In a sports world where the exclusion of an athlete often sparks lawsuits or threatened lawsuits, USMNT striker Folarin Balogun on Sunday learned that sometimes good news can happen without law.

FIFA announced that Balogun, who had received an automatic one-match suspension for a straight red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina last Wednesday, will be eligible to play against Belgium on Monday in the World Cup round of 16.

The move by FIFA did not follow an appeal by Balogun or the USMNT, as no such appeal was possible under FIFA rules. 

Instead, FIFA relied on the discretion provided by Article 27 of its disciplinary code. Article 27 permits FIFA to suspend a disciplinary measure, as “the judicial body may decide to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure.”

The New York Times reported Sunday that on Wednesday, President Donald Trump called FIFA president Giovanni Infantino asking for Balogun’s suspension to be reviewed. Trump and Infantino have cultivated a cozy relationship in the lead-up to this North American-hosted World Cup, including FIFA creating and awarding Trump with the first FIFA Peace Prize in December—reportedly at Infantino’s discretion. 

FIFA is suspending the disciplinary action for a probationary period of a year, meaning Balogun could still face discipline if he commits another infraction.

In a statement, Belgium’s Football Association disagreed with FIFA’s move to allow Balogun to play Monday and said it’s considering its options, though like USMNT, the country’s options to wage a challenge are limited. Teams are bound by FIFA’s decisions.

On Monday, Belgium filed an appeal to the FIFA appeals committee, whose decisions are considered final and binding. It’s unclear whether the appeal will be decided before the match starts at 8 p.m. ET Monday, especially if the committee isn’t supplied with the necessary documentation—particularly a written statement from FIFA that explains its reasoning—in time.

Belgium could eventually seek relief from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), an international arbitration body that reviews legal challenges related to Olympic sports and athletes. Decisions by the appeals committee can be challenged at CAS, which could decide that Balogun should have been deemed ineligible for the match against USMNT and, if USMNT won, the match forfeited. That would be quite the twist to an already strange situation.

Balogun is one of the most critical pieces of the USMNT attack, having scored three goals so far in this World Cup—including the goal that put the U.S. up 1-0 in the round of 32 before he received the red card.

The punishment, which occurred when Balogun committed a foul on defender Tarik Muharemović by landing on his leg, was unpopular with some. 

U.S. head coach Mauricio Pochettino thought it wasn’t serious enough to warrant a red card, since Balogun (allegedly) lacked “an intention to step on the player” and was instead engaged in a standard—and permissible—soccer move. But criticism of a punishment is itself a standard event in sports: sometimes the refs and officials make unpopular calls.

It’s clear that FIFA, as a pro sports league and armed with a rule like Article 27, had the right to table Balogun’s suspension. The reality is that players and teams agree to the rules as a condition of participation, a state of affairs that makes them challenging to legally contest. FIFA’s move is also not unprecedented, as it tabled Cristiano Ronaldo’s two matches of his three-match suspension for an on-field conduct issue.

But why FIFA is invoking its discretion with Balogun—and why it hasn’t tabled suspensions of some other players—remains to be seen.

For example, there has been criticism of Qatar’s Assim Madibo receiving a five-match suspension for fouling Canada’s Ismaël Koné, whose leg was broken. According to some observers, a three-match suspension would have been more in line with FIFA precedent.

A change in eligibility for Balogun through a sports association making a decision, without being sued or facing a threatened lawsuit, is a sharp contrast to modern day college sports. 

In recent years, the NCAA has been besieged with lawsuits claiming federal antitrust and state law third party claims over athletes being unable to play and thus unable to earn NIL and revenue share. The NCAA litigation has even sparked multiple bills introduced in Congress and executive orders signed by President Donald Trump. 

Balogun hasn’t been completely out of the sights of law, as the U.S. Supreme Court recently upholding birthright citizenship connected to the 25-year-old: he was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Nigerian parents who were living in London at the time.

(This story has been updated to include response from Belgium. This story has also been updated in the eighth and ninth paragraphs to indicate that Belgium has appealed the decision.)