\u201cWe all know that this verdict was influenced from external forces and did not have the proper process,\u201d says president of the Norwegian
\n oslo
\nNorway\u2019s football chief told The Times they are set to make a formal complaint to Fifa over the suspension of Folarin Balogun\u2019s World Cup ban because it has put \u201cthe whole game at risk\u201d.
\nLise Klaveness, the president of the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF), says she will seek the backing of her board to lodge the complaint with Fifa\u2019s ethics committee over an incident that \u201cshould not have happened\u201d.
\nThe NFF have already formally complained over Fifa President Gianni Infantino awarding football\u2019s governing body\u2019s inaugural Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump, which was widely ridiculed.
\n\u201cI will bring it to a board meeting and discuss with my board, and then we do it,\u201d Klaveness told The Times in an interview published on Thursday.
\n\u201cTo me, it should be in the same sphere of ethical complaint.\u201d
\nTrump\u2019s involvement in the Balogun affair sparked the controversy.
\nBalogun\u2019s red card in the last-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina resulted in an automatic suspension for the match with Belgium.
\nBut Fifa stepped in and suspended his ban, leading to widespread condemnation, especially when it emerged that Trump had intervened by phoning Infantino.
\nBelgium appeared inspired by the row and thrashed the co-hosts 4-1.
\n\u201cWhen you bend a rule like this, you\u2019re on a slippery slope that will put the whole game at risk,\u201d said Klaveness.
\n\u201cIt is a worry for the game when you compromise fundamental rules of the game.
\n\u201cFirst of all, it should not have happened. It is very important now to have honest communication around it.
\n\u201cWe all know that this verdict was influenced from external forces and did not have the proper process.\u201d
\n\u201cWe need our leader in Fifa to say that this was an error,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
\u2018Under the carpet\u2019
\nKlaveness, a former Norway international who has been head of the NFF since 2022, said bending over for a head of state was a dangerous precedent.
\n\u201cIf you start to adapt in such a way towards state leaders and state politics, you will move your behaviour and the organisation\u2019s behaviour, and also the red line of what states\u2019 leaders should interfere with,\u201d she said.
\n\u201cAnd that happened.\u201d
\nKlaveness was unimpressed too that, according to The Times, the decision to suspend the ban had been taken solely by by the chairman of Fifa\u2019s disciplinary committee, Mohammad al-Kamali, who did not consult the other members.
\n\u201cWhen you make controversial decisions, and when there has been an external, very powerful voice in your ear, it\u2019s very important that you have more voices (making the decision),\u201d she said.
\n\u201cAnd if you don\u2019t, it\u2019s a mistake.\u201d
\nKlaveness said the issue could not just be laid to rest and forgotten about.
\n\u201cTo try to sweep this under the carpet now will not fly,\u201d the 45-year-old lawyer said.
\n\u201cToo many felt this… coaches, players, fans… that this was too close to the game.\u201d
\nKlaveness, who says she is not a contender to take on Infantino in the presidential election next year, is equally critical of the proposal by South America to increase the finals from 48 to 64 teams.
\nNorway enjoyed a successful return to the finals after a 28-year hiatus, losing to England in the quarter-finals.
\n\u201cSmaller nations like ourselves, that haven\u2019t been there for 20 years, showed the World Cup could be extended to 48 teams,\u201d said Klaveness.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s not in football\u2019s interest, or even reasonable, to now start to talk about 64 teams \u2014 48 teams was a big change.
\n\u201cIf you bring the discussion now to 64, and powerful people say it, you will create distrust.
\n\u201cThe World Cup should not interfere with the domestic leagues, or the confederations, more than it does today.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cWe all know that this verdict was influenced from external forces and did not have the proper process,\u201d says president of the Norwegian oslo Norway\u2019s football chief told The Times they are set to make a formal complaint to Fifa over the suspension of Folarin Balogun\u2019s World Cup ban because it has put \u201cthe whole […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":558025,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-558013","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n