US soccer star Christian Pulisic has suffered a fractured right leg during the team's World Cup defeat to Belgium, an injury that is expected to sideline him for several weeks. An anonymous source, first reported by The Athletic, confirmed that Pulisic sustained a bone bruise and a microfracture in both his tibia and fibula.

The injury occurred in the 52nd minute of Monday's 4-1 round-of-16 loss in Seattle, when Pulisic collided with Belgium captain Youri Tielemans while attempting a shot. He remained on the field briefly but was visibly hobbling, leading to his substitution in the 59th minute by Sebastian Berhalter.

Pulisic is anticipated to return to training before AC Milan's Serie A season opener against Torino on August 23. His World Cup campaign has been challenging; he failed to score, missed one match due to a calf injury, and exited two others early.

The 27-year-old, set to turn 28 in September, has 30 goals in 90 international appearances and is beginning his fourth season with AC Milan. The US had started the World Cup strongly despite concerns over Pulisic’s fitness, winning their opening match against Paraguay 4-1 before his calf issue.

In the Round of 32, the US secured a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, though star striker Folarin Balogun was sent off following a VAR review. Balogun was initially set to serve a one-match ban, but after an intervention from US President Donald Trump, his ban was suspended, allowing him to play against Belgium. However, his presence did not prevent the US from slipping to a 4-1 defeat to their European opponents. Belgium is set to face Spain in the World Cup quarterfinals on Friday.