By Amaechi Agbo
Belgium secured a place in the quarter-finals of the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026 after defeating the United States 4-1 at Seattle Stadium, ending the hosts’ campaign in emphatic fashion.
Charles De Ketelaere starred with two first-half goals, while Hans Vanaken netted his maiden FIFA World Cup goal before substitute Romelu Lukaku sealed the victory deep into stoppage time.
The result sends Belgium into a quarter-final clash against Spain, while the United States became the last remaining co-host nation to exit the tournament, following the earlier eliminations of Canada and Mexico.
Belgium made a bright start and nearly opened the scoring when Timothy Castagne’s long-range effort forced goalkeeper Matt Freese into an impressive save.
Moments later, Youri Tielemans came close to converting Dodi Lukebakio’s cross before the breakthrough finally arrived.
Leandro Trossard’s dangerous delivery unsettled the American defence, allowing Nicolas Raskin to square the ball for De Ketelaere, who calmly finished from close range in the ninth minute.
The United States responded in the 31st minute, as Malik Tillman’s deflected free-kick wrong-footed Thibaut Courtois to restore parity.
However, the celebrations were short-lived, with Belgium regaining the lead less than two minutes later when Trossard’s cross picked out De Ketelaere, who headed home his second goal of the match.
Belgium tightened their grip on the contest shortly before the hour mark after a costly defensive mistake.
Freese rushed out of his penalty area but failed to clear the ball, enabling De Ketelaere to win possession before Vanaken’s long-range strike found the empty net despite Tim Ream’s desperate attempt to block it.
The Americans pushed for a response in the closing stages, with substitute Sebastian Berhalter firing wide and Courtois producing a fine save to deny Folarin Balogun.
Belgium, however, had the final word as Lukaku capitalized on a loose clearance to score in stoppage time and complete a commanding 4-1 victory.
Belgium will now face Spain at Los Angeles Stadium on July 10 after the Spanish side knocked Portugal out of the competition.
