Belgium plays Egypt. It is Group G. It is the start of something, hopefully better than before.
The Red Devils have a record they would trade for almost anything. They qualify for the World Cup again and again without lifting the trophy. This is their fifteenth appearance. That is a lot of showing up.
Rudi Garcia’s side isn’t exactly broken though. They haven’t lost in thirteen games. Thirteen. The attack looks dangerous, the kind of thing that hurts defenses on paper and likely on grass. Jérémy Doku at Manchester City brings the speed. Romelu Lukaku brings the veteran weight. Kevin de Bruyne sits in the middle and controls the tempo. It is a lineup built to score.
“Belgium holds the unwanted record of qualifying for the most World Cups as a European team without winning the trophy.”
Then there is Egypt. Seven-time African champions. They drew Spain in a friendly, beat Russia, and lost narrowly to Brazil. Solid build-up. But we all know where the eyes go.
Mohamed Salah.
He is 34. The last season in the Premier League with Liverpool wasn’t exactly a fairy tale. Critics say his time is fading. Fans say he just needs the right spark. This tournament? That spark. Can he do it on the world stage in Seattle? Or is he just another legend watching his legs get heavy?
Kickoff and Logistics
Monday. Lumen Field, Seattle. The sun is out if the weather cooperates.
12 p.m. PT on the clock. If you are on the East Coast, that is 3 p.m. Eastern. Londoners wake up late, watching at 8 p.m. British Summer Time. Australia? You are drinking your coffee at 5 a.m. on Tuesday. A real dedication to suffering for football.
Where to Watch
In the US (English)
Fox has the keys to the kingdom here. They carry every Men’s National Team group stage game plus the Round of 16 onward. But this Belgium vs Egypt match? Also on Fox.
- Fox One: The cheap route. $20 a month. No cable bundle. Just the matches.
- Streaming Services: YouTube TV, Fubo, DirecTV Stream all carry Fox and FS1. Good if you want a full lineup, maybe overkill just for one game.
- FS1: Carries the other matches.
In the US (Spanish)
NBCUniversal runs the Spanish side. Telemundo gets the lion’s share of games, Universo takes the rest. Peacock streams them all. Dolby Atmos sound, because apparently, soccer needs to feel immersive in 4D now.
In the UK
Free. Actually free. BBC and ITV share the burden. BBC One broadcasts this opener. Stream it on iPlayer. Starts 8 p.m., coverage begins 7:30 p.m. No paywalls. Just put some biscuits out.
In Australia
SBS carries the entire tournament. Free. Every match. Down Under gets the best deal in this particular arrangement.
In Canada
Bell Media owns the rights. English on TSN and Ctv. French on RDS. TSN Plus for streaming. Standard package, standard pricing, no surprises.
The VPN Loophole
So you want to watch for free outside these zones? A Virtual Private Network does the trick. It masks your location. Makes a server in Toronto look like you are sitting on a couch in Seattle.
It encrypts your data, too. Protects you from public Wi-Fi eavesdroppers. It is legal in the US and Canada. Perfectly legitimate privacy tool.
“Use a VPN to bypass geographic restrictions and stream content from other regions.”
Check the terms of service, sure. Some platforms get snippy about VPNs. They detect the traffic, block the stream, give you an error message that feels personal. Fox One might let you in. BBC iPlayer usually says no unless you have a UK IP that isn’t clearly a datacenter proxy. It’s a game of cat and mouse.
ExpressVPN is popular for this. Speed doesn’t dip much. Seven-year discounts, whatever. If you travel, keep it. It blurs the lines.
The ball drops at Lumen Field. Belgium attacks. Egypt defends. Salah waits for the gap. Lukaku holds the line. Doku sprints past hope and expectation.
Who scores first?
Does Belgium break its jinx, or does the curse persist another month?
We will see. Until then, find the signal. Get the VPN if you need to. The rest is just waiting for the whistle.
