Pulisic fractures tibia and fibula as USA crash out of World Cup in 4-1 loss to Belgium

Christian Pulisic has fractured his right leg during the United States’ 4-1 round-of-16 elimination from the 2026 World Cup against Belgium in Seattle on Monday, with the injury expected to keep him sidelined for several weeks.

An anonymous source, whose information was first reported by The Athletic, confirmed that Pulisic suffered a bone bruise and a microfracture to both his tibia and fibula. The US Soccer Federation has yet to officially announce the diagnosis.

The injury occurred in the 52nd minute when Pulisic collided with Belgium captain Youri Tielemans while attempting a shot. He remained on the field briefly but was visibly hobbling before being substituted in the 59th minute by Sebastian Berhalter.

Despite the severity of the injury, Pulisic is anticipated to return to training before AC Milan’s Serie A season opener against Torino on 23 August, giving the 27-year-old a narrow window to recover ahead of his fourth season at the San Siro.

Pulisic’s World Cup campaign was disrupted throughout. He was replaced at half-time of the opening 4-1 win over Paraguay due to a calf issue and missed the subsequent 2-0 victory against Australia entirely. He failed to score across his appearances at the tournament.

The United States had otherwise shown promise in the group stage, securing top spot before a rotated side slipped to a 3-2 defeat in their final group game. They progressed past Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 in the round of 32, though striker Folarin Balogun was sent off following a VAR review in that match.

Balogun had been due to serve a one-match suspension for the Belgium fixture, but following an intervention from US president Donald Trump, the ban was suspended and the former Arsenal striker was cleared to play. His controversial inclusion did little to alter the outcome as the co-hosts were beaten convincingly by their European opponents.

Belgium, who have now eliminated the tournament’s co-hosts, advance to the quarterfinals where they will face Spain on Friday.