Remove Christian Pulisic’s Captain America shield — ‘scared’ USMNT star never delivered on generational hype

This has been the World Cup of Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi, yet again.

This was not and now never will be the World Cup of Christian Pulisic — and it’s time to take away the ‘Captain America’ shield from USMNT’s supposed biggest star.

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Pulisic was clearly dealing with an injury when he exited a super-flat 4-1 defeat to Belgium in the Round of 16 on Monday in Seattle.

The former Chelsea $73 million bust was also limited by the same problems that have shadowed his career since he was erroneously hyped as a generational US soccer star.

Striker Folarin Balogun — even after being in the middle of an international sports controversy — has more current and long-term upside for USMNT.

Pulisic isn’t average … but he definitely isn’t elite, especially in a 2026 World Cup where the race for the Golden Boot changes daily and it will likely take double-digit goals to claim one of the greatest honors in the sport.

“It’s disappointing,” Pulisic told reporters on Monday after USMNT’s World Cup ended.

“I didn’t quite have the moments I was hoping to and to try to help us to really push and get over this next step of beating a really good team.

“I’m disappointed with myself, of course. But I’m going to try to stay positive. I did a lot of good things and the team did, as well.”

A right ankle injury pushed Pulisic off the pitch 59 minutes into a matchup that Mauricio Pochettino‘s team never controlled.

After a year of buzzing but cautious chatter that this could be the World Cup to change the future of soccer in the USA, a squad filled with mid-level Premier League names and too many average MLS players barely made a dent vs a faster, sharper and much more efficient Belgium team.

But the harsher reality is that this was supposed to be a career breakthrough for Pulisic — this was supposed to be the World Cup when the good-looking guy on the cover of Time magazine in a bold red-and-white Stripes jersey carried USMNT into the quarterfinals, at least.

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Pulisic finished with one assist and didn’t score a single goal in the tournament.

“I don’t know the reasons, but just from the beginning, just chasing, tentative, scared, just not confident on the ball,” former USWNT star Carli Lloyd said on FOX Sports, discussing the performance of Pochettino’s crew.

Pulisic was far more impactful for US Soccer in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, while more than a decade of international play hasn’t moved USMNT past where the organization finished in 2014 vs Belgium.

At least in that Round of 16 match, the USA fought for 90-plus proud minutes and goal keeper Tim Howard earned his ‘Secretary of Defense’ nickname by setting a World Cup record for saves.

In 2026, USMNT still lacks a country-changing superstar who can trade goals with Kane, Bellingham, Haaland, Mbappe and Messi.

If that bar seems too high, remember that Pulisic has been called Captain America for almost a decade, and US Soccer has pumped a surreal amount of money into a team that hasn’t made the World Cup quarterfinals since 2002.

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Pulisic is 27, so he should have at least one more World Cup in him.

But this was the biggest sports tournament in history on home soil, with US President Donald Trump getting directly involved in Balogun’s red-card suspension and Pochettino going full red, white and blue.

The only way USMNT was reaching the semifinals was with Pulisic becoming a goal-scoring machine from Los Angeles to Seattle and back.

The only way that soccer would make real gains in America on the almighty NFL, MLB, NBA, college football and more was with Captain America becoming the next big sports star in the country.

Pulisic hobbled off the pitch before 60 minutes vs a significantly better Belgium and didn’t score a goal in the 2026 World Cup.

It’s time to take away the Captain America shield and eventually give it to a USA soccer superstar who can properly use it.