IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Blake Dahlin
Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Round of 16 - United States v Belgium - Seattle Stadium, Seattle, Washington, U.S. - July 6, 2026 Tim Ream of the U.S. looks dejected after the match following their elimination from the World Cup
Through the early stages of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, it truly appeared as if we were going to see a different United States Men’s National Team.
The U.S. clobbered a very solid Paraguay team to start the tournament, then followed it up with a controlled 2-0 victory over Australia to secure a finish at the top of their group.
The USMNT then rested several starters in a 3-2 loss to Turkey in its final group game before a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Round of 32. Then things came crashing back to Earth…
After a controversy surrounding a red card for striker Folarin Balogun, and its subsequent revocation, the U.S. squared off with Belgium in the Round of 16 and was thoroughly outclassed, losing 4-1 in a match that looked every bit as bad as the score suggests.
So, what exactly went wrong?
That’s what everyone is wondering, even veteran center back Tim Ream…
Tim Ream Is Just As Confused As You Are About USMNT World Cup Collapse
Ream, 38, has 86 career caps for the USMNT, second only to Christian Pulisic among active players, and he’s likely played his final match for the national team after an extremely solid career both at the international and club level.
However, he, like many others, had a brutal showing against Belgium and could certainly be considered at fault for at least one, if not multiple goals conceded.
On Thursday, Ream joined the “Pat McAfee Show” to discuss where things went wrong, but his answers left a lot to be desired…
“It’s disbelief,” Ream said of his thoughts after the match. “It’s trying to put together and understand what had just gone on because it was polar opposite of the way we had played up to that point.
“I think the feeling in the room was shock and trying to understand where and why we had the game that we did.”
WE’RE ALL WONDERING THE SAME THING, TIM!
One thing that Ream does get credit for is defending teammate Christian Pulisic, who is taking the brunt of the blame, but was one of several players who played poorly.
“You mentioned Christian there, but I don’t think anybody had their best game by any stretch,” Ream noted. “It just seemed like everything that could go wrong was going to go wrong that night, which is a shame because we put so much work in to get to that point.”
There is no answer that would’ve satisfied the anger of USMNT fans. But Ream just throwing just arms up and saying “yeah, we don’t get it either” is far from the right thing to say.