The United States have confirmed that forward Christian Pulisic fractured his leg in their 4-1 World Cup round-of-16 loss to Belgium in Seattle, ending any prospect of the country's best-known player continuing in the tournament.

Pulisic was withdrawn from the match in the 59th minute, just moments after Belgium had netted their third goal. The injury appeared to occur in the second half when the 27-year-old attempted a shot and made contact with the back of Belgian midfielder Youri Tieleman's leg instead of the ball.

US Soccer confirmed the extent of the damage in a statement on social media:

"Christian Pulisic has been diagnosed with a microfracture and bone bruise of the tibia/fibula in his right leg suffered during the match against Belgium."

Milan involved in recovery plan

US Soccer and Pulisic's club, AC Milan, will work together on his rehabilitation. While no official timeframe was provided, The Athletic reported — citing multiple sources briefed on the diagnosis — that Pulisic is expected to be sidelined for several weeks but not months. AC Milan open their Serie A season on August 23 against Torino, a fixture that may now be in serious doubt for the forward.

US Soccer also confirmed that Pulisic would not have been available to play in the quarter-finals even had the United States progressed, underlining the severity of the injury sustained during the defeat.

US legends weigh in

The elimination — America's heaviest World Cup defeat in 36 years — prompted sharp criticism of the squad in the domestic media, with Pulisic's substitution drawing particular attention. Carli Lloyd, the United States' all-time leading scorer, was among the most vocal.

"I was a bit disappointed in Christian Pulisic. Whether he wants to be the star of this team or not, we didn't see enough from him in this particular game — and, really, the whole World Cup. Little glimpses here and there," Lloyd said.

Lloyd also referenced Pulisic's decision to skip the 2025 Gold Cup for rest and recovery ahead of a World Cup year, posting on X: "You rest when your playing career is over. Period."

Men's World Cup all-time leading scorer for the United States, Landon Donovan, was equally blunt: "I would have punched the doctor in the face and said, 'You're not taking me off the field'."