The World Cup dream for the United States came to an end in the Round of 16 after a resounding 4-1 loss to Belgium at Seattle Stadium.
Despite the massive hype, which included the controversial last-minute clearance of striker Folarin Balogun following President Donald Trump’s personal intervention with FIFA, Mauricio Pochettino’s squad looked nervous and tactically outmatched from the opening whistle.
Yet, under the San Diego sun, one thing was clear to the local faithful gathered at an impromptu Petco Park watch party ahead of a Padres game: the real enemy to defeat this afternoon didn’t hail from Europe, but from Arizona, reviving a long-standing and bitter National League West grudge.
The soccer match was only broadcast in its entirety during the first half on the Gallagher Square screen, leaving fans to spend the afternoon with one eye on the cat and the other on the scratch. Diomedes Peña, a visiting Dominican from New York, wanted a US victory but kept his eyes glued to the baseball ticker. Nearby, Salvador Curiel of San Diego stood with family visiting from Tijuana and Sinaloa. When asked about the match, he nodded, deep in thought. “Very good, we have to win this series,” he said. When clarified that the question was actually about soccer, he smiled sheepishly. “Oh! Sorry, sorry, I was thinking about the baseball,” he admitted, noticing on the big screen that the Padres were already trailing 2-0.
The political storm surrounding the tournament also split opinions across Gallagher Square. Before kickoff, the crowd discussed Trump’s phone call to FIFA’s Gianni Infantino lobbying to overturn Balogun’s red card from the Bosnia match. When asked about the move, Curiel deflected: “I don’t get into politics, I prefer to just have a good time.” His 79-year-old father, Don Albert, strongly disagreed. “Politicians shouldn’t meddle in this. Now we’re going to have every president, sheikh, and king interfering where they shouldn’t. That’s just not right.”
The Anthem, the pitch, and the first blow
Inside the stadium, the Major League Baseball atmosphere swallowed the soccer hype. The loudspeakers blasted announcements in both English and Spanish, promoting local hotels, foul ball safety warnings, Harry Potter Day, and an upcoming Juanes concert — but offering not a single mention of the World Cup. Amid a sea of brown and yellow Padres jerseys, only a lone pair of fans wore the US national team shirt.
At 4:59 PM, the traditional bell rang to signal the start of a pivotal four-game Padres series. At that moment, the soccer broadcast went live. On the screen in Gallagher Square, the American anthems played to deafening stadium cheers from Seattle; at Petco Park, fans were preoccupied with finding their sections. Up in Section 129, Liam Johnson and his wife Gabriela, visiting from Phoenix, watched the opening kickoff. Unlike Don Albert, Liam felt the president’s intervention was justified. “Of course it was right for the president to step in, it wasn’t an intentional foul,” Liam said. “The US is going to be the champion.”
Yet the match had barely settled into a rhythm when Belgium’s Charles De Ketelaere found the back of the net in the 9th minute, ruthlessly punishing a hesitant American defense. The fans at Petco Park briefly looked away from the baseball warmups, locking their eyes on the split-screen as a collective silence fell over the stands.
A fleet of hope and the reality check
The home crowd’s hope sparked back to life in the 31st minute. Malik Tillman unleashed a deflected free kick that completely fooled goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, leveling the score at 1-1. Instantly, a spontaneous chant of “U-S-A! U-S-A!” rippled through the ballpark corridors as people cheered, suddenly believing a hard-fought comeback was underway.
The joy was short-lived. Just 116 seconds later, De Ketelaere struck again, burying a precise header past the American keeper to restore Belgium’s lead before the halftime whistle. The momentum vanished as quickly as it had arrived.
In Gallagher Square, a spirited crowd of about three thousand fans stayed passionately locked into the soccer tactical battle. Inside, the diamond took over. As the second half began on the screen, the turf below belonged to San Diego. Dozens of Tatis and Machado jerseys populated the seats. Fans focused on the Padres players waving to the crowd and throwing baseballs into the stands. David Nguyen, a local resident, shook his head at the screen as the US attack faltered. “They aren’t functioning as a team,” he said.
The soccer match soon turned into a nightmare.
In the 57th minute, American goalkeeper Matt Freese made a catastrophic error, sprinting out of his box and practically gifting the ball to the Belgian offense, allowing Hans Vanaken to easily pass it into an empty net for the 3-1 lead. Even as a young fan in a US soccer shirt clapped with frustration amid the boos over the broadcast, the collective spirit of Petco Park remained anchored to the diamond. Romelu Lukaku eventually sealed the 4-1 rout in stoppage time, officially eliminating the tournament’s final host country.
As the final whistle blew in Seattle, the broadcast captured tears and slumped shoulders in the Pacific Northwest.
In San Diego, Julian Torres wasn’t losing sleep over it. Clutching his wife’s hand, he hurried through the turnstiles toward his seats, his mind entirely on the unfolding baseball game.
“My Padres are losing, we need to get in there and support them,” he said. By night’s end, the soccer heartbreak was old news, but the local sting remained: the Arizona Diamondbacks were crushing the Padres 8-0 in the top of the seventh.
