It’s a familiar story for the United States men’s national team, as it exits the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the round of 16 following a 4-1 loss to Belgium at Seattle Stadium on Monday.
Belgium opened the scoring in the 9th minute on a strike from Charles De Ketelaere inside the box that he just had to tap in.
The U.S. responded with a goal from a direct free kick by Malik Tillman in the 31st minute, but Belgium immediately responded with a second goal from De Ketelaere two minutes later.
Belgium added another in the 57th minute, capitalizing on a mistake by the United States goalkeeper Matt Freese, who lost control of the ball while trying to clear it from outside the box.
Belgium put the match completely out of reach in the 92nd minute on a goal from Romelu Lukaku, who came on as a substitute in the 67th minute. He has scored 93 international goals for Belgium.
The result concludes a tournament run that included three victories and a loss for the United States.
The team opened the group stage with a 4-1 win over Paraguay and a 2-0 win against Australia. After a 3-2 loss to Türkiye, the United States advanced to the knockout stage as the winner of Group D. In the Round of 32, the U.S. defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 to reach the round of 16 match against Belgium.
The U.S. has not advanced past the round of 16 since 2002, when it beat Mexico 2-0 to advance to the quarterfinals against Germany. It also matches it finish at the 1994 World Cup, which the U.S. also hosted.
Belgium advances to the quarterfinals and will play Spain, which beat Portugal 1-0 in Dallas on Monday.
