Thibaut Courtois did everything right. And still, Belgium lost.
In one of the most heartbreaking scenes of the 2026 World Cup, Belgium's iconic goalkeeper was forced off the pitch in tears during their quarterfinal clash against Spain at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Friday night and just 17 minutes after his exit, the match was decided in the cruellest way possible.
Courtois pulled up with a muscle injury in the 71st minute, clutching his thigh after being slow to rise from the turf. For a brief moment it seemed he might continue as he returned to his feet during the hydration break and looked ready to carry on but coach Rudi Garcia made the call and replaced him with backup Senne Lammens. The score was 1-1 at the time. A visibly distraught Courtois was embraced by Garcia as he left the field in tears, knowing exactly what was at stake.
What followed was devastating. In the 88th minute, Lammens spilled a shot from Pau Cubarsí straight to Mikel Merino, who pounced to put Spain 2-1 ahead and sending Belgium crashing out of the World Cup and Spain into the semifinal against France.
"He was excellent throughout the World Cup," Garcia said of Courtois. "We didn't want his injury to get worse. Losing him was a hard hit to take. He wanted to continue, but he could no longer take long kicks."
Belgium's night had already been disrupted before kickoff. Captain Youri Tielemans, listed in the starting XI, suffered an injury during the warmup and was replaced by Hans Vanaken before the players took the field. Tielemans had started every match and been one of Belgium's standout performers throughout the tournament.
Belgium were already without Amadou Onana, ruled out for the rest of the tournament with a torn knee ligament, and Zeno Debast, sidelined with a leg injury throughout the competition.
Courtois ends this World Cup having appeared in 21 matches across his career, second only to Germany's Manuel Neuer among all goalkeepers in World Cup history. He made 10 saves and conceded just five goals in five matches before Friday's exit.
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