The United States has confirmed that forward Christian Pulisic suffered a fractured leg during the team’s 4-1 World Cup last-16 loss to Belgium.
Pulisic was taken off in the 59th minute, shortly after Belgium scored their third goal in Seattle.
The 27-year-old appeared to be hurt early in the second half when he went to shoot but instead struck the back of Belgium midfielder Youri Tielemans’ leg.
“Christian Pulisic has been diagnosed with a microfracture and bone bruise to the tibia/fibula in his right leg sustained against Belgium,” the U.S. Soccer Federation said on social media.
U.S. Soccer and Pulisic’s club, AC Milan, will work together on his rehabilitation plan.
The U.S. team faced heavy criticism in domestic media after their exit — the nation’s biggest World Cup defeat in 36 years — with questions raised about Pulisic’s early substitution.
Carli Lloyd, the U.S.’s all-time leading scorer, said she was disappointed with Pulisic’s impact, arguing he didn’t show enough in this match or throughout the tournament, aside from brief flashes.
Referencing Pulisic’s decision to skip the 2025 Gold Cup to rest ahead of a World Cup year, she wrote on X that rest should wait until after a playing career.
Landon Donovan, the U.S. men’s all-time leading World Cup scorer, said he would have refused to leave the field, even if it meant confronting the team doctor.
Although U.S. Soccer did not provide a recovery timeline, Pulisic would have been unavailable had the team reached the quarter-finals.
The Athletic reported that Pulisic is expected to be out for several weeks rather than months, citing multiple sources briefed on the diagnosis.
AC Milan open their Serie A season on 23 August against Torino.