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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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The USMNT had built real momentum heading into Monday's Round of 16 contest against Belgium.
They had just defeated Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 after topping Group D with commanding wins over Paraguay and Australia, and they got a boost when star striker Folarin Balogun, who was initially set to miss the match due to a one-game suspension for a red card, had his ban lifted by FIFA just before kickoff.
Even with all of that working for the Stars and Stripes, they still couldn't get the job done.
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Belgium took control early behind a goal from Charles De Ketelaere in the 9th minute. Malik Tillman pulled one back for the U.S. just over 20 minutes later, but De Ketelaere answered immediately to put the Red Devils back on top heading into the break.
In the second half, Hans Vanaken scored again in the 57th minute off an assist from De Ketelaere, and Romelu Lukaku put the match away in the waning moments, with Belgium cruising to a 4-1 victory.
It was a crushing blow for the United States, which looked completely outmatched by another European giant yet again.
And apparently, everybody was watching.
On Tuesday afternoon, FOX reported that an average of 30 million viewers tuned in for the game, making it the most-watched soccer telecast in U.S. history, with a peak of nearly 37 million between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. ET.
And that number doesn't even include Telemundo's Spanish-language audience, meaning the combined total will likely be much higher.
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More news: USMNT Blasted for ‘Underwhelming’ World Cup Loss to Belgium
The United States men's national team accomplished a lot in the 2026 World Cup. They won their group for the first time since 2010 and broke a 24-year knockout-stage drought. And all of it happened on home turf, with this being the first time since 1994 the country has hosted the World Cup. The fact that they've now broken viewership records adds to the historic run.
But it also makes Monday night's loss sting even more. Questions are already swirling about head coach Mauricio Pochettino's future with the program, and this was supposed to be the most talented USMNT squad in years, potentially ever. Now, it's back to the drawing board for 2030.
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