Belgium ended the United States’ impressive FIFA World Cup campaign with an emphatic 4-1 victory on Monday, securing a place in the quarter-finals where they will face Spain, who also knocked Portugal out of the tournament in what became the final World Cup appearance of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Belgium produced a dominant display at Seattle’s Lumen Field, with Charles De Ketelaere scoring twice, while Hans Vanaken and substitute Romelu Lukaku added one goal each to send the tournament co-hosts crashing out.
The Round of 16 encounter had generated significant attention before kick-off following the controversy surrounding United States striker Folarin Balogun.
Balogun was restored to the American starting line-up after FIFA suspended a one-match ban following lobbying efforts reportedly backed by US President Donald Trump.
Despite the pre-match drama, the striker struggled to influence proceedings and remained largely ineffective throughout the contest.
Belgium captain Youri Tielemans later admitted that the controversy surrounding Balogun became a source of motivation for the Belgian squad.
“Let’s be honest: we held a meeting when we heard the news. We told ourselves we needed to do our talking on the pitch. That’s what we did today. I’m very proud of the team,” Tielemans told Belgium’s RTBF.
Belgium made their intentions clear early in the game when De Ketelaere fired home the opening goal in the ninth minute.
The United States briefly restored parity through a deflected free-kick from Malik Tillman in the 31st minute, but the celebration proved short-lived.
Just two minutes later, De Ketelaere rose highest to restore Belgium’s lead with a well-placed header.
The Europeans tightened their grip on the match in the 57th minute after American goalkeeper Matt Freese made a costly error.
Freese charged out of his penalty area in an attempt to clear the ball but was dispossessed, allowing Vanaken to calmly score Belgium’s third goal.
Veteran striker Lukaku then completed the rout deep into stoppage time to seal a convincing victory.
Following the defeat, United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino admitted that his team failed to perform at the level they had shown throughout the tournament.
“Today we were not the same team that we have been during the tournament. It was a very bad day—it wasn’t our day in a collective and individual way,” Pochettino said.
Belgium’s Nicolas Raskin also acknowledged that the squad felt aggrieved by the Balogun decision before the match.
“There was a sense of injustice within the squad. We were determined to respond on the field,” Raskin said.
Belgium will now face Spain in Los Angeles on Friday after the European champions edged Portugal 1-0 in another tightly contested Round of 16 encounter.
Spain needed a dramatic late goal from substitute Mikel Merino to overcome Portugal at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Merino calmly finished from close range in the opening minute of stoppage time after receiving a clever through pass from a quickly taken free kick.
The result ended Portugal’s World Cup journey and marked the final appearance of Ronaldo at football’s biggest tournament.
The 41-year-old, who became the first player to score in six different FIFA World Cups earlier in the competition, was unable to inspire Portugal as the side managed only two shots on target throughout the contest.
After the defeat, Ronaldo admitted he would take time before deciding on the next chapter of his career.
“It was my last World Cup, yes, but I’ll have time to think about the rest, to be with my family, not make rash decisions, and just get on with life,” he said.
“That’s football, that’s the life of a footballer. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and you have to move on.”
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente praised his team’s resilience after overcoming their long-time rivals.
“It was a fantastic match—a final played early—and, inevitably, we had to sweat it out until the very end. We put in a complete performance,” he said.
