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Belgium national football team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Belgium women's national football team.
Belgium
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s) De Rode Duivels
Les Diables Rouges
Die Roten Teufel
(The Red Devils)
Association Royal Belgian Football Association (KBVB/URBSFA/KBFV)[A]
Confederation UEFA (Europe)
Head coach Marc Wilmots[2]
Captain Vincent Kompany[3]
Most caps Jan Ceulemans (96)[4]
Top scorer Bernard Voorhoof and
Paul Van Himst (30)[4]
Home stadium King Baudouin Stadium
FIFA code BEL
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 3 Decrease 1 (1 October 2015)
Highest 2 (June 2015, August–September 2015)
Lowest 71 (June 2007)
Elo ranking
Current 11 (13 October 2015)[5]
Highest 2 (September 1920[6])
Lowest 74 (September 2009[6])
First international
 Belgium 3–3 France 
(Brussels, Belgium; 1 May 1904)
Biggest win
 Belgium 9–0 Zambia Flag of Zambia (1964-1996).svg
(Brussels, Belgium; 4 June 1994)
 Belgium 10–1 San Marino 
(Brussels, Belgium; 28 February 2001)
Biggest defeat
England England Amateurs 11–2 Belgium 
(London, England; 17 April 1909)[B]
World Cup
Appearances 12 (First in 1930)
Best result Fourth place, 1986
European Championship
Appearances 5 (First in 1972)
Best result Runners-up, 1980

The Belgian national football team[C] has officially represented Belgium in association football since 1904. The squad is under the supervision of global football federation FIFA and the European governing body UEFA—both of which were co-founded by the Belgian team's supervising body the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA). Periods of regular Belgian representation at the highest international level, between 1920 and 1938 and between 1970 and 2002, have alternated with periods in which the team experienced difficulties in qualifying. Most of Belgium's home matches are held at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels.

Belgium's national team have competed in quadrennial major football competitions. They appeared at the end stages of twelve FIFA World Cups and four UEFA European Football Championships, and won the 1920 Olympic football gold medal. Other notable performances are victories against four reigning world championsWest Germany, Brazil, Argentina and France—between 1954 and 2002. Belgium has maintained longstanding football rivalries with their Dutch and French contempories, having played almost yearly against both teams between 1905 and 1967. Since 1906, the Belgian side has been nicknamed the Red Devils.[D] The team is backed by a supporters' federation named 1895.

In 1900, the intention to create a team with Belgium's best football players became public. After competing at the three Olympic football tournaments in the 1920s, the team failed to qualify for any major tournament finals. Around 1970, striker Paul Van Himst—the most-praised Belgian footballer of the 20th century—played for the national team; their fortunes revived and they took third place at Euro 1972. The team went through two golden ages with many gifted players: the 1980s until early 1990s, and the early 2010s. The Belgian national squad were runners-up at Euro 1980 and came fourth at the 1986 World Cup.

Under the guidance of Marc Wilmots, Belgium reached the 2014 World Cup quarter-finals and an all-time-high second-place finish in the FIFA World Rankings, and qualified for Euro 2016. They were seeded in the first UEFA pot for the draws of the qualifying groups for the 2018 world championship.

History[edit]

Early years (1901–19)[edit]

Belgium was the first mainland European country to play association football.[8] Its practise in Belgium began after an Irish student walked into the Josephites College of Melle with a leather ball on 26 October 1863.[9] British teachers helped to spread the sport in schools.[10] Initially, association football was an elitist pastime,[11] but during the following decades it supplanted rugby as Belgium's most popular national football sport.[10] On 1 September 1895, 10 clubs for the practise of football, athletics, cricket and cycling founded the Belgian sports union UBSSA;[E][1][10] one year later this body organised the first annual league in Belgian football.[10]

The first Belgium A-selection in 1901 featured four Englishmen.

On 11 October 1900, Beerschot AC president of honour Jorge Díaz announced Antwerp would host a series of challenge matches between Europe's best football teams.[12] After some organisational problems, on 28 April 1901, Beerschot's ground hosted its first tournament, the Challenge F. Vanden Abeele, which was played between a Belgian A-selection and a Dutch B-team.[13] This class difference led to an 8–0 win for the Belgians,[14] and Belgium also won the three follow-up games (1–0, 2–1, 6–4).[15] FIFA do not recognise these results because the Belgian team included some English players.[16] On 1 May 1904, the Belgians played their first official game against France at the Stade Vivier d'Oie in Uccle; the teams drew 3–3, neither side winning the Évence Coppée Trophy.[17] Twenty days later, the football boards of both countries and five others founded FIFA.[18] At that time, the Belgian squad was chosen by a committee of representatives from the country's six-or-seven main clubs.[19]

From 1905, Belgium and the Netherlands contested cup trophies in the biannual Low Countries derby.[20] After a 1905 derby, a Dutch reporter wrote that three Belgian footballers "work[ed] as devils";[21] one year later, Leopold FC manager Pierre Walckiers was the first to nickname the players Red Devils. Walckiers was inspired by the colour of their jerseys and the achievement of three consecutive victories in 1906:[22] 0–5 against France, and 5–0 and 2–3 against the Netherlands.[23] In his match report about the last game in UBSSA magazine La Vie Sportive, Walckiers called the players petits diables rouges ("little red devils").[24]

In 1910, Scottish former footballer William Maxwell became the first manager of the Red Devils.[25] In 1912, when the sports board UBSSA changed to only organise football activities, it was renamed UBSFA.[F][1][10] During the First World War, the national team only played unrecognised friendlies in and against France.[26][27] Three Belgian international players died in the war.[28]

Debuts at major tournaments (1920–78)[edit]

In the 1920 Olympic football final at the Olympisch Stadion of Antwerp, Robert Coppée opened the scoring for Belgium with a penalty.

In 1920 at their first official Olympic appearance, the Red Devils won the gold medal on home soil after a controversial final in which their Czechoslovak opponents left the pitch.[29] While the Belgians obtained meritorious results in the three Summer Olympics of the 1920s—four wins in seven games—[30][31][32] they lost all of their matches at the first three FIFA World Cup final tournaments in the 1930s.[33][34][35] According to historian Richard Henshaw, Belgium's downward trend after the 1920 triumph occurred because "the growth of [football] in Scandinavia, Central Europe, and South America left Belgium far behind".[36]

While international football events were largely suspended in the 1940s following the outbreak of World War II, the traditional derby against the Netherlands continued during the war, with unofficial matches against them.[37][38] Belgium qualified for only one of eight major tournaments in the 1950s and 1960s: the 1954 World Cup.[39] The day before the tournament began, the Belgian, French and Italian football boards founded UEFA.[40] In these decades the Belgian side also won matches against World Cup holders: 2–0 against West Germany in 1954 and 5–1 against Brazil in 1963.[23] In 1956, Belgium also defeated Hungary's Golden Team with a 5–4 result.[23] The mix of failure during competitive games and success in exhibition matches earned the Belgian squad the mock title "world champion of the friendlies",[41] as Pelé testified.[42]

The team's results improved in the early 1970s, under manager Raymond Goethals. As White Devils, Belgium won their first World Cup and European Championship matches in 1970 and 1972 respectively.[43][44] Euro 1972, in which they finished third, was their first Euro appearance. In 1973, the denial of a legal match winner in their ultimate 1974 FIFA World Cup qualifier cost Belgium a place in the finals;[45] they finished second in their qualification group only on goal difference.[46] The next two attempts to reach the finals of a major tournament were also in vain.

'Golden generation' (1978–2002)[edit]

Belgium's most successful period began when they finished second at UEFA Euro 1980.[47] The 1980s and early 1990s are generally considered to be their first golden age.[48] Between 1982 and 2002, the national team qualified for six consecutive World Cup finals stages and mostly progressed to the second round. Managers Guy Thys, Paul Van Himst and Robert Waseige guided the Belgian team past the first round.[26] Apart from individual FIFA recognitions, the team reached the semi-finals of the 1986 World Cup.[49]

The national squad reached the World Cup final phases of the 1990 and 1994 competitions by ending high in their continental qualification groups,[50][51] but as in 1986, they had to struggle through two-legged play-offs to qualify for the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.[49][52][53] After reaching the final of Euro 1980, Belgium were unsuccessful at the continental level, with early exits from their Euro appearances in 1984 and 2000.[54][55] In the late 1990s, they played three friendly tournaments in Morocco,[56] Cyprus[57] and Japan,[58] and in the last they shared the 1999 Kirin Cup with Peru.

The greatest talents of the Belgian national team during this "golden age" had retired from international football by 2000.[59] In 2002, the remaining players defeated regnant world champions France 1–2,[23] and reached round 16 at their World Cup appearance.[53] After the 2002 World Cup, the team further weakened as other veterans stopped playing with the national side.[60] Coach Waseige also left,[61] and was superseded by Aimé Anthuenis.[62]

Decline and new golden era (2002–present)[edit]

After the 2002 World Cup, Belgium failed to qualify for the final stages of five consecutive major tournaments, and went through five head coaches.[26] Anthuenis' contract was not renewed beyond 2005 after the team failed to qualify for Euro 2004 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup. René Vandereycken replaced him in January 2006,[63] but could not prevent the team's gradual decline to an all-time-low 71st position in the FIFA World Rankings in June 2007.[64] After failing to qualify for Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup, the RBFA sacked Vandereycken in April 2009.[65] His assistant Franky Vercauteren took over ad interim, awaiting the arrival of new permanent coach Dick Advocaat.[66]

Belgium (in red) against Algeria at Estádio Mineirão during the 2014 World Cup

In the meantime, at the 2007 European U-21 Championship a promising new generation of players helped Belgium's squad qualify for the upcoming Summer Olympics,[67] and the Young Red Devils squad came fourth at Beijing 2008.[68] These players—17 of whom entered the senior national team—[59] used mostly defensive skills next to a strong mid-field. Their appearance in the senior team did not deliver immediate success. At the 2009 Kirin Cup, Belgium finished in second and last place,[69] and after a 2–1 loss against the 125th FIFA-ranked team of Armenia in September 2009,[64] caretaker Vercauteren resigned and made way for Advocaat.[70][71] The experienced Dutchman only stayed six months before leaving to become coach of Russia.[72] Georges Leekens was hired as his successor in May 2010, signing a contract until 2012.[73] Under Leekens, the Red Devils narrowly missed the Euro 2012 play-offs. He unexpectedly left for Club Brugge in May 2012;[74] Marc Wilmots, assistant manager since 2009, was assigned as caretaker.[75]

After two matches as provisional coach, Wilmots accepted the request to fully replace Leekens.[2] Under Wilmots the team's performance improved; they rose to a then-high of fifth on the FIFA World Rankings in October 2013.[76] By 2013, several foreign media regarded this Belgian national side, which participated in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, as a new golden generation.[77][78][79][80] Belgium finally qualified as unbeaten group winners.[81] At the finals of that World Cup, the young squad continued its success with four victories, earning a place in the quarter-finals for the second time in its history.[82]

In June 2014, Wilmots prolonged his managerial contract up to and including the 2018 World Cup.[83] In June 2015, the team reached second place in the FIFA rankings, a new record.[84] In October 2015, Belgium qualified for Euro 2016 with a match to spare.[85] During the allocation of the 2018 World Cup qualifying groups, they were seeded as the first team in their group.[86][87]

Kit[edit]

See also the historical kits overview.
Historical features: the traditional red jersey as worn by the Euro 1980 runners-up, and the stylised lion crest (1948–80)

At home, the outfield players of the Belgium national football team traditionally play in the colours of the country's banded flag: black, yellow and red.[88][89] Red dominates the strips and often occupies the entire team jersey;[89] this emphasis is one reason for the team's "Red Devils" nickname.[22] Their shirts are often trimmed with tricolores at the margins.[90] The away kits are usually white, black or both;[91] in 2014, the team inaugurated an all-yellow third-option kit.[92] Since 1981, the crest of the Royal Belgian Football Association has served as the national team's badge;[89][90] previously, the badge depicted a yellow lion on a black shield—an emblem similar to the escutcheon in the national coat of arms.

For their first unofficial match in 1901, the Belgian team wore white jerseys with tricoloured bands on both upper arms.[20] Around Belgium's third unofficial game in 1902, it was decided to dress the footballers in a "shirt with national colours ... [that would indicate,] with a stripe, the number of times every player has participated in an encounter".[14] Since 1904, Belgium's classic all-red jersey design has been altered twice. For a brief period in 1904–05, the squad used satin shirts with three horizontal bands in red, yellow and black; sports journalist Victor Boin later labelled them with "the ugliness record".[19] During the 1970s, manager Goethals chose an all-white combination forthe team to improve their visibility during evening matches.[90][93] As a result, the team was temporarily nicknamed the White Devils.[93]

Six clothing brands have supplied the official team strips. Since 2014, the kits have been manufactured by Adidas;[94] the Belgian squad previously wore Adidas sportswear between 1974 and 1980, and between 1982 and 1991.[95] Former kit sponsors are Umbro (1970–1973),[90] Admiral (1981–1982),[95] Diadora (1992–1999),[95] Nike (1999–2010)[96] and BURRDA (2010–2014).[95]

Home stadium[edit]

The national stadium at the Heysel Plateau in 1935 (left) and in 2013

In total, 23 national venues in 11 urban areas have hosted the Belgian team's home games.[26] Most of these matches have been played in Brussels on the site of the present-day King Baudouin Stadium—a multi-functional venue with a capacity of 50,122 seats.[97] Its field is also used for their final training sessions before domestic games. Since 2007, most physical team preparation takes place at the National Football Centre in Tubize[98] or at Anderlecht's training fields in the Neerpede quarter.[99][100] Belgium's national stadium has hosted—among others—eight European Cup and UEFA Cup Winners' Cup finals,[101][102] and six European Championship games.[103][104]

In 1930, on the occasion of the country's centennial, this sports venue was inaugurated as Jubilee Stadium with an unofficial match between the home team and the Netherlands.[105] At that time, the stadium could contain 75,000 spectators.[106] In 1946 the venue was renamed Heysel Stadium after the homonymous city quarter; this new title became infamous after the tragic events preceding the 1985 European Cup final between Juventus and Liverpool39 spectators died after Liverpool fans charged a neutral area in the disrepaired building.[107] Three years after this disaster, plans for a drastic architectural transformation emerged;[108] in 1995, after two years of renovations, the modernised stadium was named after the late King Baudouin.[109]

In May 2013, it was announced that the King Baudouin Stadium would be demolished and a new stadium, known as Eurostadium, would be built at the nearby Heysel Plateau.[110] Two years later, a building deadline was set for 2019.[111] In September 2014, UEFA assigned Brussels as one of the 13 host cities for the 2020 European Championship, with the proposed stadium as the venue for four games.[112]

Rivalries[edit]

Illustration of a Netherlands-Belgium friendly cup match at Rotterdam's Schuttersveld pitch in 1905

Belgium maintains football rivalries with its neighbours the Netherlands and France, with which it shares close cultural and political relations.[113][114] The matchup between the Belgian and Dutch teams is known as the Low Countries derby;[105] as of 2014 the teams have played each other in 125 official matches.[115] The clash between the Belgian and French sides is nicknamed le Match Sympathique in French ("the Sympathetic Match");[116] they have contested 73 official matches as of 2015.[115]

Belgium won the first unofficial match with the Netherlands 8–0.[14] Belgium also won three more unofficial games,[117] but lost the first FIFA-recognised game between the two countries in 1905 1–4 in overtime.[23] The two national teams played each other biannually between 1905 and 1964, except during the First and Second World Wars.[23] They have met 18 times in major tournament campaigns and have played at least 35 friendly cup duels; the ones in Belgium were titled "Challenge F. Vanden Abeele", those in the Netherlands were called "Rotterdamsch Nieuwsblad-beker".[26] The overall balance favours the Netherlands, with 55 wins for Oranje against 41 Belgian victories.[115] The Low Countries squads co-operated in FIFA and the Belgian Olympic Committee, and in fundraising initiatives between 1925 and 1932 they played four unofficial matches for charity.[105][118]

The first match between Belgium and France, the Évence Coppée Trophy played in 1904, was the first official game for both teams and the first official football match between independent countries on the European continent.[119] The squads have played each other on numerous occasions—until 1967, the sides met almost annually.[23] In international football games, France has played most often against Belgium.[115][G] With 30 wins in direct confrontations, Belgium performed better than les Bleus (France), which won 24 times.[115]

Management[edit]

For more details on this topic, see List of Belgium national football team managers.
Édouard de Laveleye, de facto the first national manager (1904–09)

Since 1904, the RBFA, 23 permanent managers and two caretaker managers have officially been in charge of the national team; this implies at least selecting the footballers.[25][26] As of 13 October 2015, Marc Wilmots is statistically the best performing Belgium manager, with an average 2.26 points per match. Under Guy Thys the team achieved record results at World and European championships; World Soccer magazine accordingly proclaimed him Manager of the Year in 1986.[120]

Rather than developing innovative team formations or styles of play, Belgium's managers applied tactics that were common during their tenures. At the three 1930s World Cups, the Red Devils were aligned in a contemporary 2–3–5 "pyramid".[33][34][35] In 1954, Doug Livingstone let his players appear in a 3–2–5 "WM" arrangement during the World Cup matches.[39] Throughout most of their tournament games in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s the team was positioned in a 4–4–2 formation.[43][51][121] Since Raymond Goethals' leadership in the 1970s a key strength of the Belgian team was their systematic use of the offside trap,[122] a defensive tactic developed in the 1960s by Anderlecht coach Pierre Sinibaldi.[123] "Master tactician" Goethals represented the "conservative, defensive football of the Belgian national team"; it was said that in the 1970s the contrast between the Belgian playing style and the Total Football from their Dutch rivals "could not be bigger".[124]

In an attempt to win a game at the 1998 World Cup, Georges Leekens chose a 4–3–3 arrangement for Belgium's second and third group matches.[52] Robert Waseige, who coached Belgium around 2000, said that "above all, [his] 4–4–2 system [was] holy", in the sense that he left good attackers on the bench to keep his favourite formation.[125] Wilmots opted for the 4–3–3 line-up again,[126] with the intention of showing dominant football against any country.[127]

Current staff[edit]

Belgium head coach Marc Wilmots

A crew of over 20 RBFA employees guides the player group; it includes the following members:[128]

Sports technical
Position Name
Manager Marc Wilmots
Assistant coach Vital Borkelmans
Goalkeeping coach Erwin Lemmens
Fitness coach Mario Innaurato
Video analyst Herman De Landtsheer
Team manager Piet Erauw
Medical
Position Name
Team doctors Kris Van Crombrugge
Geert Declerq
Physiotherapists Bernard Vandevelde
Geert Neyrinck
Dimitri Lowette
Podiatrist Jo Dewijze
Nutritionist Nicolas Paraskevopulos

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

The following players were convocated for the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers against Andorra and Israel on 10 and 13 October 2015, respectively.[129]
Caps, goals and player numbers are correct as of 13 October 2015 after the game against Israel.[130] Only FIFA-recognised matches are included.[H]

0#0 Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Simon Mignolet (1988-03-06) 6 March 1988 (age 27) 15 0 England Liverpool
12 1GK Matz Sels (1992-02-26) 26 February 1992 (age 23) 0 0 Belgium Gent
13 1GK Jean-François Gillet (1979-05-31) 31 May 1979 (age 36) 9 0 Belgium Mechelen
2 2DF Toby Alderweireld (1989-03-02) 2 March 1989 (age 26) 51 1 England Tottenham Hotspur
3 2DF Nicolas Lombaerts (1985-03-20) 20 March 1985 (age 30) 36 3 Russia Zenit Saint Petersburg
4 2DF Vincent Kompany (Captain) (1986-04-10) 10 April 1986 (age 29) 70 4 England Manchester City
5 2DF Jan Vertonghen (2nd vice-captain) (1987-04-24) 24 April 1987 (age 28) 72 5 England Tottenham Hotspur
15 2DF Dedryck Boyata (1990-11-28) 28 November 1990 (age 24) 1 0 Scotland Celtic
19 2DF Thomas Meunier (1991-09-12) 12 September 1991 (age 24) 5 0 Belgium Club Brugge
21 2DF Luis Pedro Cavanda (1991-01-02) 2 January 1991 (age 24) 1 0 Turkey Trabzonspor
23 2DF Jordan Lukaku (1994-07-25) 25 July 1994 (age 21) 1 0 Belgium Oostende
2DF Jason Denayer (1995-06-28) 28 June 1995 (age 20) 3 0 Turkey Galatasaray
6 3MF Axel Witsel (1989-01-12) 12 January 1989 (age 26) 62 6 Russia Zenit Saint Petersburg
7 3MF Kevin De Bruyne (1991-06-28) 28 June 1991 (age 24) 35 10 England Manchester City
8 3MF Marouane Fellaini (1987-11-22) 22 November 1987 (age 27) 64 15 England Manchester United
10 3MF Eden Hazard (Vice-captain) (1991-01-07) 7 January 1991 (age 24) 61 12 England Chelsea
11 3MF Zakaria Bakkali (1996-01-26) 26 January 1996 (age 19) 2 0 Spain Valencia
14 3MF Dries Mertens (1987-05-06) 6 May 1987 (age 28) 41 8 Italy Napoli
16 3MF Sven Kums (1988-02-26) 26 February 1988 (age 27) 0 0 Belgium Gent
18 3MF Radja Nainggolan (1988-05-04) 4 May 1988 (age 27) 16 4 Italy Roma
22 3MF Nacer Chadli (1989-08-02) 2 August 1989 (age 26) 30 3 England Tottenham Hotspur
9 4FW Romelu Lukaku (1993-05-13) 13 May 1993 (age 22) 39 8 England Everton
17 4FW Divock Origi (1995-04-18) 18 April 1995 (age 20) 16 3 England Liverpool
20 4FW Laurent Depoitre (1988-12-07) 7 December 1988 (age 26) 1 1 Belgium Gent

Recent call-ups[edit]

The following footballers were part of a national selection in the past 12 months,[132][133][134] but are not part of the current squad.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Thibaut Courtois INJ (1992-05-11) 11 May 1992 (age 23) 33 0 England Chelsea v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
DF Thomas Vermaelen INJ (1985-11-14) 14 November 1985 (age 29) 49 1 Spain Barcelona v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
DF Laurent Ciman (1985-08-05) 5 August 1985 (age 30) 9 0 Canada Montreal Impact v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
DF Anthony Vanden Borre (1987-10-24) 24 October 1987 (age 27) 28 1 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Wales, 12 June 2015
DF Olivier Deschacht (1981-02-16) 16 February 1981 (age 34) 20 0 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Wales, 12 June 2015
DF Laurens De Bock (1992-11-07) 7 November 1992 (age 22) 0 0 Belgium Club Brugge v.  Cyprus, 28 March 2015[I][135]
DF Jelle Van Damme (1983-10-10) 10 October 1983 (age 32) 31 0 Belgium Standard Liège v.  Iceland, 12 November 2014
DF Sébastien Pocognoli (1987-08-01) 1 August 1987 (age 28) 13 0 England West Bromwich Albion v.  Iceland, 12 November 2014[I][136]
MF Steven Defour (1988-04-15) 15 April 1988 (age 27) 46 2 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
MF Mousa Dembélé INJ (1987-07-16) 16 July 1987 (age 28) 62 5 England Tottenham Hotspur v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 3 September 2015[I][137]
MF Yannick Ferreira Carrasco (1993-09-04) 4 September 1993 (age 22) 3 0 Spain Atlético Madrid v.  Wales, 12 June 2015
MF Leander Dendoncker (1995-04-25) 25 April 1995 (age 20) 1 0 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Wales, 12 June 2015
MF Youri Tielemans (1997-05-07) 7 May 1997 (age 18) 0 0 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Wales, 12 June 2015
MF Dennis Praet (1994-05-14) 14 May 1994 (age 21) 1 0 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Wales, 16 November 2014
FW Christian Benteke INJ (1990-12-03) 3 December 1990 (age 24) 25 7 England Liverpool v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
FW Kevin Mirallas (1987-10-05) 5 October 1987 (age 28) 49 9 England Everton v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
FW Adnan Januzaj (1995-02-05) 5 February 1995 (age 20) 5 0 Germany Borussia Dortmund v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
FW Michy Batshuayi (1993-10-02) 2 October 1993 (age 22) 1 1 France Marseille v.  Cyprus, 6 September 2015
Notes
INJ = Did not make it to the current squad due to injury
  1. ^ a b c Had to leave this selection due to injury

Previous squads[edit]

Player records[edit]

For more details on this topic, see Belgium national football team records.
Jan Ceulemans

As of 13 October 2015, Belgium's football association lists 680 players who appeared in the men's senior national team.[59][I] Jan Ceulemans, who featured in the national team 96 times (8,256 minutes played), has the greatest number of caps.[59] He also started most often as team captain (48 times).[26] The footballer with the longest career is Hector Goetinck, who played for the national team for 17 years, 6 months and 10 days.[26] Bernard Voorhoof and Paul Van Himst are the highest-scoring Belgians, with a tally of 30 goals each.[59] The players who scored most goals in one match are Robert De Veen, Bert De Cleyn and Josip Weber (5);[26] De Veen also holds the hat-trick record (3).[26] The youngest player in the senior team was Fernand Nisot at the age of 16 years and 19 days,[26][59] and the oldest was Jean De Bie, who was still goalkeeper for Belgium at 38 years and 19 days old.[26][59]

Notable players[edit]

Paul Van Himst

Between 1904 and 1980, mainly attacking Belgium players were recognised as talented footballers. Before World War I, strikers Robert De Veen and Alphonse Six were famous; De Veen was very productive with 26 goals in 23 international appearances,[4] while historian Richard Henshaw described Six as "Belgium's greatest player in the prewar period ... [who] was often called the most skillful forward outside Great Britain".[36] The key player of the victorious 1920 Olympic squad was Robert Coppée, who scored a hat-trick past Spain's Ricardo Zamora.[138] In the interwar period, topscorer Bernard Voorhoof[59] and "Belgium's football grandmaster" Raymond Braine[139]both strikers—were among the most outstanding Belgian footballers.[140]

Gifted players in the 1940s and 1950s included attackers Jef Mermans, Pol Anoul and Rik Coppens, and centre-back Louis Carré.[36] The 1960s and early 1970s were the glory days of forward and four-time Belgian Golden Shoe Paul Van Himst,[141] later elected as the Belgian UEFA Golden Player of 1954–2003[142] and Belgium's Player of the Century by IFFHS.[143] Decades after Coppens and Van Himst had retired from playing football, a journalist on a Flemish television show asked them, "Who [from both of you] was the best, actually?". Coppens replied, "I will ask Paul that ...&nbsp:If Paul says it was me, then he's right".[144] In 1966, striker Raoul Lambert and defending midfielder Wilfried Van Moer joined the national team;[59] while Lambert was praised for his skills at Euro 1972,[145] Van Moer won three Golden Shoes.[141]

Belgium has seen two talented waves since 1980, with several players in defensive positions gaining international fame. In the 1980s and early 1990s, Belgium's world-class footballers included goalkeepers Jean-Marie Pfaff[146][147] and Michel Preud'homme,[147][148] and midfielder Jan Ceulemans,[146][149] who played alongside right-back Eric Gerets,[150] midfielders Enzo Scifo[151] and Franky Van der Elst,[152] and strikers Luc Nilis[153] and Erwin Vandenbergh.[154] All of these players had retired from international football by 2000.[59]

During the 12 years in which Belgium qualified for no major tournaments, another golden generation, most of whom later featured in foreign top football leagues—in particular the English Premier League—matured. as of July 2013, twelve Belgian national team players would play the next season in England's top division.[155] The attacking compartment of this generation comprises forwards Kevin Mirallas, Romelu Lukaku, Christian Benteke and Divock Origi, and wingers Eden Hazard, Dries Mertens and Kevin De Bruyne. The central midfield includes Mousa Dembélé, Marouane Fellaini, Axel Witsel and Radja Nainggolan. The defence consists of outfield players Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen, Thomas Vermaelen and Toby Alderweireld, and goalkeepers Thibaut Courtois and Simon Mignolet.[77][79]

Records and fixtures[edit]

As of 13 October 2015, the complete official match record of the Belgian national team comprises 732 games: 299 wins, 158 draws and 275 losses.[26][H] During these games the team scored 1,239 times and conceded 1,211 goals. Belgium reached its highest winning margin against San Marino (10–1) and Zambia (9–0).[23] Their longest winning streak is seven wins in two periods and their unbeaten record is 14 consecutive official games.[23][H]

The entire match record can be examined on the following articles:

Upcoming fixtures stand at the 2010s results page. These include group matches from Belgium's finished Euro 2016 qualification campaign:

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Belgium Wales Bosnia and Herzegovina Israel Cyprus Andorra
1  Belgium 10 7 2 1 24 5 +19 23 Qualify for final tournament 0–0 3–1 3–1 5–0 6–0
2  Wales 10 6 3 1 11 4 +7 21 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 2–0
3  Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 5 2 3 17 12 +5 17 Advance to play-offs 1–1 2–0 3–1 1–2 3–0
4  Israel 10 4 1 5 16 14 +2 13 0–1 0–3 3–0 1–2 4–0
5  Cyprus 10 4 0 6 16 17 −1 12 0–1 0–1 2–3 1–2 5–0
6  Andorra 10 0 0 10 4 36 −32 0 1–4 1–2 0–3 1–4 1–3
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Competitive record[edit]

FIFA World Cup[edit]

Belgium could not yet distinguish themselves during their first five World Cup participations as they never survived the first round. After two scoreless defeats at the inaugurational World Cup in 1930,[33] the team did score in their first round knockout games in 1934 and 1938—but only enough to save their honour.[34][35] In 1954 they held England to a tie (4–4 a.e.t.),[39] and in 1970 they won a first time at a World Cup, against El Salvador (3–0).[43]

United States-Belgium in 1930 was the joint first ever World Cup match.

From 1982 through 2002, Belgium reached six successive World Cups by playing qualification rounds, and advanced to the second phase five times. In the 1982 FIFA World Cup opener, Belgium celebrated a famous 0–1 victory over defending champions Argentina. Their tournament ended however in the second group stage, after a Polish hat-trick from Zbigniew Boniek and a 0–1 loss against the Soviet Union.[121] At Mexico 1986 they achieved their best-ever World Cup run. In the knockout phase underdogs Belgium surprisingly overcame the Soviets after extra time (3–4);[156] in the regular playing time, an unnoticed offside position of Jan Ceulemans allowed him to equalise (2–2) and enforce overtime.[157] They also beat Spain, in a penalty shoot-out after a 1–1 draw, but fell against eventual champions Argentina in the semifinal by 2–0 and against France in the third place match (4–2).[49] In the 1990 FIFA World Cup Belgium dominated their second round match against England by periods, with Enzo Scifo even hitting the woodwork twice.[158] David Platt's "nearly blind" volley in the final minute of extra time, however, implied a sudden elimination of the Belgians.[159] In 1994, Belgium stranded in the second round again as they lost to title defenders Germany (3–2);[51] afterwards, the entire Belgian delegation heavily criticised referee Kurt Röthlisberger for not having whistled a clear penalty foul on Red Devil Josip Weber.[160] In 1998, three first round draws were insufficient to reach the knockout stage.[52] With two ties, the 2002 FIFA World Cup did not start well for Belgium either, but they won the decisive group match against Russia with 3–2. In the second round they faced eventual World Cup winners Brazil; the Brazilians defeated Belgium by 2–0, after Marc Wilmots' headed opening goal was disallowed due to a "phantom foul" on Roque Júnior.[53][161]

In 2014, Belgium beat all group opponents with the smallest margin.[82] Thereafter, they played a highly entertaining[162] round of 16 game against the United States in which American goalkeeper Tim Howard made 15 saves[J] but the dominant Red Devils defeated Team USA in extra time (2–1).[82] In a balanced quarter-final, Argentina eliminated Belgium by 1–0.[164]

     Champions       Runners-up       Third place       Fourth place

UEFA European Championship[edit]

Jean-Marie Pfaff performing a save during the Euro 1980 group match against England

With three successful qualification campaigns out of 12, Belgium's performance in the European Championship does not match their World Cup record. They hosted or co-hosted the event twice: in 1972, when they were chosen among three candidates to host the event,[K] and in 2000, after UEFA had accepted a joint bid from Belgium and the Netherlands.[L][55]

At Euro 1972, Belgium finished third after they fell by 1–2 against West Germany and won 2–1 over Hungary.[44] The team's best continental result is no doubt the unexpected second place at the 1980 edition in Italy. By finishing first in their group, Belgium reached the final in which they faced West Germany. The West German Horst Hrubesch opened the score, but René Vandereycken equalised on penalty. Two minutes before the regular playing time ended, Hrubesch's second goal for Die Adler ended the Belgian hopes on a first Henri Delaunay Trophy win.[47]

At Euro 1984 in their last group match against Denmark the road to the knockout stage was virtually open after taking a 0–2 lead, but the Red Devils could not prevent Danish Dynamite to turn the tide in their favour (3–2).[54] 16 years later, Belgium automatically reappeared at UEFA's national team tournament as co-hosts. After winning the Euro 2000 opener against Sweden with 2–1,[168] two 2–0 losses against eventual runners-up Italy and Turkey knocked the Belgians out of the race by the end of the group stage.[55]

     Champions       Runners-up       Third place       Fourth place

Summer Olympic Games[edit]

Hectic phase during the goal-rich Olympic win against Luxembourg in 1928 (5–3)

In six Summer Olympics editions between 1908 and 1936, football tournaments for proper senior men's national teams took place; the Belgian team participated in all three Olympic football tournaments in the 1920s and won the gold medal on home soil in 1920.[30][31][32] Belgium's 1920 Olympic squad was given a bye into the quarter-finals where they won 3–1 versus Spain, to advance to the semifinals in which they overcame the Netherlands with 3–0. In the first half of their final against Czechoslovakia, the Belgians took a 2–0 lead.[30] Forward Robert Coppée had converted a discussed early penalty, and the action in which attacker Henri Larnoe had doubled the score was also a matter of debate. After the expulsion of the Czechoslovak left-back Karel Steiner, the discontented visitors left the pitch in the 40th minute. Afterwards, the away team reported their reasons for protest to the Olympic organisation;[29] these complaints were dismissed and the Czechoslovaks got disqualified.[36] The 2–0 score was allowed to stand and Belgium were crowned the champions.[36]

Apart from the proper national team, two other Belgian delegations appeared at the Summer Olympics. In 1900 a Belgian representation with mainly students won bronze,[169] and in 2008 Belgium's U-23 selection placed fourth.[68]

     Gold       Silver       Bronze

Team image[edit]

Media coverage[edit]

Gust De Muynck's live coverage during Belgium-Netherlands in 1931

The first live coverage of a football match of Belgium's national team was given on 3 May 1931, when journalist Gust De Muynck commented Belgium-Netherlands at the radio. This was at the same time the first Belgian sporting event on air.[171]

Decades later, television became the more popular medium to follow their games. As 59 per cent of the Belgians speak Dutch and 41 per cent French, the national team matches are broadcast in both languages. The games are not broadcast in German, the third official language in Belgium. During Belgium's tournament appearances in the 1980s and early 1990s, Rik De Saedeleer crowned himself the nation's most famous football commentator with his emotional and humorous reports.[172] Initially the matches have been broadcast mainly on public channels: the former BRTN in Dutch and the RTBF in French. Since 1994 also commercial channels have been purchasing the emission rights, such as vtm (with sister channel Kanaal 2) and VIER in Flanders.[1] The 8th final against the United States at the 2014 World Cup was the most-watched television program in Belgian history so far, with a total audience of over four million viewers out of 11.2 million Belgian citizens.[173] The Belgian broadcasting right holders for the Euro 2016 qualifiers are VRT, RTBF and cable broadband providers BeTV and Telenet.[174]

In April 2014, the VRT started emitting a nine-piece documentary about the national team behind the scenes during the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, titled Iedereen Duivel ("Everybody Devil"),[175] while Telenet brought out an eight-piece documentary about individual players, Rode Helden ("Red Heroes").[176]

Actions[edit]

Young Belgium fan with typical tricolour wig and makeup
  • Actions for the fans: During the 2014 World Cup qualifiers the Devil Challenges were organised, a string of interactive actions.[177] The premise was that small groups of international players would do a favour in return of each of the five comprehensive chores their supporters completed ("colour Belgium red", "gather 500,000 decibels", etc.), all of which were convincingly accomplished.[178] In June 2013 the Red Devils' first ever Fan Day attracted over 20,000 supporters;[179] a second edition was held after the 2014 World Cup.[180] At the days of Belgium's 2014 World Cup group matches, large dance events titled Dance with the Devils (a pun on a 2001 trance album)[181] took place in three Belgian cities.[182]
  • Charity support: In 1926, an unofficial duel against the Netherlands served exclusively as a fundraiser for benefactions.[183] In the summer of 1986, when the Belgian delegation reached the Mexico World Cup semifinals, the football team started the project Casa Hogar under impulse of delegation responsible Michel D'Hooghe.[184] This is a home for street children in the industrial Mexican city Toluca, to which the footballers donated part of their tournament bonuses.[185] In August 2013, the national team supported four social projects via the charity fund Football+ Foundation, by playing an A-match with a plus sign on the shoulders of their jerseys and afterwards auctioning the shirts.[186][187]
  • Anti-racism campaigns: In 2002, the national squad posed with anti-racist slogans.[188] In 2010 a home Euro 2012 qualifier stood in the theme of respect for diversity; this UEFA-supported action made part of the European FARE Action Week.[189] Ex-Red Devil Dimitri Mbuyu, the first black Belgium player (in 1987),[59][190] was engaged as godfather, and also other (ex-)footballers of foreign origin in the Belgian top division participated.

Support[edit]

Just like the national team the Belgian supporters exhibit the country's tricolour, usually with emphasis on red. In 2012 the local fan clubs merged into one large Belgian supporters' federation named 1895, after the foundation year of the RBFA. One year later, 1895 counted 24,000 members.[191] The nationwide interest in the football squad has also been reflected by the occasional presence of Belgian kings at their matches since 1914.[192][193][194] One of the greatest moments for the Red Devils and their 12th man was in the summer of 1986, when the Belgian delegation at the Mexico World Cup received a warm 'welcome home'. When the World Cup semifinalists appeared on the Brussels Town Hall balcony, the confronting Grand Place square was captured by an ecstatic crowd that cheered as if their team had won a major tournament.[195]

Logo of the national fan federation

After the six consecutive World Cup qualifications between 1982 and 2002, the abrupt failure to reach the end stages of the next five European and world championships meant a severe popularity strain for the national side. Between 2004 and 2010, local journalists described the Belgian footballing nation as "deadly sick".[196][197] Some fans kept supporting their team in the bad days, with Ludo Rollenberg probably the most loyal one because he attended the games of the Red Devils worldwide since 1990. He only missed the Japanese Kirin Cup in 1999 and two other matches by 2006,[198] and showed up as only supporter in Armenia in 2009.[199] In 2008, hope surged when Belgium's U-23 acquired the fourth place at the Olympics in Beijing;[68] several of these Olympians later appeared in the senior team. Even though the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 were not reached, the popularity and belief in an upcoming major tournament continued to rise again.

During the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, interactive actions called the Devil Challenges and a Fan Day further strengthened the bond with the supporters (see section Actions). Just before the kick-off of a home qualifier, Belgium's footballers saw a first tifo banner, sized 10.5 by 11.5 metres and depicting a devil in the national colours.[200] The many players that appeared in foreign high-level football leagues and promising results under Marc Wilmots only increased the enthusiasm and belief in a successful World Cup campaign. Because of this popularity peak, two Belgian monuments were decorated in national colours for the 2014 FIFA World Cup event; the Manneken Pis statue received a kid's version of the new Belgian uniform,[201] while facets of the Atomium's upper sphere were covered in black, yellow and red vinyl.[202]

[edit]

The national team has had three official anthropomorphous mascots: a lion in team kit named Diabolix, a red super devil and a fan-made modern devil.[203] In 2012, the Red Devils adopted a red trident as new logo.[204]

See also[edit]

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ^ The acronyms KBVB, URBSFA and KBFV come from the organisation's respective Dutch, French and German names: Koninklijke Belgische Voetbalbond, Union Royale Belge des Sociétés de Football-Association and Königliche Belgische Fußballverband.
    The title of "Royal Union" was given for its 25th year of existence, in 1920.[1]
  2. ^ Note that this match is not considered to be a full international by the English FA, and does not appear in the England team records.[7]
  3. ^ Dutch: Belgisch nationaal voetbalelftal
    French: Équipe nationale belge de football
    German: Belgische Fußballnationalmannschaft
  4. ^ Dutch: De Rode Duivels
    French: Les Diables Rouges
    German: Die Roten Teufel
  5. ^ UBSSA is the acronym for the organisation's French name: Union Belge des Sociétés de Sports Athlétiques.
  6. ^ UBSFA was the acronym for the organisation's French name: Union Belge des Sociétés de Football-Association.
    In 1920 it received the title of "Royal Union" for its 25th year of existence, and hence became the Royal Belgian Football Association.[1]
  7. ^ as of 2015
  8. ^ a b c Note that the friendlies against Romania on 14 November 2012 and against Luxembourg on 26 May 2014 are not FIFA-recognised due to an excessive number of substitutions according to the Laws of the Game.[131]
  9. ^ Note that the RBFA does not count caps earned in the Belgian seven Summer Olympics matches, and that it does include Belgium's friendlies on 14 November 2012 and 26 May 2014 that are not FIFA-recognised due to an excessive number of substitutions according to the Laws of the Game.[131]
  10. ^ FIFA's initial match statistics showed 16 saves, and many news sources continue to use this number. The official FIFA statistics were updated on 5 July 2014 to show 15 saves.[163]
  11. ^ The other bids were from England and Italy,[166] whose teams did not reach the semi-finals.
  12. ^ UEFA preferred the Belgium-Netherlands bid to the individual bids of Spain and Austria.[167]

References[edit]

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Bibliography[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • Aerts, Bart; Buyse, Frank; Colin, François; Cornez, Pierre; Decoster, Gilles; Deferme, Dirk; et al. (2013). De Rode Duivels. Het officiële boek (in Dutch). Veurne: Uitgeverij Kannibaal. ISBN 978-94-9137-666-5. 
  • Colin, François (2014). De Rode Duivels 1900–2014 (in Dutch). Veurne: Uitgeverij Kannibaal. ISBN 978-94-9137-677-1. 
  • Guldemont, Henry (1978). Toute l'histoire du football belge (in French). Brussels: Éditions Arts & Voyages. ISBN 2801600121. 
  • Hubert, Christian (1994). De Montevideo à Orlando (in French). Brussels: Labor. ISBN 2-8040-1009-0. 
  • Hubert, Christian (2006). Le siècle des Diables Rouges (in French). Brussels: Luc Pire. ISBN 2-87415-684-1. 

External links[edit]