Following an exhilarating 4-1 victory over the USA in a World Cup match, Belgian fans celebrated with exuberance, even as the backdrop of political intrigue centered on Donald Trump’s attempts to lift the suspension on striker Falorin Balogun complicated the atmosphere.
Prime Minister Bart De Wever, while not directly commenting on the team’s triumph, saw his cat Maximus communicate an indirect sentiment via a sardonic post on Instagram. The image showed Maximus lounging on a rug next to a soft toy representing the US president, with a speech bubble in Dutch stating, “I slept really well last night. And you?”
Maximus’s Instagram account, managed by De Wever’s team, often mixes political commentary with humor, providing ironic takes on various politicians and current affairs.
Fans adorned in the national colors of red, yellow, and black gathered in large numbers across the country to cheer for their team, despite the late kickoff at 2 a.m. local time. “The Belgian national team is our national pride, so we have to support them, even at night,” said Jens Boden, a 23-year-old supporter watching from Kalmthout, near the Dutch border. Reports indicated that the crowd expressed their discontent by booing images of American players and FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who had recently decided to lift Balogun’s suspension following Trump’s intervention. In Brussels, some fans even set fire to an American flag.
Philippe Albert, a former Belgian defender who played for Newcastle United during the 1990s, described the Red Devils’ victory as “a real slap in the face for Donald Trump and Gianni Infantino”
“They tried to destabilise a little country, but Belgium has shown that it has a big heart,”
Albert, now a football commentator, stated in an interview with a Francophone daily. “Despite a far-from-optimal preparation the Devils all responded.”
As the celebrations unfolded, a post from the national team proclaiming “the king, the national football team, some beers” in response to their impressive win went viral. Additionally, videos of players celebrating on the pitch—particularly a humorous imitation of Trump’s dance moves—captured widespread attention. After netting the final goal, Romelu Lukaku and his teammates joyfully mimicked Trump’s iconic arm gestures to the tune of YMCA. Midfielder Axel Witsel shared that the lighthearted idea emerged from a collective effort.
Online, fans created memes to commemorate Belgium’s victory, featuring everything from digitally altered images of a dejected Trump with his face painted in the national colors to a depiction of the Manneken Pis statue—Brussels’ famous peeing boy—urinating into a green-toned Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool, alluding to recent renovation controversies tied to Trump.
This victory arrives just ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara, where both De Wever and Trump are anticipated to be present. However, the atmosphere may be uncomfortable for De Wever; Belgium has historically ranked among the lowest defense spenders in the NATO alliance of 32 nations. Despite a pledge to meet NATO’s defense spending target of 5% of GDP, reports suggest Belgium is on track to allocate only 1.93% by 2029, falling short of the 2% goal set for 2025.
While discussions about defense spending remain contentious, football has consistently served as a unifying force within the 11.9 million-strong nation, which boasts three official languages and six parliaments.
Twenty years ago, a former Belgian prime minister famously referred to the country as “May fair-play and the best team prevail tonight: come on Belgium!” noting that the only things it seemed to share were “the king, the national football team, and some beers.”
Recent reports also revealed that King Philippe intends to travel to Los Angeles to support the team during their quarter-final match against Spain on Friday. Ahead of the match, the monarchy’s social media account shared a photo of King Philippe engaged in conversation with national coach Rudi Garcia, captioned with a hopeful message.
“May fair-play and the best team prevail tonight: come on Belgium!”
