BELGIUM: FC Mere (1944-2021)

Sint-Bavoweg, Mere (formerly FC Mere)

Belgium, province: East Flanders

August & November 2022 / no match visited

Timeline

• 1944 / Foundation of FC Mere on the ashes of recreational club Meirsche Klauwaerts - possibly one of many clubs from the Catholic Football Association (Katholiek Vlaams Sportverbond) making the switch to the official Belgian FA due to the Catholic association's unsavoury attitude towards German occupation authorities in World War II. Upon joining the Belgian FA, FC Mere obtains matricule 4057.
• 1999 / FC Mere absorbs FC Edixvelde (matricule 7017), a smaller club who played just a stone's throw away from FC Mere's ground at Ediksveldestraat. This ground remains in use for some more years for lower team football and training purposes.
• 2009 / FC Mere absorbs KVC Erpe Erondegem (matricule 5343), with one of this club's grounds - Gentsesteenweg 128B, Erpe - remaining in use for lower team football and training purposes, while the other (Gentsesteenweg, Erondegem) is abandoned. By this time, the premises in Edixvelde had probably been given up as well.
• 2021 / After an existence with several spells in Provincial League 2 as the highest level attained (1950-55, 1962-69, 1976-79, 1991-93 & 2004-09), FC Mere merged with Provincial League 1 side KRC Bambrugge to form Erpe-Mere United, retaining Bambrugge's matricule 5343. FC Mere's ground was abandoned, while first team football moved to KRC Bambrugge's Complex Lindekouter for one season before moving on to the new club's youth academy, Gemeentelijk Domein Steenberg.

Note: Below, a compilation of photos of two different non-matchday visits: pictures 1, 3, 6 & 9 = August 2022 / pictures 2, 4, 5 & 7-8 = November 2022.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author