USA World Cup Run Ends In 4-1 Defeat To Belgium As Defensive Errors Prove Costly In 2026 Tournament

The United States got its wish. Folarin Balogun was back, restored to the squad after a suspension saga dramatic enough to drag in an intervention from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Belgium's response? A shrug, a smirk, and a 4-1 mauling.

Rudi Garcia's side turned the entire Balogun circus into a footnote in Seattle on Tuesday, outplaying the co-hosts with a sharp, controlled display from start to finish. The United States' home World Cup run comes to an end. Belgium's continues, and now they've got European champions Spain waiting in the quarter-finals.

For days, every camera, headline and radio phone-in had been fixed on one question: was the decision to ban the suspension of Balogun right? The moment the whistle blew, Belgium made sure nobody cared about that. Aggressive without the ball, silky with it, and clinical when it mattered, the Red Devils delivered arguably their best 90 minutes of the tournament, and did it with half their star power starting on the bench.