Extreme Football Tourism: BELGIUM: Charneux FC (B) (1996-±2018) / R Charneux FC (±2018-)

Sunday, 7 May 2023

BELGIUM: Charneux FC (B) (1996-±2018) / R Charneux FC (±2018-)

Terrain du Cour Beaupré terr. 2, Charneux (R Charneux FC, formerly B pitch of Charneux FC)

Belgium, province: Liège = Luik

7 V 2023 / Charneux FC - R Herve FC B 0-0 - Herve won penalty shoot-out (1-3) / Liège, Provincial League 4F - promotion play-off, preliminary round

Timeline

1973 / Foundation of Charneux FC as a recreational club. In the first year of its existence, the club sticks to playing friendlies against teams from surrounding villages. The club disposes of just one pitch, situated at Cour Beaupré. A small clubhouse is constructed, situated on the northern end of the pitch.
1974 / Applying for membership of the Belgian Football Association, Charneux FC obtains registration number 8152 and is placed in Liège's Provincial League 4.
1995 / Charneux FC wins promotion to Provincial League 3 for the 2nd time in club history; also in this case, it is unclear how long the club stayed up at this level, but relegation must have taken place some time between 1996 and 2002. Also in 1995, in a major renovation of Terrain Cour Beaupré, a start is made on building a new clubhouse on the western end of the main pitch. As this temporarily renders the pitch unusable, an emergency pitch is laid out at the northern end of the old clubhouse, while the club is given the luxury of a training pitch (current terrain 3) to the south of the main pitch.
1996 / In June 1996, the new clubhouse is inaugurated, as well as a new B pitch on its western end (the pitch pictured below). With the emergency pitch being given up, the ground now consists of two pitches suitable for matches as well as one training pitch.
± 2018 / First team football is moved from terrain 1 to terrain 2, which is situated on a hillside - and hence less vulnerable to flooding.
2020 / Having played in Provincial League 3C for over 10 consecutive years, Charneux FC is now placed in P3D, which includes many teams from the German-speaking eastern parts of Liège, for the 2019-20 season. In this strong division, the club finishes 16th and last, thus dropping back into Provincial League 4 after a 17-year spell in P3.
2023 / Finishing runners-up in Provincial League 4F behind KFC Eupen 1963 B, Charneux FC is eliminated in the first preliminary round of the promotion play-offs by R Herve FC B after a penalty shoot-out.
2024 / Celebrating its fiftieth anniversary as a Belgian Football Association member, Charneux FC acquires the royal epithet, thus officially becoming Royal Charneux Football Club. Moreover, the club wins the title in P4F, with an equal number of points as R Herve FC B, but with a better goal difference (+87 vs. +67). As such, R Charneux FC accedes to Provincial League 3.
2025 / Finishing in sixth place in Liège's Provincial League 3C, R Charneux FC qualifies for the promotion play-offs, knocking out JS Vivegnis in R1 (1-3) before being eliminated by RCS Bollandois (1-4).