Friday, July 26, 2024

Belgium II Division

 

Belgium – ranked 5th by UEFA. Familiar champion and perhaps more intrigue at the bottom of the top leagues than anything else.

Second Division. Two teams promoted, as usual, but only the winner directly promoted. The second promotion was decided in a tournament between the teams ending at 2nd - 5th place. At the lower end of the league a bit of a surprise: a team not long ago playing in the European tournaments was now in the relegation zone.


K. Berchem Sport – used to play top league football, but now down on luck: last with 18 points.


RFC Seresien – or FC Seraing - 15th with 21 points. Not long ago playing in Europe, now going down to third level... such is life, ups and downs.


KSK Tongeren - 14th with 23 points.


K. Stade Leuven - 13th with 23 points.


Racing Jet Wavre - 12th with 24 points.


S.K. St-Niklaas – or K. St.-Niklase SK Excelsior - 11th with 25 points.


KSK Eendracht Aalst - 10th with 26 points.


Patro Eisden - 9th with 30 points.


FC Verbroedering Geel - 8th with 30 points.


K. Th. Diest – 7th with 32 points.


FC Eeklo - 6th with 33 points.



KFC Lommel – or FC Lommelse SK - 5th with 35 points and qualified to promotion play-offs.



KRC Genk – or K. Racing Club Genk - 4th with 36 points and qualified to promotion play-offs.




FC Zwarte Leeuw - 3rd with 36 points and qualified to promotion play-offs.


K. Boom FC - 2nd with 42 points and qualified to promotion play-offs.


RWD Molenbeek – they won the championship with 46 points: 18 wins, 10 ties, only 2 lost games, 56-17, and 46 points. Going back to the top division, where they played and often successfully for so long was great.

The Promotion play-offs – a round robin tournament in which every team played twice against the others.


K. Boom FC – last with 5 points.


FC Lommelse SK - 3rd with 5 points.


FC Zwarte Leeuw - 2nd with 6 points.


KRC Genk did very well when mattered most: 4 wins and 2 losses propelled them back to First Division. They did not play all that great during the regular season, but when it came to promotion, it was another story. Back to top flight.


KRC Genk was promoted, but as second team – the champions, earning direct promotion deserve one more look. The star from the 1970s Hugo Broos was coaching a good for Second Division squad – no really famous players here, but goalkeeper Joszef Gaspar was a Hungarian national team player, Dirk De Vriese used to play for Anderlecht, Michael Emenalo was Nigerian national player, and the import from Zaire Kolokota Kobla was good enough.