Celebrating a Sporting Icon
Before the controversy surrounding his red card took over the headlines, Folarin Balogun was in the spotlight for his impressive goal celebration. The United States men's national team striker scored in the 45th minute against Bosnia and Herzegovina at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium on Wednesday, putting the U.S. up 1-0, and celebrated by mimicking NBA star LeBron James' famous 'The Silencer' celebration.
Bridging the Gap Between Sports
Balogun explained the inspiration behind the celebration, saying 'Everyone knows the impact LeBron has. He’s an absolute megastar. I just wanted to just bridge the gap and bring everyone together: the basketball community, the soccer community. We’re all just athletes trying to do the same thing: create history for our country. So, that was a bit of backstory behind the celebration, and for him to reach out was crazy.'
LeBron James responded to the celebration on social media, and Balogun was thrilled. 'I just saw the tweet like you guys,' Balogun said. 'It was just surreal. I didn’t even think it was real — you never know with AI. I got told it was real, and I was very proud.'
Support and Suspension
Although Balogun will not be available for the United States' round of 16 match against Belgium on Monday at Seattle Stadium due to his automatic one-match suspension, he is grateful for the support the team has received. 'Before this tournament, we wanted to set out and bring the country together, and I feel like we’re doing that,' Balogun said.
