By Amy Tennery and Kristina Cooke
NEW YORK, July 6 (Reuters) - Folarin Balogun plays the biggest game of his life on Monday caught in a complex intersection of soccer, identity and U.S. politics, with an intervention from President Donald Trump helping propel him to the centre of one of the World Cup’s biggest controversies.
Balogun was never supposed to feature in Monday's round of 16 game against Belgium, after earning a red card during the United States' previous match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
FIFA on Sunday stunningly said it would suspend the World Cup ban.
The twist carried a striking irony. Trump, who has repeatedly called for ending birthright citizenship, had publicly urged FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review Balogun’s case. Balogun acquired U.S. citizenship by birth after his Nigerian mother was unable to return home from a trip to New York because she was too far advanced in her pregnancy to fly. She took her newborn son back to Britain when he was one month old, where he would grow up before eventually choosing to represent the United States.
After initially competing for England at youth level, he opted to join the U.S. Soccer programme in 2023.
Balogun's origin story added another layer of interest to an already charmed World Cup turn, his career blossoming on sport's biggest stage as U.S. Soccer sheds its decades-old image as an incubator for overwhelmingly white talent.
Supporters of birthright citizenship cheered on his performances at a time when citizenship, immigration and American identity have come to the fore in U.S. politics.
Balogun "prove(s) birthright citizenship isn’t a loophole — it’s America," declared a headline from a Miami Herald editorial on Thursday.
"Mr. Balogun's case is an extraordinary example of the good that is made available to us by things like birthright citizenship, giving people an opportunity that they would not have otherwise, to be their best and to contribute to the United States in ways that benefit all of us," said Jorge Loweree, the managing director of programs at the American Immigration Council.
The United States is one of 33 countries, most of them in the Western Hemisphere, that allow unconditional birthright, after an 1898 Supreme Court ruling affirmed that the 14th Amendment allows for birthright citizenship.
'EXTRAORDINARY TO WITNESS'
Christian Pulisic had been the charismatic front man for the United States team for years, a rare genuine celebrity in the men's game for a country so often ambivalent towards it.
But while "Captain America" Pulisic still has the most affection from sponsors, it was Balogun who became the United States' breakout star, netting three goals to get fans dreaming of a deep run in the tournament.
A year and a half after Pulisic raised eyebrows with his "Trump dance" goal celebration, Balogun earned shoutouts from America's biggest sports star, LeBron James, as he mimicked the NBA legend's "Silencer" celebration on the pitch.
But the dream turned into a nightmare when he was shown a red card on Wednesday after a Video Assistant Referee review for planting his boot on the ankle of Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic, which appeared to be inadvertent.
Pulisic wrapped his arm around Balogun as the 25-year-old striker took the moment in stride. Days later, he pledged to put all his energy into supporting his teammates off the pitch in their clash with Belgium.
But less than a week after the Supreme Court handed Trump a stinging defeat in his central policy goal of ending birthright citizenship, the president dialled up FIFA boss Gianni Infantino in search of a reprieve.
"The timing and the development of the story has been extraordinary to witness," said Loweree.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll this year found that most Americans opposed ending birthright citizenship.
While Infantino confirmed that he had heard from Trump, he denied that the U.S. president had any impact on the suspension of the red card.
'I'M AT HOME'
Balogun was raised in London and came up through the Arsenal academy, with England, Nigeria and the United States all possible landing spots for the prolific scorer.
"It feels like I’m at home here," Balogun explained in U.S. Soccer's announcement that he would play for the Stars and Stripes.
He said he made the decision with his family but was also swayed by a vacation to Orlando.
"I think that’s when I really saw the full force of the U.S. fans," he said at the time. "It’s just something I’m really happy that I’ve decided to do."
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York, additional reporting by Kristina Cooke, Steve Holland, Bo Erickson and Fernando Kallas; editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Ed Osmond)
