Trump, Vance to skip Team USA’s FIFA World Cup match in Seattle

The United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) punched its ticket to the round of 16 with a 2-0 win over Bosnia & Herzegovina on Wednesday, securing a rematch against Belgium in Seattle on Monday.

While soccer fans across the globe raved about Seattle and touted it as one of the best host cities, President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance are expected to be absent for Monday’s game as Team USA pushes to advance past the round of 16 for the first time since 2002.

“We’ve been told that neither the president nor the vice president will be attending the July 6 match,” Cameron Satterfield, communications manager with the Department of Executive Services, wrote in an email obtained by The Seattle Times.

Neither Trump nor Vance has attended a match for the 2026 edition of the FIFA World Cup, and similarly, neither has made an appearance in Seattle at any point during Trump’s second term.

Other members of Trump’s cabinet have been spotted at World Cup games, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who attended the U.S. v. Paraguay match during the group stage. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was also in attendance for the U.S.’s 2-0 victory over Australia in Seattle.

The USMNT will face off against Belgium on Monday at 5 p.m. inside Seattle’s Lumen Field, temporarily renamed Seattle Stadium for the tournament.

Team USA’s win came at a cost, with a key player now suspended

Returning to the round of 16 was no walk in the park for the USMNT, and the path forward seemingly got much harder after Wednesday night’s match.

Forward Folarin Balogun kicked off the scoring for the U.S. with a goal in the 45th minute of the match, but drew a highly controversial red card shortly after.

“Obviously, the ref made a decision that he made, but I think it’s questionable,” midfielder Weston McKennie said. “I think there have been many other plays like that throughout the tournament on other players that a card wasn’t given at all. It’s disappointing.”

The U.S. was forced to play one man short for the remainder of the game, and will be without Balogun for the entirety of Monday’s match in Seattle. Striker Ricardo Pepi is likely the next man up to fill Balogun’s spot in the next match.

Malik Tillman delivered a back-breaking goal on a bending free kick past goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj, sending Bosnia & Herzegovina home with a 2-0 loss and moving Team USA on to face Belgium.

“I’ve been dreaming about this game,” Tillman said after scoring the final goal. “I’ve been dreaming about maybe taking a free kick and scoring a free kick. I’ve practiced this in training, and I think today I showed what I can do.”

USA v. Belgium: a rematch brewing since 2014

The U.S. will face a Belgian squad featuring three prominent players who were in the lineup in 2014, when the U.S. lost to Belgium 2-1 in extra time. Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku both scored extra-time goals in the 2014 match, while Eden Hazard acted as captain of the team for the majority of the match.

All three, known as integral pieces of Belgium’s “Golden Generation” during that tournament, will return to Seattle to face off against the USMNT.

The U.S. will be playing for its first round-of-16 win since 2002, when the group defeated Mexico 2-0 in South Korea. The group later suffered a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Germany in the quarterfinals.

In the tournaments following that run, the USMNT advanced from its group to the round of 16 in 2010, 2014, and 2022, but was eliminated at that stage each time.

The furthest the U.S. has ever gone in a FIFA World Cup was in its inaugural tournament in 1930, where the team reached the semifinals in the 13-team tournament hosted by Uruguay.

As Team USA advances, ticket prices for the Seattle match have soared

Tickets to see the round-of-16 match in Seattle have been on the market since the tournament began, but as Team USA’s play has granted them a return to the Emerald City, ticket prices have skyrocketed.

The get-in price for Monday’s match currently stands at nearly $2,500 for a single ticket in the 300-level of the stadium.

The most expensive ticket in the 100-level at Seattle Stadium is listed at nearly $13,000 as of this reporting.

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