If Folarin Balogun ‘taints’ this World Cup, so too must Cristiano Ronaldo
At 41, Cristiano Ronaldo is still one of the most popular athletes in the world and even if his presence on the Portuguese national team is cause for international debate, a player like Folarin Balogun has no place in any paragraph with Ronaldo.
But it’s 2026, and not only is anything on the table, but all is possible, so Balogun and Ronaldo are “brothers” in cards.
Only you probably did not know, care, or forgot that it was not that long ago one of the most celebrated players in the history of the beautiful game was given the same pass that the USA forward was recently handed, which is now a global incident.
Among the many reactions to FIFA rescinding USA forward Balogun’s red card, which ranged from the stupid to erudite (it’s OK, I had to look it up, too), the leader in this debate is that this decision will taint this entire tournament.
We are talking about Balogun, who because of this ordeal has been elevated to a player greater than the sum of Messi, Pele and Ronaldo.
How FIFA reached this conclusion is a joke, but if we are going to throw a tantrum and a fit than what happened with Ronaldo deserves the same burn-it-to-the-ground furor.
Instead, Ronaldo’s presence at this World Cup has been controversy-free, including his time on Monday during Spain’s 1-0 defeat of Portugal in the round of 16. He had a few chances to score, including a brilliant attempt in the first half that required a stop from Spain’s Unai Simón that will be a highlight of the tournament.
“Naturally, with sadness for leaving the World Cup like this,” Ronaldo told a large group of reporters after the match. “I gave everything. I did my best, and I leave with a clear conscience. This is the life of a footballer; sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.”
Nothing he did in this World Cup sullies, or taints, this tournament, and neither will Balogun.
Ronaldo should have been suspended, too
Back in November, long before the entire world was watching, Ronaldo received a red card during a World Cup qualifier against Ireland. The prettiest man in football landed a nasty elbow to Ireland’s Dara O’ Shea and was justifiably handed a red card.
The referee had no choice; even if the entire officiating crew had been born and raised in Portugal, they would have agreed that Ronaldo’s elbow was not some involuntary twitch. Consistent with the rules of the game, he merited a red card.
His infraction normally would have resulted in a three-match ban for “violent conduct,” which would have meant he should have missed Portugal’s opening game in this World Cup.
But, this is Ronaldo.
Rather than uphold the three-match suspension, FIFA magically found a middle ground via some vague “laws” in its rule book. FIFA’s disciplinary committee suspended Ronaldo’s suspension, and his punishment was to miss one pre-World Cup friendly.
Also, he will have to miss two matches under this one-year probationary period.
This is the equivalent of the college football team that suspends its Heisman Trophy-hopeful quarterback the first quarter of the season opener against Jacksonville State Teacher’s College of the Americas.
FIFA found a subjective rule to ensure that one of the biggest jersey sellers in the sport would be available to play every World Cup match.
It did something similar for Balogun, who is playing for one of the host nations of this World Cup, and because the original red card was a needless reach.
FIFA’s VAR still needs oversight
Former Oklahoma Sooners and Dallas Cowboys head coach Barry Switzer once said, “You can’t take the ‘homer’ out of instant replay.”
FIFA implemented its “Video Assistant Referee” in 2016, and its history has been as smooth as a 24-ounce. glass of rusty nails; it’s similar to the video review histories common in the NBA, NFL, NCAA football and the rest. Most of it is good, but when it’s bad, it’s inexcusable.
“VAR” has the benefit of slow motion and potentially 10 angles to see the infraction, or play in question, but it still requires a human being to interpret the tragedy of the moment.
Ronaldo’s elbow looked far more intentional, and egregious, than Balogun’s play that happened in the context of a player battling for a ball against an opponent with his foot. There is nothing about throwing an elbow at an opponent that is about going for the ball. The game is about feet, not arms.
By the letter of FIFA’s “laws,” Ronaldo should have served the punishment, and missed Portugal’s first match of this tournament.
He didn’t because FIFA has a way to make an exception for a player like Ronaldo. And Balogun.
And if we are going throw a tantrum about Balogun, Ronaldo deserves the same reaction.
But he didn’t get it because that’s the life of a footballer when your name is Cristiano Ronaldo.
This story was originally published July 6, 2026 at 7:27 PM.
