequently been sent off. Previous cases include Brazil’s Ronaldinho in a 2002 quarterfinal against England and France’s Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 World Cup final against Italy. This red card marks the fifth time an American player has been sent off in the country’s World Cup history. Previous recipients include Eric Wynalda against Czechoslovakia in 1990, Fernando Clavijo against Brazil in 1994, and both Pablo Mastroeni and Eddie Pope against Italy in 2006.