Belgium said a controversial Fifa decision to lift a ban on United States striker Folarin Balogun, taken shortly before their World Cup last-16 tie in Seattle, galvanised their squad, who went on to beat the tournament co-hosts 4-1 to reach the quarter-finals. The episode matters because it drew accusations of political interference in football, after US President Donald Trump confirmed he had asked Fifa to review the suspension, prompting criticism from Uefa, England manager Thomas Tuchel and the Belgian federation over the precedent it set.

Balogun had been shown a straight red card against Bosnia-Herzegovina, which normally carries an automatic one-match ban, but Fifa suspended that ban for 12 months, allowing him to start. Belgium players felt a "sense of injustice" and responded on the pitch, later mocking the affair by imitating the "Trump dance" and posting an image of Romelu Lukaku with the caption "overturn this". Trump insisted he only requested a review and did not dictate the outcome, while critics noted that of 189 other World Cup red cards, only one player — Brazil's Garrincha in 1962 — had previously escaped a suspension.