The USMNT has spent years hunting for a true number nine, a striker who can be trusted to find the back of the net when it matters most. Folarin Balogun is starting to look like the answer, and the story behind how he ended up in a USA jersey makes his rise even more interesting.
Balogun opened the tournament in style, scoring twice in a 4-1 win over Paraguay that set the tone early. Australia took a different approach in the next match, crowding his space and making sure he never got comfortable on the ball. It worked, to a point.
He picked up a late yellow card and didn't add to his goal tally, but his movement still pulled defenders out of position and helped create the chances that carried the United States to a 2-0 win.
Even without a goal against Australia, Balogun walked away with Man of the Match honors in both matches, according to ESPN.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters - Blake Dahlin
His growing influence has put new attention on a decision he made back in 2023, and an old interview from around that time has resurfaced, showing just how much wearing the USA badge means to him.
"For me to represent the United States means a lot more than people know," Balogun said, per U.S. Soccer. "Across all sports when I was growing up, I just knew the United States would just dominate and win, especially at the Olympics. I would just always see them picking up gold medals. So, for me to now have the opportunity to represent them. It means a lot to me, and I just hope I can bring that prestige and winning mentality over into soccer."
Balogun was born on July 3, 2001, in Brooklyn, New York, to Nigerian parents, according to Wikipedia. His parents were living in London at the time but happened to be visiting New York while his mother was seven months pregnant.
When they tried to fly home, airline staff wouldn't let her board because of safety rules around late stage pregnancy. That single policy is the reason Balogun was born on American soil.
He moved back to London just two months later and grew up entirely in England, per U.S. Soccer's official site. His birth and heritage left him with triple eligibility, able to choose between the United States, England or Nigeria.
He explained the thinking behind his final decision in that same interview.
"My decision to represent the United States, we came together with my family, and we decided it would be the right thing for me, the country I was born in," Balogun continued. "So, in the end, I became a no-brainer. But for sure, it's just something that I wanted to do, and it feels like I'm at home here."
FIFA approved his switch to represent the United States in May 2023. Now, with the World Cup on home soil underway, Balogun's choice three years ago is shaping up to be one of the more important decisions in USMNT history.
