Highly rated striker Folarin Balogun commits to the USMNT

The U.S. men’s soccer team won another big multi-national player commitment Tuesday when 21-year-old striker Folarin Balogun declared for the program.

“My decision to represent the United States came together with my family,” Balogun said in remarks to the U.S. Soccer Federation’s website. “In the end, it became a no-brainer, but for sure it’s just something I wanted to do and it feels like I’m at home here. To represent the United States means a lot, more than people would know. I’m very proud and honored to have this opportunity, and I want to give everything I have to make our team successful.”

Balogun was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Nigerian parents, and raised in London. He grew up in the youth academy of English powerhouse club Arsenal, and began his pro career there with 10 appearances from 2020-22. For the most part, though, he played for Arsenal’s under-21 team, as he had before he turned pro. And he made quite an impression: 37 goals and 10 assists in 49 games from 2019-22.

Across the Atlantic, scouts and media started paying attention. The spotlight grew when Balogun went on loan to English second-division team Middlesbrough for the second half of last season to get more senior-level playing time.

Balogun ended up registering just three goals and three assists in 21 games for Boro. But the goals came in a four-game spring flurry, sparking chatter on whether he could lift the struggling U.S. striker pool before the World Cup.

» READ MORE: Zack Steffen opens up about missing the World Cup and returning to the USMNT

That chatter turned louder last August when Balogun went on loan to French first-division club Reims. He flew out of the gates with five goals in his first six games, and now has 19 goals in the Ligue 1 campaign — tied for fifth in the scoring charts.

At the international level, Balogun has played mostly for English youth teams, rising to the under-21 level over the last year and a half. But in 2018, he played for a U.S. under-18 team at an exhibition tournament. (Coincidentally, the squad included future Union right back Nathan Harriel.)

Because it wasn’t an official competition, Balogun could keep his options open. And he’s never been shy about being open to playing for the U.S. Last fall, he opened the door to Nigeria, too.

U.S. Soccer watched all of this intently, though not too loudly. The men’s national team’s scouts prefer to do their business out of the spotlight, especially amid the Reyna-Berhalter scandal’s big headlines.

But they also know the quiet approach works. Over the last two years, the U.S. has landed several dual-national players including Sergiño Dest, Yunus Musah, Malik Tillman, and Alejandro Zendejas.

U.S. fans, meanwhile, had no reservations. They flooded Balogun’s social media posts with hopes that he’d come on board.

» READ MORE: The Union’s Nathan Harriel played with star USMNT prospect Folarin Balogun, and remembers it well

In mid-March, things went to a new level. When Hudson announced the roster for last month’s Concacaf Nations League games, he said there was “open dialogue” with Balogun. At the same time, the player backed out of an England under-21 call-up, claiming an injury.

The resulting noise prompted questions to Three Lions senior team manager Gareth Southgate, who said he wouldn’t call Balogun up just to secure his services.

Balogun responded with a post on Instagram: “In life. Go where your [sic] appreciated.”

The most dramatic plot twist came later in March, as the U.S. gathered for Concacaf Nations League games that month.

On March 22, two nights before the U.S.’ game at Grenada, Balogun posted on Instagram from a location that looked quite like downtown Orlando. The next day, he tweeted a photo of himself training outside with the caption “This heat!” — as un-English as weather can be. (Balogun has since removed his old Instagram posts, starting his account over with his U.S. commitment.)

A few hours later, it was confirmed. Not only was Balogun in Orlando, now he was courtside at a Magic game against the New York Knicks.

» READ MORE: Alejandro Zendejas’ commitment a needed boost at an uncertain time for the USMNT

Then Balogun visited his hometown’s most famous sports team, the Yankees, at their spring training in Tampa, Fla. Like the Magic, they gave him a jersey with his name and the striker’s traditional No. 9. And the Yankees had pitcher Tommy Kahnle dress in U.S. national team gear for the photo.

Now the truth was out: Balogun wasn’t just here to rehab in the sun. U.S. Soccer was recruiting him, with all the sizzle of a five-star quarterback visiting Penn State.

“I think that’s when I really saw the full force of the U.S. fans,” Balogun said Tuesday. “I was there and I just posted a photo with my friends thinking that it was just a holiday picture. Before I knew it, I just saw loads of comments and people knew I was in America, and I just really felt the love from there.”

» READ MORE: New U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker shows what he knows — and what he doesn’t

There were pitches from U.S. players, too, including two with Arsenal connections: current backup goalkeeper Matt Turner and former academy player Musah. U.S. Soccer revealed Tuesday that at the end of Balogun’s Orlando trip, he was treated to dinner by those two and stars Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie “to make sure he enjoyed his last night in the United States.”

Musah has a similar story to Balogun: born in New York to Ghanaian parents, and raised in Italy and England. He was eligible for four nations when he picked the U.S., and his charming character makes him a perfect ambassador. When Tillman joined the U.S. last summer, Musah was his guide.

“There’s been a lot of buildup, so I’ve obviously seen people saying that I should choose to represent the U.S.,” Balogun said, “and it’s just something I’m really happy that I’ve decided to do.”

Even Balogun’s mother got in on the act.

“When I broke the news to my family they were all just over the moon, especially my mom,” he said. “She said, ‘What took you so long?’”

» READ MORE: U.S. Soccer names former Union defender Oguchi Onyewu to a key new role

Balogun recently filed formal paperwork to switch his national team eligibility from England to the U.S., and on Tuesday, FIFA approved it. His first chance to play for the U.S. will come in the Nations League final four, set for June 15-18 in Las Vegas.

It’s never a good idea to project one player as a national team’s savior, because soccer requires depth along with elite individuals. But there’s little doubt that Balogun is a big-time prospect, and his commitment to the U.S. is a big boost.

“We are delighted that Folarin has chosen to represent the United States,” U.S. interim manager Anthony Hudson said in a statement. “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. It’s clear that he values his U.S. roots and we can’t wait for him to come in and be a part of the team.”