Free pizza worth 12 crore Tk following Balogun's red card

United States striker Folarin Balogun received a direct red card during their knockout stage match against Bosnia and Herzegovina. While his exit was a major blow for the team on the pitch, this very card has turned into a stroke of good fortune for soccer fans in the country. True to their word, the popular pizza brand Domino's is now distributing $1 million (approximately 12 crore Bangladeshi Taka) worth of "Emergency Pizzas" to supporters!

Before the World Cup kicked off, Domino's had announced this promotional campaign titled "Emergency Pizzas for Red Cards." The condition was straightforward—if any player from the US team received a red card in any World Cup match, lucky individuals among the registered fans would receive free pizza.

In their promotional campaign, Domino's stated that they certainly did not want the US to get a red card; however, if they did, what could be better than free pizza to ease that pain slightly!

The US went through their three group stage matches without receiving a single red card, but things took a turn in the knockout stage. On Wednesday (July 1), in the 64th minute of the match against Bosnia, Balogun was sent off for a "serious foul play" after his boot caught the ankle of opposition defender Tarik Muharemović. Interestingly, the on-field referee did not brandish any card initially; following a VAR recommendation and a monitor review, Brazilian referee Raphael Claus handed out a direct red card. The penalty for this card is severe—the star striker, who has scored three goals in this World Cup, will be suspended for the Round of 16 match against Belgium.

However, Balogun's misfortune brought good luck to the fans. According to the campaign rules, Domino's will randomly select a maximum of 63,371 winners from those who had registered for the promotion by June 10. The selected winners will receive a free coupon for a medium two-topping pizza via email. For those who miss out, there is a consolation prize—a coupon offering a 20% discount on select menu items.

Despite being reduced to 10 men, the United States ultimately walked off the pitch with a victory, securing their spot in the Round of 16. All in all, the day turned out perfectly for American fans—celebrating a team victory while savoring the taste of free pizza!