Mumbai, July 6 : A lopsided rivalry, but for one big exception -- the USA and Belgium have met seven times, and the record is almost entirely one-sided in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Belgium have won six of them, with the USA's only victory coming all the way back in the very first World Cup ever played, a 3-0 win in 1930. Their last World Cup meeting was the heartbreaker: a 2-1 extra-time loss in the 2014 Round of 16, remembered as much for Tim Howard's tournament-record 15 saves as for the result. The most recent meeting was even more recent than that -- Belgium beat this USA side 5-2 in a pre-tournament friendly in Atlanta, this past March.

USA's build-up took an odd turn after Folarin Balogun was sent off in the win over Bosnia and Herzegovina -- a decision manager Mauricio Pochettino called incorrect. FIFA agreed and suspended the red card, meaning Balogun, USA's leading scorer with three goals this tournament, is available again. Getting him back is a bigger deal than it might look on paper; it restores the exact attacking shape Pochettino built around him, rather than leaving the USA to make do with a direct replacement.

Neither team has had a smooth run to this point. The USA played the final 35 minutes with ten men after Balogun's red card but still saw off Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0. Belgium's route was far more dramatic -- 2-0 down to Senegal with five minutes left, they scored twice in stoppage time to force extra time, then won it with a Youri Tielemans penalty in the 125th minute. Both sides know how to find a way when it matters.

Round of 16, and they've lost five of the previous six -- the sole exception a win over Mexico in 2002, which remains the last time the USA reached the quarterfinals. Beat Belgium in Seattle, and Pochettino's side would finally break a 24-year-old ceiling in front of a home crowd that's carried them through the tournament so far.

The USA have scored at least twice in every match this World Cup, becoming the first team from outside Europe or South America to do that in four straight World Cup games. Belgium arrive unbeaten too, with two wins and two draws, though it's come without their record goalscorer Romelu Lukaku making a single start - the 33-year-old has been used purely as an impact substitute as this golden generation plays out what could be its last tournament together.

Players to watch:

USA: Christian Pulisic, Folarin Balogun, Tyler Adams

Belgium: Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Leandro Trossard

/IANS