Field Gulls
The Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks were on hand for one of the biggest matches the United States men’s national soccer team has ever played. Unfortunately, the USA picked the worst time to lose their undefeated record at Seattle Stadium/Lumen Field, and their dreams of a deep run in the 2026 FIFA World Cup are now over.
It was a nightmarish effort from start to finish for the USA against Belgium, who knocked them out in the Round of 16 with a 4-1 blowout that honestly flattered the Americans. Star striker Folarin Balogun’s controversial red card suspension from the win over Bosnia and Herzegovina was controversially overturned by FIFA on Sunday, spurring on belief that this would make Monday a special night for American soccer.
That did not happen.
Belgium dominated the match for huge stretches, scored early, scored late, and canceled out Malik Tillman’s tying goal by scoring literally 61 seconds after the restart. The US have been knocked out by Belgium for the second time in their last three World Cup appearances, and this one stings a lot more when it’s a home game and the Belgians had generally struggled throughout the tournament. In fact, Belgium were minutes away from elimination against Senegal in their Round of 32 fixture at Seattle Stadium before turning a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 extra time win. The 2018 third-place finishers have not been nearly as formidable in international tournaments as they once were a decade ago, but they gave the US the harshest of reality checks… and the Americans were also masters of their own demise.
Goalkeeper Matt Freese’s inexplicable error will go straight into the Futbol Follies collection.
The Seahawks brought many familiar names to the match, including head coach Mike Macdonald, general manager John Schneider, Leonard Williams, Brady Russell, and A.J. Barner. They were prepared to hype the crowd up and did their job.
Russell even filmed his reaction to Malik Tillman’s goal.
The Americans excited the nation by hammering Paraguay 4-1, and now they’ve crashed out of the competition by the same scoreline.
While the US fell flat on their faces, Seattle as a World Cup host did not. There was no shortage of praise for Lumen Field as a venue for major international soccer and not just the Sounders and Reign, the stands were full for every game, and the weather cooperated wonderfully to make the first ever World Cup in the Emerald City one to remember. Seattle is a premier sports town and I don’t think anyone can counter against that.
But now the natural grass will soon be gone, the artificial turf will be back, and we’re just a little over two months away from the Seahawks unveiling their newest Super Bowl banner and opening their 2026 NFL season against the New England Patriots. At least we know that defense will be airtight.
