FIFA has dismissed Belgium's challenge to the most-debated political intervention in a World Cup in decades.That means forward Folarin Balogun is eligible to play on Monday night in Seattle. A win would send the U.S. to the quar terfinals, which would be the best U.S. result at a mens World Cup since 2002.The Belgian soccer federation wanted explanation from FIFA about the decision to let U.S forward Folarin Balogun play at the World Cup despite getting a red card in his previous game.Belgium takes on the United States later Monday for a spot in the quarterfinals.RELATED STORY | Folarin Balogun cleared to play against Belgium after one-game ban suspended by FIFAThe Belgian federation (RBFA) said it has still not received either FIFAs decision or any explanation regarding this matter. In these circumstances, it has no choice but to challenge the players eligibility for the upcoming match.It did not specify where it intends to appeal FIFAs decision.U.S. President Donald Trump intervened on behalf of star U.S. forward Balogun, whose red-card suspension was lifted in a decision that allowed him to play against Belgium.The Belgian federation said it learned through media reports about the FIFA's move and sent a letter to the governing body requesting a copy of the decision as well as an explanation of the process.As its only response, FIFA sent a letter to the RBFA stating that it considered this correspondence to constitute an appeal, that a judge had been appointed, and that the RBFA had only a few hours to complete that appeal, it said. No information whatsoever was provided by FIFA.The RBFA insisted that FIFAs regulations state that the reasoned decision must first have been communicated to the appellant.While the RBFA was merely seeking legitimate explanations, FIFA itself created an appeal and immediately ensured that it would be declared inadmissible, it said. All of this occurred while FIFA simultaneously refused to respond to the RBFAs legitimate requests.Balogun, the star forward for the U.S. with three goals in the tournament, received a red card for stepping awkwardly on the right ankle of Tarik Muharemovi of Bosnia-Herzegovina in a 2-0 round of 32 win on Wednesday, triggering an automatic one-game suspension.FIFA announced Sunday that the suspension had been lifted for the round of 16 match, an extraordinary move that triggered praise from Trump and outrage from Belgiums team. It appeared to be the first time since 1962 that a red card during a World Cup didnt result in a suspension.Regardless of the sporting outcome of this match, the RBFA is deeply concerned by the course of events and will continue to fight in the coming hours, days and months in defense of the fundamental principles of ethics, fair competition, and the interests of football as a whole, the Belgian federation added. ...read more read less