Extreme Football Tourism: BELGIUM: Zeveren Sportief

Terrein Izegemstraat, Zeveren (Zeveren Sportief)

Belgium, province: East Flanders = Oost-Vlaanderen

14 I 2024 / Zeveren Sportief - KVK Svelta Melsele 2-0 / East Flanders, Provincial League 1 (= BE level 6)

Timeline

± 1965 / Foundation of a recreational football club in the village of Zeveren, situated just to the west of Deinze in East Flanders. It is unclear which exact name this recreational team bore. Zeveren’s football club, which joined the so-called Katholiek Vlaams Voetbalverbond, played its home games on a pitch situated near the church in the village centre – a plot of land put at the disposal of the club by a local smallholder, Astère Verwilst.
1972 / Having played in the Roman-Catholic Football Association for several years, Zeveren’s recreational club now takes the step to join Belgium’s official Football Association (KBVB) at the instigation of club secretary Walter Catoir. The club obtains registration number 7777 upon being accepted as new members under the name Zeveren Sportief. The first club chairman is a local fuel supplier, Jozef De Witte. Terrein Astère Verwilst not being in conformity with KBVB standards, the club moves to a newly laid-out ground to the west of the village, Terrein Izegemstraat. Zeveren Sportief starts its life in East Flanders’ Provincial League 4B, managing a respectable sixth place in the 1972-73 season.
1977 / Winning the title in Provincial League 4D, Zeveren Sportief accedes to Provincial League 3 for the first time.
1980 / Finishing second-last in P3A, Zeveren Sportief drops back into Provincial League 4 after three seasons.
1989 / Twelve-year-old youth player Tony Sergeant moves from Zeveren Sportief to the youth academy of Cercle Brugge KSV. Sergeant goes on to play professional league football at KMSK Deinze, R Antwerp FC, SV Zulte-Waregem, SV Zulte Waregem, and AS Bari, eventually finishing his career at Cercle Brugge KSV in 2012. Also around 1989, another product of Zeveren Sportief’s youth academy, Bert Dhont, moved to KMSK Deinze, going on to represent KSK Beveren, Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen, YR KV Mechelen, KSV Oudenaarde, and KWIK Eine before hanging up his boots in 2009.
± 1992 / Probably some time in the early 1990s – but certainly by 1996 – the main pitch at Terrein Izegemstraat is given a quarter’s turn, thus giving it its current position.
1999 / After nineteen consecutive seasons in the bottom division, Zeveren Sportief now finishes in joint-first place in P4B, winning the subsequent test match to accede to Provincial League 3.
2012 / Having led the table in P3C for much of the season, Zeveren Sportief eventually finishes in joint-fourth place, 8 points behind champions VC Nazareth-Eke. First winning a test match against Sparta Wortegem (0-4), the club goes on to defeat KSK Erembodegem (1-2) and FC Bonanza Sint-Martens-Lierde (2-1) in the play-offs, thus breaking down the door to Provincial League 2 for the first time in club history.
2013 / Finishing second-last in P2A, Zeveren Sportief descends back into P3 after just one season, taking with it SK Bellem and bottom club SK Nevele.
2014 / A new clubhouse is inaugurated at Terrein Izegemstraat by Deinze’s mayor Jan Vermeulen.
2016 / Zeveren Sportief finishes in second place in P3A, 3 points behind champions KFC Eendracht Belzele Evergem. Subsequently, in the play-offs, the club defeats VK Nederhasselt (0-2), KV Sint-Gillis (5-0), and EC Oudenhove (3-1), thus managing a return to Provincial League 2 after three years. In the following season, the club holds its own at that level admirably well, finishing in sixth place in P2A.
2018 / Going from strength to strength, Zeveren Sportief finishes as runners-up in East Flanders’ P2A, 7 points behind champions KVK Adegem. In the play-offs, the club is eliminated in R1 by KSV Geraardsbergen (3-2).
2022 / Finishing in third place in P2B, Zeveren Sportief qualifies for the promotion play-offs, but the club chooses to withdraw, officially resulting in a 0-5 forfeit defeat by KSK Kieldrecht in R1.
2023 / Finishing 16 points behind champions FC Destelbergen, Zeveren Sportief finishes in fourth place in Provincial League 2A. In the promotion play-offs, the club defeats KSV Geraardsbergen (0-1) and FC Sint-Martens-Latem (1-2) to qualify for the final, in which the club is defeated 0-2 by FC Lembeke – but the defeat is immaterial, given that an extra promotion place to Provincial League 1 is available due to KFC Eendracht Zele voluntarily making a restart in Provincial League 4. As such, Zeveren Sportief joins FC Lembeke in Provincial League 1 – for both clubs, it is the first time they find themselves at this level. Moreover, Zeveren Sportief also wins East Flanders’ Provincial Cup, defeating regional rivals FC Poesele 1-3 in the final, played at KVE Drongen’s Complex Keiskant (goals by Loïc Gevaert, Jens Goossens, and Alessio De Ruyck).
2024 / Bottom of the table in East Flanders' Provincial League 1, Zeveren Sportief drops back into Provincial League 2 after just one season, along with SK Vlaamse Ardennen, SK Lokeren Doorslaar, FC Lembeke, and KSSV Denderleeuw.