Belgium rout USA 4-1 to reach World Cup quarter-finals as Balogun controversy rumbles on

Belgium ended the United States' World Cup at the round of 16 on Monday, winning 4-1 at Seattle Stadium to set up a quarter-final against Spain, in a match dominated off the pitch as much as on it by the row over FIFA's decision to reinstate striker Folarin Balogun.

Charles De Ketelaere scored twice and Malik Tillman once in the first half, before Hans Vanaken and Romelu Lukaku added the third and fourth goals in the second period. A deserving Belgium advance to the quarter-final stage after outperforming their opponents on expected goals 2.15 to 0.67, according to ESPN.

How it unfolded

De Ketelaere, playing for Atalanta, turned Nicolas Raskin's pass across the face of goal over the line just nine minutes in, giving Belgium an early lead. The United States offered very little in the following phase, but Tillman's deflected free-kick just after the half-hour mark restored parity with their first shot of the contest.

Belgium responded inside two minutes through De Ketelaere, who completed his brace with a far-post header over the back of Tim Ream.

The third goal arrived in the 57th minute when Hans Vanaken scored from distance after goalkeeper Matt Freese turned the ball over outside his penalty area. Vanaken's goal made him Belgium's oldest-ever knockout stage scorer.

In the 59th minute, Christian Pulisic was substituted off with an apparent injury. Romelu Lukaku and Jérémy Doku only entered the field when the score was already 3-1, while Kevin De Bruyne did not come on at all.

Veteran striker Lukaku came off the bench and added the fourth in second-half stoppage time off another United States defensive error to seal the result. It was Lukaku's eighth career World Cup goal, extending his record for the most by any Belgian player. He last scored against the United States 12 years earlier, netting the winner in the 2014 round of 16.

The Balogun row

Before a ball was kicked, the match had been overshadowed by a frantic 24 hours in which FIFA controversially ruled that American striker Folarin Balogun could play despite receiving a red card in USA's round of 32 game.

Balogun, who had scored three goals in the tournament, received the red card for stepping awkwardly on the right ankle of Tarik Muharemovic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, triggering an automatic one-game suspension. On Sunday, FIFA suspended the red card under Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, placing Balogun on a one-year probationary period instead.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump confirmed reports that he had contacted FIFA president Gianni Infantino to ask for details about the suspension and whether the decision could be reviewed. Trump celebrated the reversal on his social media network, posting: "Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!"

The Royal Belgian Football Association said it was "astonished by FIFA's decision to declare suspended United States player Folarin Balogun eligible to play." UEFA was among the most vocal critics of the ruling. The FIFA Appeal Committee subsequently declared Belgium's formal challenge inadmissible.

FIFA president Infantino issued a statement defending the ruling by an independent panel, saying: "FIFA's judicial bodies are independent."

Balogun finished the match without a goal.

What comes next

Belgium advanced to the quarter-finals for the first time since 2018, and for the third time in the last four editions of the tournament.

Spain and Belgium will face off on Friday 10 July at 3:00 pm ET. The venue is SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, officially designated as Los Angeles Stadium for the duration of the 2026 World Cup under FIFA's naming rights policy.

The United States has been eliminated in the round of 16 in six of its seven appearances at that stage of the World Cup, including each of its last four appearances in the competition. It was the second time Belgium had knocked the Americans out at that stage, having done so also in 2014.