Christian Pulisic reportedly suffered a bone bruise and microfracture in his leg during the USMNT’s 4-1 defeat to Belgium on Monday during the 2026 World Cup Round of 16, U.S. Soccer announced on Thursday.
The Athletic was the first to report the news.
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The U.S. forward was injured in the 52nd minute when he kicked the back of Youri Tielemans‘ foot as he wound up for a shot attempt outside of the Belgium penalty box. Despite trying to play through the injury, it was clear Pulisic was hurt following the contact. He was subbed off seven minutes later for Sebastian Berhalter.
Pulisic was upset getting treatment on the bench as athletic trainers worked on his lower right leg.
“I just twisted my ankle and sprained by ankle. It’s just frustrating to end like that, of course, but now I get time to rest, so hopefully it’ll be OK,” Pulisic said afterward.
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Further evaluation showed that the 27-year-old had a bone bruise and a microfracture of the tibia/fibula. Pulisic is expected to miss several weeks and could return just before AC Milan begins its Serie A schedule on Aug. 23.
U.S. Soccer said they will work with the Italian side on recovery plan for Pulisic.
Criticism lobbed at Pulisic after USMNT loss
After an inspiring start to the World Cup for the U.S., the loss to Belgium had led to criticism being fired at Pulisic from all corners, including former national team players.
Carli Lloyd won two World Cups and two Olympic gold medals with the U.S. women’s national team. After Monday’s game, she expressed disappointment in Pulisic in her role as an analyst for Fox Sports.
“You wanted some of the big-time players to step up in big moments, and I’ve got to be honest, I was a bit disappointed in Christian Pulisic,” Lloyd said. “I think, 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.”
Lloyd later took to X after she heard Pulisic’s comments about getting rest for his injury.
Landon Donovan, who played in three World Cups for the U.S., said on his podcast this week that people are “fed up” with the people in Pulisic’s orbit.
“I speak to people who are at U.S. Soccer, I speak to his sponsors, I speak to his teammates, I speak to the staff and the coaches. People are fed up with the way things are handled around him,” Donovan said “And it’s not necessarily him, but it’s his agents, his family, his hangers-on, the people that are influencing (him). People are fed up with it. They treat people poorly. They do things poorly. It’s always a no whenever you want to ask him to do an interview. It’s always a no; you can’t get near him.”
Pulisic was also hurt in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar when he injured his pelvic area after scoring a goal against Iran in the final group-stage match. He returned for the USMNT’s next match in the Round of 16, a 3-1 loss to the Netherlands.
