Suspension - Soccer Wiretap

Folarin Balogun will sit out the United States' World Cup round of 16 matchup with Belgium after his red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina cannot be appealed.

The suspension stems from FIFA's automatic one-match ban tied to red card dismissals during the tournament. Sources added that FIFA has not yet decided whether to extend Balogun's punishment beyond that single match.

FIFA previously lengthened a similar ban for Qatar midfielder Assim Madibo, stretching his suspension from one game to five after Canada's Ismael Kone suffered a broken leg on the play. No such review has been confirmed for Balogun's case.

Under FIFA's disciplinary code, a red card triggers automatic suspension from the following match. Sources noted that VAR review functions as the initial appeal process, since match officials assess incidents in real time before any card is shown.

Balogun leads the Americans in scoring this World Cup with three goals, including the opening tally in the United States' 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in Santa Clara. Brazilian referee Raphael Claus issued the red card in the 64th minute following a VAR review of a challenge on defender Tarik Muharemovic.

Head coach Mauricio Pochettino sharply criticized the call afterward.

"Never a red card," said Pochettino, calling the challenge a "normal action in football."

Muharemovic needed extended on-field treatment after Balogun's studs struck his ankle and Achilles tendon during the play, despite Pochettino's objection to the severity of the punishment.

The United States will face Belgium in Seattle on Monday with a quarterfinal berth on the line.

Ivory Coast striker Elye Wahi was arrested by French police on May 29 on suspicion of spot-fixing, less than two weeks before the 2026 FIFA World Cup, The Athletic has revealed. The 23-year-old has since started for Ivory Coast at the tournament.

The Marseille public prosecutor's office confirmed the arrest in a statement to The Athletic.

"We can confirm that a 23-year-old football player, competing in France's Ligue 1, was arrested on May 29 as part of an investigation opened by the Marseille public prosecutor's office into allegations of organized fraud, organized sports corruption, handling of proceeds of crime and money laundering," a spokesperson said. "He was released after he was interviewed in police custody. The investigations remain ongoing."

The probe began after France's Ligue de Football Professionnel received notifications of unusual betting activity surrounding Nice's Ligue 1 fixture against Metz on May 17, specifically wagers placed on Wahi to receive a yellow card. Wahi was booked in the 35th minute of that match following a late challenge on a Metz defender.

The caution triggered an automatic one-match suspension, ruling Wahi out of Nice's relegation playoff first leg against Saint-Etienne. Three days later, he returned to score twice in a 4-1 victory and was named man of the match before anti-corruption specialists arrested him afterward.

Wahi has not been charged with any crime. He traveled to the United States and started Ivory Coast's 1-0 Group E victory over Ecuador in Philadelphia on Sunday, hitting the crossbar before being substituted in the 55th minute. Manchester United winger Amad Diallo scored the winning goal in the 90th minute.

FIFA did not respond to questions from The Athletic regarding whether it knew of Wahi's arrest before Sunday's match or whether his eligibility to participate could be affected. Ivory Coast faces Group E leaders Germany in Toronto on Saturday.

Chelsea have dropped vice-captain Enzo Fernandez for Saturday's FA Cup quarterfinal against Port Vale and the April 12 Premier League match against Manchester City, head coach Liam Rosenior confirmed Friday. The decision follows a series of public comments from the Argentine midfielder that raised questions about his commitment to the club.

"As a football club, with me as part of that process, we've made a decision. He won't be available for tomorrow's game and he won't be available for Manchester City next Sunday," Rosenior said. "I think for Enzo, it's disappointing to speak in that way."

Fernandez's comments began surfacing after Chelsea's 8-2 aggregate Champions League elimination by Paris Saint-Germain in March. Speaking to Argentine media during the international break, he expressed uncertainty about his future at Stamford Bridge and said he "did not understand" the club's decision to dismiss former head coach Enzo Maresca in January.

"Obviously it's a departure that hurt us a lot because we had an identity, he had given us an order, beyond how football sometimes gives you good or bad results," Fernandez said of Maresca's exit.

In a separate interview, Fernandez was asked which European city he would choose to live in and replied: "I really like Madrid — it's similar to Buenos Aires, the food, everything."

Rosenior framed the suspension as a necessary cultural boundary rather than a personal indictment of Fernandez.

"What I will say about Enzo is in terms of him as a character, as a person, I've got no bad words to say about him, but I think a line was crossed in terms of our culture and what we want to build. So we had to make a sanction."

Rosenior stressed the situation is not permanent, saying the "door is not closed" on Fernandez returning to the squad. Left-back Marc Cucurella, who also publicly questioned Maresca's dismissal, was treated as a separate case and remains available for selection following what Rosenior described as a productive conversation Thursday.

Fernandez, 25, has registered 12 goals in 46 appearances this season. His contract at Stamford Bridge runs through 2032.

Chelsea sit sixth in the Premier League with one win in their last six matches across all competitions.

Chelsea have been handed a suspended one-year transfer ban and fined £10.75 million ($14 million) by the Premier League for historical rule breaches, the league announced. The club have also received an immediate nine-month academy transfer ban.

The sanctions stem from information voluntarily shared with the league by the consortium led by American businessman Todd Boehly following their 2022 takeover from Roman Abramovich. The Premier League found that between 2011 and 2018, undisclosed payments were made by third parties associated with the club to players, unregistered agents and other third parties.

Crucially, the league determined that even had the payments been properly declared in historical financial submissions, Chelsea would not have breached profitability and sustainability rules. The club's proactive self-reporting, admissions and cooperation were cited as significant mitigating factors in determining the punishment.

Chelsea also face 74 separate alleged breaches of Football Association rules connected to the same disclosures.

The club defended its conduct throughout the process in a statement, emphasizing its voluntary cooperation.

"The club voluntarily and proactively disclosed to all applicable regulators potential historical rule breaches, including incomplete financial reporting that took place over a decade ago," Chelsea said. "From the outset of this process, the club has treated these matters with the utmost seriousness, providing full cooperation to all relevant regulators."

The suspended transfer ban means Chelsea will not be prohibited from signings unless they commit further violations within the specified period.

Vinicius will not be punished by Real Madrid for his reaction to being substituted during the second half of their Clasico win over Barcelona. Vincius was visibly frustrated and angry with Xabi Alonso's decision to remove him from the match for Rodrygo. 

ESPN has reported that Alonso and Vinícius' relationship has been affected by the incident.

Vinicius and Real Madrid have made no progress in extension talks ahead of his current deal's expiration in 2027. Vinicius has also been linked with a transfer to Saudi Arabia. 

Luis Suarez has been given a six-game suspension by the Leagues Cup Organizing Committee for spitting at a Seattle Sounders staff member. Inter Miami lost the League Cup Final 3-0.

The statement noted that "Major League Soccer (MLS) reserves the right to impose further disciplinary actions on the players and coaching staff involved."

MLS has not made an official announcement about any additional suspensions.

The Leagues Cup is an annual tournament held each summer between MLS and Liga MX clubs.

Suarez apologized for his actions.

MLS has issued one-match suspensions to Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba for skipping the All-Star Game in Austin, Texas on Wednesday.

Messi and Alba will be forced to miss Inter Miami's match on Sunday against FC Cincinnati.

"Inter Miami CF's Jordi Alba and Lionel Messi will be unavailable for the club's match against FC Cincinnati on Saturday, July 26, due to their absence at this week's Major League Soccer All-Star Game," the league said in a statement. "Per league rules, any player who does not participate in the All-Star Game without prior approval from the league is ineligible to compete in their club's next match."

Jobe Bellingham will miss Borussia Dortmund's Club World Cup quarterfinal clash against his brother Jude's Real Madrid on Saturday after receiving a yellow card suspension in Tuesday's victory over Monterrey.

The younger Bellingham brother picked up his second yellow card of the tournament during Dortmund's win at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Dortmund manager Niko Kovac confirmed the suspension will prevent the highly anticipated sibling matchup in Saturday's quarterfinal.

Kovac substituted Jobe in the 55th minute as a precautionary measure to avoid a potential red card. The manager acknowledged the player's disappointment over missing the family showdown.

"I think we all saw that he was very disappointed. I think he did not exactly know that the second yellow card is a suspension at halftime. He was a little bit surprised."

"I substituted him not because of his performance. I changed because he had a yellow card in this game, and you saw we had some very intensive duels, and I did not want that someone is maybe then booked twice."

The Dortmund manager remained optimistic about future opportunities for the brothers to face each other professionally. Kovac suggested the siblings would likely meet again in Champions League competition given their young ages and career trajectories.

Jude Bellingham spent three seasons at Dortmund from 2020 to 2023 before transferring to Real Madrid. Jobe followed his brother's path by joining Dortmund from Sunderland this season.

Both clubs enter Saturday's quarterfinal unbeaten in the tournament, each recording three wins and one draw. The match will proceed without the anticipated family storyline that had captured significant media attention leading up to the fixture.

Mykhailo Mudryk faces a potential four-year ban after being charged with a doping offense. Mudryk tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance named meldonium and provisionally suspended back in December.

"We can confirm that Mykhailo Mudryk has been charged with Anti-Doping Rule Violations alleging the presence and/or use of a prohibited substance, in terms of Regulations 3 and 4 of The FA's Anti-Doping Regulations," said the FA in a statement. "As this is an ongoing case, we are not in a position to comment further at this time."

Chelsea declined to comment on the FA's latest action. Sources have told ESPN that the drug was likely administered while he was outside of the United Kingdom.

Chelsea bought Mudryk in January 2023 for a transfer fee of €70 million after he was initially close to joining Arsenal.

Jude Bellingham has received a suspension for two LaLiga games for "contemptuous or disrespectful attitudes towards a referee" after he received a red card in the aftermath of Real Madrid's controversial 2-2 draw at Valencia.

Bellingham was shown a red card for arguing with referee Jesús Gil Manzano, who had already blown his whistle moments before Bellingham scored what would have been a game-winning header.

The referee's postmatch report said Bellingham had shown an "aggressive attitude" and allegedly shouted "It's a f---ing goal" repeatedly.

Bellingham will miss Madrid's LaLiga games against Celta Vigo on Sunday and Osasuna on March 16, returning for their match with Athletic Club on March 31.