Folarin Balogun

Arsenal

Early career

Balogun joined Arsenal at the age of eight, after being scouted while playing for his previous Sunday League team, Aldersbrook. Before trialling with Arsenal, he had trialled with the club's North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur and nearly signed for them. In 2017, Balogun was an integral part of Trevor Bumstead's Arsenal U16 team that won the Liam Brady Cup, defeating Bayern Munich, Manchester United, and Juventus. He signed a professional contract in February 2019. In July 2020, after failing to agree to a new contract with Arsenal, he was linked with a transfer away from the club, including a proposed £8 million move to Brentford.

2020–22: Senior team debut and loan to Middlesbrough

On October 29, 2020, Balogun made his senior debut in the Europa League, coming on as a substitute in the 74th minute, in a group stage match against Dundalk. On November 26, he scored his first senior goal, in a Europa League group stage match against Molde. On April 26, 2021, Balogun signed a new long-term contract with the club. On August 13, Balogun made his Premier League debut in a 2–0 loss against newly promoted Brentford. On January 12, 2022, he joined EFL Championship club Middlesbrough on a loan deal until the end of the season. On March 8, he scored his first goal for Boro in a 4–1 loss to Sheffield United, and later scored in back-to-back wins over Birmingham City and Peterborough United.

2022–23: Loan to Reims

In…

Born in the United States to Nigerian parents, and raised in the United Kingdom, Balogun was eligible to represent the United States, England, and Nigeria at international level before he committed himself to the United States. He qualified for the United States through birthright citizenship.

Youth career

After playing for England at the under-17 level, and appearing in the 2018 UEFA European Under-17 Championship, he accepted a call up from the United States under-18 national team in August 2018 for a training camp and a tournament in the Czech Republic. He played in all four of the United States' games in the Václav Ježek Youth Tournament and scored twice. He also expressed interest in playing for Nigeria, although he stated that he enjoys England's "style of play" which is "similar to Arsenal's". In 2019, he appeared and scored for the England under-18 national team in a tournament in Dubai. In October 2020, he made an appearance for the England under-20 against Wales. On August 27, 2021, Balogun received his first call up to the England under-21 team. On September 7, 2021, he made his England U21 debut as a substitute during the 2–0 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification win over Kosovo under-21s at Stadium MK. In October 2022, he said he was open to playing for Nigeria.

Senior career

On May 16, 2023, FIFA approved Balogun's application for a switch to represent the United States national team. He had been recruited by the United…

Balogun is known for his pace, technique, and two-footedness. Labelled a pure "number nine" or center forward, Balogun has also played as a trequartista in youth soccer, and was deployed by Chris Wilder in a second-striker role at Middlesbrough. Martin Keown compared Balogun to Arsenal's second highest ever goalscorer Ian Wright, due to his pace and intelligent movement.

Balogun was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Yoruba Nigerian parents. His parents were living in London, and visited New York when his mother was seven months pregnant with him. Airline staff did not allow her to board the family's return flight to London due to safety concerns over the advanced state of her pregnancy, and Balogun was subsequently born in New York. He returned to the United Kingdom with his parents when he was two months old and grew up in London.