2026 World Cup/ Belgium crush USA 4-1 to end American World Cup dream

Belgium dismantled the United States 4-1 in Monday’s World Cup round of 16 clash. The Americans crashed out at this stage for the fourth time in five tournaments.

Belgium dominated from the start. Charles De Ketelaere scored twice. Hans Vanaken capitalized on a catastrophic goalkeeper error. Romelu Lukaku added a stoppage-time finish.

The U.S. midfield looked stuck. Belgium dictated the tempo immediately. Timothy Castagne forced Matt Freese into an early save. The onslaught continued.

De Ketelaere opened the scoring in the ninth minute. He poked home from close range after Nicolas Raskin’s clever cut-back. The stadium fell silent.

The U.S. briefly equalized. Malik Tillman’s free kick deflected off the wall and found the net. He became only the second player in 60 years to score two free-kick goals in a World Cup.

The joy lasted 52 seconds. Belgium attacked again. Leandro Trossard broke down the left. His perfect cross found De Ketelaere, who headed home.

The second half brought more misery. Freese’s horrible miscue gifted Vanaken an easy finish from 30 yards. Ream’s desperate attempt to recover failed.

Christian Pulisic turned the ball over 11 times in the first half. Sergiño Dest was pulled at halftime. Folarin Balogun ran aimlessly.

“We were not the same team,” coach Mauricio Pochettino admitted. “Very bad day.”

Belgium sent the U.S. home from the 2014 World Cup too. That match felt much closer. This one exposed a wide gap in quality. The American dream ended with a whimper.