Belgian fans flood Seattle as De Ketelaere puts Belgium ahead

Charles De Ketelaere's goal put Belgium ahead and turned Seattle Stadium into a pocket of Belgian celebration, with red-clad supporters chanting as the game swung toward the visitors. The scene captured how this World Cup has turned host cities into transnational stages, where local advantage can vanish in front of a traveling crowd willing to cross an ocean for one match.

Belgium’s support has been visible in Seattle for weeks. On June 15, hundreds of Belgian fans marched down First Avenue with a police escort before the Belgium-Egypt match, and many of them had come all the way from Belgium to be there. Drums, costumes and flags made the city’s streets feel less like a home venue and more like a waystation in a wider football circuit stretching from Brussels and Antwerp to the Pacific Northwest.

Seattle has been preparing for the scale of that influx. City planners expect about 750,000 visitors during the tournament, and officials have warned residents to expect major transportation changes, street closures and packed transit systems while Seattle hosts six World Cup matches, including two knockout games in July. The event has brought a sharp economic pulse to downtown hotels, restaurants and transit corridors, even as it strains the infrastructure that serves daily commuters and neighborhood residents.

Belgium’s run in Seattle has only intensified the atmosphere. On July 1, Belgium erased a 2-0 deficit to beat Senegal 3-2 in extra time at Seattle Stadium, with Romelu Lukaku scoring in the 86th minute, Youri Tielemans leveling in the 89th and then converting the decisive penalty in the 118th. That comeback sent Belgium back to Seattle for the round of 16 against the United States on July 6, a rematch of the 2014 Brazil knockout meeting.

FIFA’s squad listing still gave Belgium plenty of star power, with Thibaut Courtois, Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Axel Witsel and De Ketelaere in the group under manager Rudi Garcia. For Seattle, the result has been a striking inversion of home-field advantage: a U.S. host city buzzing with Belgian flags, Belgian travel and Belgian belief, while the crowd inside the stadium watched the visitors seize control.