Extreme Football Tourism: BELGIUM: Werchter FC (1935-1942) / KFC Werchter (1942-1946, 1948-)

Terreinen Benny De Rijck, Werchter (KFC Werchter, formerly Werchter FC)

Belgium, province: Flemish Brabant = Vlaams Brabant

18 V 2025 / KFC Werchter - KVC Kessel-Lo 2000 B 1-1 A.E.T. (Werchter wins penalty shoot-out: 4-2) / Brabant, VFV Provincial League 4 - promotion play-off final (= BE level 9)

Timeline

1934 / Foundation of a football club in Werchter, a village just to the north of Rotselaar in the Flemish-speaking part of Brabant. The new club is given the name Werchter FC, with a pitch being laid out at Groote Straat (later spelled Grotestraat).
1935 / One year after its foundation, Werchter FC joins the so-called Vlaamsche Voetbalbond (VVB), a league association of Flemish clubs, which was attempting to emulate the official Belgian FA (URBSFA / KBVB), which was perceived by many in Flanders as being dominated by the French-speaking community in Belgium. Having obtained membership with registration number 203, Werchter FC could usually be found in the higher echelons of VVB Division 2 in the following years.
1942 / The VVB having thoroughly discredited itself from the early stages of the German occupation of Belgium onwards due to its pro-nazi stance, many clubs decide to leave the association – and Werchter FC is no exception. In 1942, the club makes the leap to the official Belgian Football Association under the slightly adapted name FC Werchter, obtaining registration number 3557. For the 1942-43 season, the club is placed in Brabant’s Provincial League 3, the bottom level of that province’s provincial league pyramid.
1946 / Due to the pitch at Grotestraat having been deemed unfit for league football by Belgian FA authorities, FC Werchter remains inactive for two years.
1948 / After two years of inactivity, with the pitch at Grotestraat having been upgraded to meet with Belgian FA standards, FC Werchter rejoins Brabant’s Provincial League 3.
1962 / The club’s first tangible success, FC Werchter clinches the title in Brabant’s Provincial League 3G, 4 points ahead of closest rivals RC Nieuwrode. As such, the club wins promotion to Provincial League 2 for the first time.
1969 / Finishing in second-last place in Brabant’s Provincial League 2B, FC Werchter drops back into Provincial League 3 after seven seasons.
1970 / Runners-up in Brabant’s Provincial League 3D behind champions FC Eclair Kessel-Loo, FC Werchter qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club reaches the final, in which it suffers defeat at the hands of US Quenastoise.
1971 / Champions in Brabant’s Provincial League 3D, 2 points ahead of closest followers FC Rapid Bertem, FC Werchter manages a return to Provincial League 2 after an absence of two years.
1972 / FC Werchter finishes as runners-up in Brabant’s Provincial League 2B, 6 points behind champions FC Eclair Kessel-Loo.
1973 / Runaway champions in Brabant’s Provincial League 2B, 9 points ahead of its closest rival, FC Werchter wins promotion to Provincial League 1 for the first time in club history.
1977 / Having played four seasons in Provincial League 1 – with an eighth place in 1975 as the best result in those years – FC Werchter now finishes bottom of the table in that division, thus descending into Provincial League 2.
1980 / FC Werchter finishes as runners-up in Brabant’s Provincial League 2B, 4 points behind champions MJ FC Zichem.
1983 / Champions in Brabant’s Provincial League 2B, FC Werchter manages a return to Provincial League 1 after an absence of six years.
1984 / In the most successful season in club history, FC Werchter finishes in fifth place in Brabant’s Provincial League 1.
1986 / Two years after the club’s fiftieth anniversary, FC Werchter obtains the royal epithet, thus officially becoming Koninklijke Football Club (KFC) Werchter.
1988 / Finishing second from bottom in Brabant’s Provincial League 1, KFC Werchter drops back into Provincial League 2 after five seasons.
1996 / Finishing bottom of the table in Brabant’s Provincial League 2B, KFC Werchter drops back into Provincial League 3, 25 years after last having found itself at that level.
1998 / Benny De Rijck, one of the best players in KFC Werchter’s history, succumbs to a neglected pneumonia at the age of 40. De Rijck had spent his entire playing career at KFC Werchter, having experienced the club’s heyday in Provincial League 1 and steadfastly having turned down tentative offers from professional league clubs. In fact, so big was his dedication to KFC Werchter, that he was still playing first team football at the time of his death. In honour of this ultimate club man, Terrein Grotestraat was renamed Terrein(en) Benny De Rijck about a year after his passing.
2000 / KFC Werchter finishes as runners-up in Brabant’s Provincial League 3D, 1 point behind champions KVV Scherpenheuvel Sport.
2006 / Finishing bottom of the table in Brabant’s Provincial League 3D, KFC Werchter descends into Provincial League 4 for the first time in club history.
2014 / The nadir in club history, KFC Werchter finishes bottom of the table in Brabant’s Provincial League 4G with just 3 points (from three draws) in the entire season, suffering double-digit defeats on five occasions and ending the season with the abysmal goal difference of -155 (14-169).
2023 / Runners-up in Brabant’s Provincial League 4E, 13 points behind runaway champions KOSC Wijgmaal B, KFC Werchter qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Knocking out VC Den Boskant Peizegem in R1 (1-0), the club bows out in R2 against KFC Eppegem B (4-0).
2024 / Finishing in fifth place in Brabant’s Provincial League 4E, KFC Werchter qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Edging past Boutersem United B in R1 (1-1 A.E.T. & penalty shoot-out), the club is eliminated in R2 by derby rivals KVC Haacht (4-1).
2025 / Finishing in sixth place in Brabant’s Provincial League 4E, KFC Werchter qualifies for the promotion play-offs for the third year running. Eliminating K Stormvogels Haasrode B in R1 (2-0) and EMI Essene in R2 (0-2), the club ultimately manages to edge past KVC Kessel-Lo 2000 B in the final (1-1 A.E.T. & penalty shoot-out), played at Terrein Benny De Rijck. As such, acceding to Provincial League 3, KFC Werchter manages to climb out of Provincial League 4 after nineteen years.