The FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 brings back a matchup American fans haven't forgotten: the United States against Belgium at Lumen Field in Seattle on 7 July. The last time these two met in a World Cup, Belgium went through 2-1 after extra time in 2014 and a March 2026 friendly also went Belgium's way 5-2. That history isn't flattering for the hosts but the USA are playing at home in front of a crowd that should generate real pressure and their form heading into this game has been strong.
Mauricio Pochettino has been in charge since August 2024 and has pushed the USMNT toward a high pressing system, while Rudi Garcia, who took over Belgium in January 2025, has favoured a more structured setup with De Bruyne at its creative centre - a pairing of approaches that have never met at national team level before.
The USA has been in good shape: a 4-1 win over Paraguay, 2-0 against Australia, a 3-2 over Türkiye in the group stage and a clean sheet 2-0 in the Round of 32 against Bosnia-Herzegovina, with goals spread across the squad rather than carried by one striker. Belgium came through their group with a 5-1 thrashing of New Zealand between 1-1 draws with Egypt and Iran, then staged a 3-2 extra time comeback against Senegal after going 2-0 down, which tells you most of what you need to know about how difficult they are to finish off.
The big news for the USA is Balogun's suspension after his red card against Bosnia, with Ricardo Pepi or Josh Sargent the likely replacement up front. Pochettino is expected to line up in a 4-3-3 with Matt Freese in goal, Alex Freeman, Chris Richards, Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson across the back, Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie anchoring midfield alongside Malik Tillman and Christian Pulisic leading the attack. Belgium have a question mark over Zeno Debast but Thibaut Courtois and Kevin De Bruyne are both fit and their likely 4-2-3-1 puts Courtois behind Timothy Castagne, Arthur Theate, Brandon Mechele and Maxim De Cuyper, with Hans Vanaken and Youri Tielemans screening in front of a creative trio of Trossard, De Bruyne and Doku and either De Ketelaere or Lukaku leading the line.
If the Americans can limit De Bruyne's influence on transitions they make Belgium considerably more ordinary, if they can't, the Belgians have enough quality elsewhere to cause damage, which is what makes the Adams and McKennie partnership the central contest of the game. Pulisic, operating on the left, is where the USA will look to create and will run into Castagne and Theate early and often. Going the other way, Doku running at Freeman or Robinson in behind is the most obvious way Belgium can hurt the USA in transition, whereas Richards and Ream will have their hands full with whoever leads the line, whether that's De Ketelaere dropping deep or Lukaku running in channels.
Pochettino's system is built for this kind of game and has pressed teams into errors effectively at home throughout the tournament. Belgium's answer is that they've already shown they can be 2-0 down and still win, as the Senegal comeback made clear, so the USA cannot treat a lead as settled.
The USA's pressing intensity and home crowd should produce goals but Belgium's creative core makes them dangerous on the counter even when pinned back for spells. A 2-2 is the most likely route to extra time given both teams' tendency to give up goals while creating chances, with penalties looking probable from there.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
