The USMNT hosts Belgium at Mercedes-Benz Stadium with World Cup roster spots quietly on the line. Here is how to watch it free.
The United States men’s national team returns to action this afternoon for the first time since November, hosting Belgium in an international friendly at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET.
The match airs on TNT and truTV in English and on Telemundo and Universo in Spanish. For those without cable, DIRECTV is streaming the game with a free trial available. Sling and Hulu with Live TV are additional paid streaming options for those who need them.
What Pochettino is actually watching for
This is the last international window before head coach Mauricio Pochettino names his final World Cup roster. The summer tournament, which runs from June 11 through July 19 across the United States, Canada and Mexico, is now close enough that every minute on the field carries real weight for players still trying to secure a spot.
Christian Pulisic leads the squad this month, and the depth around him is strong enough to make roster decisions genuinely difficult. Belgium provides a meaningful test, the kind of European opposition that shows what players can and cannot do at the level the World Cup will demand.
The USMNT came out of November in solid form. The team beat Paraguay 2 to 1 and then handed Uruguay a 5 to 1 result in consecutive friendly wins. Belgium’s November form was more mixed. They drew 1 to 1 with Kazakhstan before finishing with a 7 to 0 win over Liechtenstein. Neither side enters this window having faced consistent pressure. Today starts to change that.
How to watch USA vs. Belgium
What: International friendly, USMNT vs. Belgium
When: Today, March 28, 3:30 p.m. ET
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
TV: TNT, truTV, Telemundo, Universo
Stream: DIRECTV (free trial), Sling, Hulu with Live TV
For fans outside the Eastern time zone, the match kicks off at 2:30 p.m. CT, 1:30 p.m. MT and 12:30 p.m. PT.
After Belgium today, the USMNT faces Portugal on Tuesday, March 31 at 7 p.m. ET. That second match rounds out the March window and gives Pochettino one final look before the summer.
The World Cup ticket situation creating real tension
This friendly also arrives during a stretch of growing friction around the World Cup itself. FIFA announced this week that a final round of ticket sales will open April 1, continuing through the end of the tournament. The governing body says more than one million tickets sold in the previous release window between December and February.
Despite those numbers, the pricing structure has drawn sustained backlash. Tickets in December went on general sale starting at $140 for group stage matches and reaching $8,680 for the final. Football Supporters Europe, alongside consumer advocacy group Euroconsumers, filed a formal complaint with the European Commission this week over what they described as excessive pricing and the use of dynamic pricing, a model applied to a World Cup for the first time.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino framed demand in January as unprecedented, suggesting all 104 matches at the tournament would sell out. Whether that enthusiasm survives the pricing debate heading into April’s final sale window remains to be seen.
For now, the more immediate thing to watch is what happens in Atlanta this afternoon. The World Cup is 75 days away and Pochettino is paying close attention.