France appeal to FIFA to cancel Olise’s yellow card after Balogun case

The French Football Federation (FFF) has appealed to FIFA to overturn the yellow card shown to Michael Olise during France’s 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the Round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Olise, one of France’s standout performers at the tournament, was booked following an altercation with Paraguay midfielder Matias Galarza. Although Galarza fell to the ground clutching his face, television replays appeared to show the Bayern Munich forward only grabbing his opponent’s shirt.

If the booking stands, Olise will head into Thursday’s World Cup quarter-final against Morocco one caution away from suspension. Another yellow card would rule him out of a potential semi-final against either Spain or Portugal should France progress.

According to sources familiar with the matter, who spoke anonymously because they were not authorised to discuss the issue publicly, the FFF has formally appealed the caution to FIFA. The world football governing body has yet to comment on the appeal.

The French federation maintains that its request is based solely on what it considers an incorrect decision during the match and insists the appeal is unrelated to FIFA’s recent decision to suspend the one-match ban handed to United States striker Folarin Balogun.

Balogun was originally sent off in the USA’s first knockout-round victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina but was later cleared to feature against Belgium after FIFA suspended his ban for one year under Article 27 of its disciplinary code.

The decision sparked criticism across European football, with UEFA issuing a strongly worded statement.

The governing body said the ruling had “crossed a red line”, leaving “the integrity of the game … at stake”.

UEFA added: “We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.”

Vanguard News

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