Correction, 1 October 2026: An earlier version said Charles De Ketelaere scored twice in the opening half-hour. FIFA records his goals in the 9th and 33rd minutes, with Malik Tillman scoring in the 31st.
Belgium beat the United States 4-1 in Seattle to reach the World Cup quarter-finals and end the co-hosts’ campaign.
The First-Half Lead
De Ketelaere put Belgium ahead in the ninth minute and scored again shortly after the half-hour. Tillman’s reply on 31 minutes was the only interruption to that control, and it lasted two minutes before De Ketelaere restored the lead.
Analysis: The score sequence put the United States behind twice before half-time. The match report does not establish a single tactical cause for the result.
Where The Match Was Decided
Belgium added a third through Hans Vanaken on 57 minutes. Romelu Lukaku scored the fourth in stoppage time. FIFA’s match report records the final score as 4-1.
What The Exit Says
For the United States, this was a harsh but useful measurement. The tournament produced real moments: a 4-1 win over Paraguay to open Group D, a 2-0 win over Australia, and a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32 with ten men. Belgium were the United States’ round-of-16 opponent; this result ended the US campaign.
The 4-1 defeat ended the United States’ home tournament in the round of 16. The score establishes the result, but does not by itself measure the team’s broader progress. The question the host-advantage analysis posed before the tournament was how far home conditions could carry this team. The answer was a group win and one knockout round.
What It Meant For Belgium
Belgium’s next match was a quarter-final against Spain. FIFA records Spain’s 2-1 win over Belgium; Spain went on to win the tournament.
