The 25-year-old was shown a red card for serious foul play during the USA’s last-32 clash with Bosnia-Herzegovina, which normally would have resulted in an automatic suspension.
However, FIFA’s disciplinary committee suspended the one-match ban for a year, allowing Balogun to feature in the knockout stage.
The decision drew heavy criticism, especially after reports revealed lobbying from US President Donald Trump and White House officials over the sanction.
Balogun admitted the situation created nerves within the squad before their last-16 defeat to Belgium.
"My initial reaction was that I was happy to be back in the team but when I started to reflect, I knew it was going to start a lot of controversy and I could almost see within my team-mates a bit of nerves because it is something that is so unique," Balogun told CBS.
"The closer we got to the game, I focused the best I could but it was difficult. The outside noise is hard to avoid.
"My team-mates are like my brothers, they gave me a lot of reassurance. There was nothing I could do or change."