The home World Cup dream is over for the United States, and the tournament has moved on to the four teams who deserve to be here. Here's where things stand.
Yesterday's Results
All six Group J matches have a confirmed final score in the reference record, and that group — Argentina's group — is long settled. What the sources confirm about the most recent USMNT action: the United States were eliminated in the round of 16, losing 1–4 to Belgium in Seattle. It was a comprehensive defeat. Belgium led inside nine minutes through Charles De Ketelaere, Malik Tillman pulled one back with a deflected free kick in the 31st, and then De Ketelaere headed in a second barely two minutes later to restore the lead. Hans Vanaken made it 3–1 after Matt Freese's costly turnover outside his own penalty area, and Romelu Lukaku added a fourth in stoppage time. The scoreline was not flattering, and it was not wrong.
As for the USMNT's broader tournament arc: four wins and one group-stage loss, a group topped ahead of Australia, Paraguay, and Turkey, and a round-of-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina — before the wheels came off against a Belgium side that was simply better. Pochettino's verdict on the night was blunt: "From the beginning, we didn't connect with the game." He wasn't wrong about that either.
Today's Fixtures
The Reference Facts block contains no unplayed match rows for today — all six Group J fixtures carry confirmed scores. Based on the broader source context, the tournament is now at the semifinal stage, with France facing Spain and England facing Argentina. No fixture details, kickoff times, or venue information for those matches appear in the provided sources, so I won't invent them. Check your broadcaster for today's schedule.
Around the Tournament
The Golden Boot race is genuinely extraordinary. Lionel Messi leads with eight goals after his round-of-16 performance against Egypt, one ahead of Kylian Mbappé (seven) and Erling Haaland (seven). Harry Kane sits fourth on six. Four of the five players still alive in the tournament — Messi, Mbappé, Haaland, and Kane — are in direct contention for the award with at least one match remaining. The last time a Golden Boot race had this kind of star power this deep into a tournament is genuinely hard to recall.
The USMNT's exit is being processed honestly. Reuters put it plainly: the U.S. went into the Belgium match ranked 16th in the world; Belgium were eighth. The result — a 4–1 loss — was "disappointing for the hosts, but not especially surprising." The Balogun eligibility controversy dominated the pre-match news cycle and then became irrelevant the moment the whistle blew. What the tournament did deliver, per Reuters, was record audiences and renewed national enthusiasm for the sport. That's a real thing, even if it doesn't soften the scoreline.
Folarin Balogun finished the tournament with three goals — tied 18th in the FIFA Golden Boot standings — and was the Americans' most dangerous forward across the group stage. Alex Freeman, 21, scored his first World Cup goal against Australia. The young attacking core showed enough to suggest the next cycle has something to build on, even if this one ended too soon.
The semifinal picture — France, Spain, England, Argentina — is as good as it gets. Whoever comes out of it will have earned it. Watch the Golden Boot race as closely as the results: Messi, Mbappé, Haaland, and Kane are all still playing, and only one of them can win.