There are sporting victories that are clean and there are sporting victories where the celebration is complicated by a red card, coordinated racist abuse of a player online, and a government department that claimed the player as proof of American soil while simultaneously fighting his citizenship in court, and the United States’ 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Tuesday night in Santa Clara was the second kind.
The U.S. beat Bosnia 2-0 to advance to the round of 16, where they face Belgium on July 6 in Seattle. Folarin Balogun scored in the match. He is the team’s top scorer. He is American through birthright citizenship, the right the Trump administration spent 15 months trying to end and which the Supreme Court affirmed on the same day Balogun scored. DHS had previously posted “OUR SOIL” with his photograph. The Supreme Court, the DHS social media account, and Balogun’s goal are all part of the same Tuesday.
According to HuffPost, which has been live-blogging the tournament, the win was “marred by a red card” when a U.S. player received an automatic suspension that will affect the Belgium match, and by “shocking social media abuse” directed at a U.S. player following the game. HuffPost’s headline describes the abuse as “shocking,” which is the word publications use when it is specifically bad enough to require that word. The U.S. coach addressed the red card situation publicly. FIFA has not yet addressed the social media abuse situation publicly, which is the response FIFA uses for situations that require addressing.
The U.S. is through. Belgium won Group G and is ranked 10th in the world. The U.S. beat them 5-2 in a March friendly in the other direction, meaning the teams have now established that they can each win one match against the other, with the one that matters scheduled for Sunday.
Balogun is American. The Supreme Court confirmed it Tuesday. He then scored. DHS had already declared the soil his.
When the team wins, the star scorer has his citizenship affirmed by the Supreme Court, and racist social media abuse follows the victory, what exactly is the country celebrating and what is it not?
Sources
HuffPost: U.S. Win Marred By Red Card, Shocking Social Media Abuse: 2026 FIFA World Cup Live Updates
HuffPost: U.S. Beats Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 To Advance To Round Of 16 And Keep Its World Cup Dreams Alive
