Belgium produced a dominant performance to secure their passage. Belgium defeats USA 4-1 in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 clash at Seattle Stadium in Washington on Monday. The Red Devils booked their place in the quarterfinals with a convincing victory. Belgium will face Spain in the next round on Friday. Spain earned their spot by beating Portugal 1-0 earlier on Monday.
The US elimination means all three co-hosts have exited the tournament. Canada and Mexico also lost in the Round of 16. Therefore, the host nation’s World Cup campaign ended disappointingly. Belgium defeats USA demonstrates the quality gap between the teams on this particular day.
Charles De Ketelaere opened the scoring early as Belgium dominated proceedings. A deflected Malik Tillman free-kick brought the USA level momentarily. However, just 56 seconds later, CDK restored the lead. So the momentum swung decisively toward Belgium after this quick response.
Hans Vanaken scored Belgium’s third goal in the 57th minute to make it 3-1. Matt Freese failed to clear the ball during buildup. Additionally, De Cuyper set up Vanaken perfectly. Vanaken’s shot slipped past Tim Ream into the net. Therefore, Belgium established clear control of the match.
Romelu Lukaku, who came off the bench, scored in the 93rd minute. His goal put the final nail in the coffin for the Americans. So Belgium’s depth proved decisive when substitutes impacted the outcome significantly.
De Ketelaere opened the scoring in the 9th minute. The ball came from deep by Leandro Trossard. Trossard looked to deliver it into the box. However, the United States failed to clear the danger. Consequently, CDK scored with a simple tap-in. Therefore, Belgium’s early pressure produced immediate results.
USA’s Tillman responded with a 31st-minute equaliser through a free-kick. His free kick took a hefty deflection that caught Thibaut Courtois off guard. So the Americans got back into the match briefly.
De Ketelaere restored Belgium’s one-goal lead in the 33rd minute. Trossard again provided an assist brilliantly on the left. He whipped the ball in for Ketelaere, who bagged his second goal. Therefore, Belgium regained their advantage before halftime.
United States striker Folarin Balogun was allowed to start after FIFA suspended his red-card sanction. The sanction came from his last-32 match against Bosnia. A FIFA appeals committee rejected Belgium’s challenge to the decision. However, Balogun, USA’s top scorer with three goals, did not impact the match. Finally, Belgium defeats USA demonstrates their superiority throughout the encounter.
