FIFA set to change rules that led to Folarin Balogun World Cup red card reversal - sources - ESPN

FIFA is set to amend its rules to prevent a repeat of the controversial reversal of the World Cup suspension issued to United States forward Folarin Balogun, sources have told ESPN.

On Thursday, FIFA president Gianni Infantino will chair the first session of the 37-member FIFA council since his secretive and divisive World Cup sell-off plan was revealed — and dropped within days — 11 weeks ago.

At the top of the agenda items is a motion to amend FIFA rules to prohibit the suspensions of automatic one-match bans in the future. The decision by FIFA's disciplinary committee to suspend the ban imposed on Balogun sparked outcry that it amounted to political interference, after U.S. President Donald Trump admitted he had personally asked Infantino to review the ban.

FIFA members have criticized Infantino for his ties to Trump and potential conflicts of interest.

But a change to the FIFA rule alone is unlikely to satisfy those still seeking clarity on how Balogun's ban came to be suspended, including Football Association chair and FIFA vice president Debbie Hewitt, who wrote to Infantino last month calling for the release of documents related to the Balogun case.

Infantino has always insisted the disciplinary committee's decision was made entirely independently of him.

On Thursday, Hewitt and other fellow council members are also expected push Infantino for more information about the now-abandoned FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal, which sought to bring private investment into a company that would run the commercial interests of the World Cup and other competitions.

Confrontation over these issues comes ahead of a Nov. 18 deadline for candidates to enter FIFA's presidential election, which will be held four months later in