England will be without forward Lauren James for its next two matches because of her actions against Nigeria in a Round of 16 match this week, FIFA announced Thursday.
James, 21, stood on and stomped Nigerian defender Michelle Alozie in the 87th minute and was sent off with the red card. That action (a red card) already came with a one-game suspension, but FIFA decided a harsher punishment would be required.
This means that if England beats Colombia on Saturday (6:30 a.m. ET, Fox), James still wouldn’t be eligible to play for England unless the Lionesses advance to the World Cup final or third-place game.
England managed to win the match despite playing with 10 women and without one of their star offensive players. James tallied three goals and three assists in England’s earlier World Cup games before she was disqualified from the Round of 16 match. England won in a penalty shootout after Chloe Kelly hit the final shot to secure the win.
James later apologized for her actions on her social media accounts, specifically to Alozie, her teammates and English soccer fans.
The FA, England’s soccer governing body, also issued a statement Tuesday regarding James:
“Lauren is really sorry for her actions which led to the red card and is full of remorse. It is wholly out of character for her.
“We will be supporting Lauren throughout and will be putting forward representation on her behalf. We fully respect FIFA’s disciplinary process and will not be making any further comment until after any decision has been made.”
England play Colombia next after the South American country beat Jamaica, 1-0. The Lionesses would play Australia or France in the World Cup semifinals if they beat Colombia.
