Sergiño Dest, right-back of the United States men's national soccer team, said they will seek to capitalize on the growing confidence fans give the team to boost their chances in the World Cup, when they face Belgium on Tuesday seeking a quarterfinal berth. The US team is celebrating the 250th anniversary of the country's founding in traditional fashion by watching fireworks with family and friends after a light training session on Saturday. Dest, the PSV Eindhoven player, said in press remarks during the training session that they will work to exploit that energy in front of a packed stadium in Seattle, while acknowledging it could be the biggest match in US soccer history so far. Weston McKennie and Folarin Balogun, suspended after receiving a straight red card in the team's win over Bosnia in the round of 32, exchanged baseball throws between them, while coach Mauricio Pochettino wished reporters a happy holiday before players began their training. The team attended a baseball game by the Seattle Mariners on Friday night, and midfielder Cristian Roldan energized the crowd with a chant 'Let's go win the World Cup,' reflecting growing confidence in the host nation. He added: 'At the moment, maybe yes. We hope to win this match, and then we can play more matches in this tournament. Because we have a great group. We play very well and are very excited, and our country believes in us... everyone does... the support is huge.' But Dest warned of Belgium's danger despite their slow start to the World Cup, saying: 'Their performances have been inconsistent in this tournament, but we still know they have qualities.'

Defender Tim Ream said that the team's continued presence in the tournament will boost soccer's popularity in the United States. He added: 'We aren't thinking about that entirely at the moment, but playing matches and performing well, but we are fully aware of the footprint we will leave across the country and the impact we have on generations of people and fans.'

Balogun's suspension will cost America a focal point in their attack, but Ream said the team can draw confidence from the way they handled playing with ten men against Bosnia. He explained: 'When teams can win in different ways, it gives you a morale boost... sometimes the game doesn't go well, it's not pretty, things don't all go your way, but you find ways to win it.'