Balogun opts to play for US instead of England
Promising striker Folarin Balogun has opted to play for the US national team rather than England.
FIFA said in a statement to The Associated Press yesterday that it approved a request to change Balogun’s national team affiliation from England, which he had represented at the under-21 level.
The 21-year-old Balogun, who has 19 goals in the French league this season while on loan at Reims from Arsenal, was born in New York and grew up in London. He had also been eligible to play for Nigeria through family ties.
Balogun confirmed the move in a video on his social media accounts using the slogans “I’m coming home” and “Let’s make history.”
“Not only is he an extremely talented player, he’s also a good man who is going to add value to our national team both on and off the field at a time when the team is continuing to improve,” US interim coach Anthony Hudson said in a statement. “It’s clear that he values his US roots and we can’t wait for him to come in and be a part of the team.”
Balogun has been in demand after a breakout season in France.
He was duelling with Kylian Mbappé to top the scoring charts for much of the season, although the Paris Saint-Germain star now leads with 26 goals. Balogun is tied for fifth.
Balogun, born in Brooklyn to Nigerian parents who were living in London, said the choice to play for the US was taken with his family.
“We decided it would be the right thing for me, to represent the country I was born in.
In the end it became a no-brainer,” he said in an interview published by the United States Soccer Federation.
Balogun explained last year in an interview with the French league website how he came to be born in the US.
“My parents were on holiday there for a few months because we have family in New York,” he said. “But very soon after I was born, we all moved back to London.”
He was nurtured at Arsenal, where he had coaching sessions with club great Thierry Henry, and played for England and the US at youth level before establishing himself in the England U21s.
FIFA rules allow players to change national eligibility before playing in a competitive game at senior level.