Balogun’s red card can’t be appealed; USMNT must cope without its star in the Belgium match

Balogun’s red card cannot be appealed under FIFA rules, so the USMNT will be without its star striker for the World Cup Round of 16 against Belgium. With Article 66.4 mandating automatic suspension and no mid-ground decision from VAR, the team must adjust its attack, likely turning to Ricardo Pepi to start and weighing other options like Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, or Gio Reyna as replacements while dealing with other injury concerns.