BELGIUM: VC Bekkevoort

Terrein Oude Tiensebaan, Bekkevoort (VC Bekkevoort)

Belgium, province: Flemish Brabant = Vlaams Brabant

19 XI 2023 / VC Bekkevoort - FC Meensel-Kiezegem 0-0 / Brabant, VFV Provincial League 3B (= BE level 8)

Timeline

• 1952 / Foundation of a football club in Bekkevoort, given the straightforward name VC (Voetbalclub) Bekkevoort. The club acquires membership of Belgium’s Football Association under registration number 5559 and starts its life in Brabant’s Provincial League 3G. The club plays its home games on a pitch situated at Staatsbaan.
• 1956 / Winning the title in Brabant's Provincial League 3G, VC Bekkevoort accedes to Provincial League 2 for the first time. 
• 1957 / Finishing in third-last place in Brabant's Provincial League 2C, VC Bekkevooort drops back into Provincial League 3 after just one season.
• 1963 / Finishing in 13th place in Brabant's Provincial League 3G, VC Bekkevoort descends into the newly formed bottom league of Brabant’s football pyramid, Provincial League 4.
• 1964 / Runners-up in Brabant's Provincial League 4C, VC Bekkevoort wins promotion back to P3 just one year after being relegated from that level.
• 1969 / Champions in Brabant's Provincial League 3A, VC Bekkevoort accedes to Provincial League 2 for the first time in club history. 
• 1970 / Finishing bottom of the table in Brabant's Provincial League 2B, VC Bekkevoort drops back into Provincial League 3 after just one season.
• 1975 / Finishing second-last in Brabant's Provincial League 3A, VC Bekkevoort drops back into Provincial League 4. Also in 1975, VC Bekkevoort moves into a new ground situated at Oude Tiensebaan, where the club has played its home matches ever since.
• 1995 / Having spent twenty consecutive seasons in Provincial League 4, VC Bekkevoort now wins the title in Brabant's Provincial League 4G, thus clinching a ticket for Provincial League 3.
• 2001 / Bottom of the table in Brabant's Provincial League 3D, VC Bekkevoort descends back into Provincial League 4.
• 2007 / Runners-up in Brabant's Provincial League 4E, 3 points behind champions Hoger Op Testelt, VC Bekkevoort manages a return to Provincial League 3 after a six-year absence.
• 2015 / VC Bekkevoort clinches the title in Brabant’s Provincial League 3A, 5 points ahead of VK Linden. The title marks the return of the club to Provincial League 2 after an absence of 45 years.
• 2016 / In an excellent first season in Provincial League 2B, VC Bekkevoort finishes in third place behind Hoger-Op Veltem and SC Aarschot. In the subsequent round of promotion play-offs, the club is eliminated in the group stage, finishing last in its group behind RFC Grez-Doiceau and KFC Rhodienne-De Hoek.
• 2019 / In its best season ever, VC Bekkevoort finishes in second place in Brabant's VFV Provincial League 2A, just 1 point behind champions SC Hoegaarden-Outgaarden. No promotion play-offs are held in Brabant at the end of the 2018-19 season, with the club thus being deprived of the opportunity to fight for an unprecedented promotion to Provincial League 1.
• 2020 / In the 2019-20 season, cut short in March 2020 due to the COVID lockdown, VC Bekkevoort finds itself in second-last place in Brabant's VFV Provincial League 2A after 24 (of 30 matches), resulting in the club being retrograded to P3 along with KFC Rapide Wezemaal and bottom club KRD Zoutleeuw.
• 2024 / Bottom of the table in Brabant's VFV Provincial League 3D, VC Bekkevoort descends into Provincial League 4 along with FC Averbode Testelt Okselaar B, KRD Zoutleeuw, and KVZ Glabbeek-Zuurbemde. In the summer of 2024, the main pitch of Terrein aan de Oude Tiensebaan is laid out anew with a synthetic surface.
• 2025 / Finishing in third place in Brabant's VFV Provincial League 4F, VC Bekkevoort qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club draws a bye in R1, following which elimination is suffered at the hands of Sporting Kampenhout B (6-3).
• 2026 / Champions in Brabant's VFV Provincial League 4E, 3 points ahead of closest rivals KFC Klimop Begijnendijk, VC Bekkevoort wins promotion to Provincial League 3.

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

BELGIUM: FC Lembeke

Terrein Heihoekse Kerkwegel, Lembeke (FC Lembeke)

Belgium, province: East Flanders = Oost-Vlaanderen

12 XI 2023 / FC Lembeke - KVK Svelta Melsele 2-2 / East Flanders, Provincial League 1 (= BE level 6)

Timeline

• ± 1902 / Foundation of a first football club in the village of Lembeke in East Flanders, named Excelsior Lembeke. It is unclear when this club, which never joined the Belgian Football Association, folded – possibly around the start of World War I.
• 1929 / Foundation of a new football club in Lembeke, named VK Tyl. This club never joined the official Belgian FA either, preferring to play its football in either the Vlaamsche Voetbalbond (VVB) or the Katholiek Vlaamsch Sportverbond (KVS).
• 1949 / VK Tyl, which had been constrained to cease its activities during the years of German occupation of Belgium, is refounded under a new name, FC Lembeke. This club joins the Katholiek Vlaams Sportverbond (KVS), making its debut on September 4th, 1949, with a 4-1 away defeat at VK Landegem.
• 1967 / Having been a KVS member club for the past eighteen years, FC Lembeke changes its allegiance, joining the official Belgian FA under registration number 7037. The club, which plays at Terrein Nieuwstraat at the time – a ground without a clubhouse (a local pub, Café Demartelaere, being used as such) is placed in East Flanders’ Provincial League 3.
• 1969 / Finishing second-last in Provincial League 3A, FC Lembeke suffers relegation into the newly created Provincial League 4.
• ± 1970 / Having played on a makeshift pitch, Terrein Aveschoot, for some time, FC Lembeke moves into the newly built Terrein Heihoekse Kerkwegel, right in the heart of the village, around 1970. 
• 1973 / Coached by Georges Vanhyfte, FC Lembeke clinches the title in Provincial League 4A, thereby winning promotion to Provincial League 3. The adventure at this level does not last longer than one year, though, with relegation following immediately in 1974.
• 1990 / Having spent no fewer than sixteen consecutive seasons in East Flanders’ bottom division, FC Lembeke now wins the title in Provincial League 4A, thus earning promotion to P3A.
• 1991 / Winning its second consecutive title, FC Lembeke accedes to East Flanders’ Provincial League 2 (P2A) for the first time in its history. The adventure does not last longer than one season, though, with relegation following immediately in 1992.
• 2001 / Runners-up in Provincial League 3A, FC Lembeke accedes to Provincial League 2, possibly after winning a round of promotion play-offs.
• ± 2002 / An new pitch is added to Terrein Heihoekse Kerkwegel, to the south of what had until then been the ground’s main pitch. This new pitch has been the ground’s main pitch since.
• 2006 / Runners-up in P2A in the previous two seasons, FC Lembeke now finishes second-last in the same division, thus dropping back into P3 along with bottom club VC Zwijnaarde.
• 2007 / In a tight title race in P3A, FC Lembeke clinches first place as well as promotion to P2 by defeating KFC Eendracht Belzele-Evergem on the last day of the season (1-2), thereby finishing 1 point ahead of KSLV Zelzate, which was held to a 0-0 stalemate by VV Eendracht Hansbeke.
• 2009 / Second-last in P2A, FC Lembeke drops back into Provincial League 3 along with bottom club SKV Oostakker.
• 2014 / Finishing 3 points ahead of SK Nevele, FC Lembeke clinches the title in Provincial League 3A, thereby earning promotion to P2.
• 2017 / Bottom of the league in P2A, FC Lembeke descends into East Flanders’ Provincial League 3 along with FC Sint-Martens-Latem and FC Sint-Kruis-Winkel.
• 2018 / FC Lembeke finishes in third place in P3A behind champions VSV Gent and runner-up Ertvelde United. In the ensuing promotion play-offs, the club manages wins over KVK Svelta Melsele B (home, 2-1), KVV Laarne-Kalken (away, 1-1 and penalty shoot-out), and VC Nazareth-Eke (2-1) to accede to Provincial League 2 – even though the play-off final is lost to VK White Boys Sint-Niklaas (1-2), with both clubs already ensured of promotion due to extra spots in P2 being available.
• 2022 / As VC Boekhoute folds, FC Lembeke takes over the ground of that club, the Leonie Ryckaertstadion, which has since been in use for training purposes. Also in 2022, the new clubhouse at Heihoekse Kerkwegel, the so-called Lotus Café – named after the local biscuit manufacturer, who is the club’s main sponsor – is inaugurated by Kaprijke’s mayor, Pieter Claeys.
• 2023 / Finishing in third place in P2A, far behind champions FC Destelbergen and runner-up FC Sint-Martens-Latem, FC Lembeke qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Managing successive defeats of SV Zaffelare (3-1), KFC Herleving Sinaai (2-3), Lando Sport Merendree (3-1), and Zeveren Sportief (0-2), the club accedes to East Flanders’ Provincial League 1 for the first time ever – with Zeveren earning an additional promotion place.
• 2024 / Finishing in fourteenth place in East Flanders' Provincial League 1, FC Lembeke drops back into Provincial League 2 after just one season, along with SK Vlaamse Ardennen, SK Lokeren Doorslaar, KSSV Denderleeuw, and bottom club Zeveren Sportief.

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

BELGIUM: RFC Malinois (B) (1911-1952) / KFC Malinois (B) (1952-1970) / KV Mechelen (B) (1970-±1981) / KV Mechelen (C) (±1981-2003) / Yellow-Red KV Mechelen (C) (2003-2022) / Yellow-Red KV Mechelen (D) (2022-2023, 2024-) / Yellow-Red KV Mechelen (B) (2023)

Sportcentrum Francis Dessain / Terrein Liersesteenweg, Mechlin = Mechelen = Malines (YR KV Mechelen youth academy, formerly youth academy of RFC Malinois / KFC Malinois / KV Mechelen)

Belgium, province: Antwerp = Antwerpen

11 XI 2023 / YR KV Mechelen B - KFC Houtvenne 1-2 / VFV Amateur Division 2B (= BE level 4)

Timeline

• 1904 / Foundation of Football Club (FC) Malinois, in the same year as Racing Club de Malines. Each represents a different part of Mechlin's society, with 'Racing' being a secular club - initially liberally inclined, later distinctly working-class - and FC Malinois' membership consisting mainly of Roman-Catholic bourgeoisie.
• 1911 / The club moves into a ground situated behind the local army base at Liersesteenweg - and which thus became known as 'Achter de Kazerne', or (in English) 'At the back of the Army Barracks'. Apart from the main pitch, soon to become a stadium, FC Malinois' president, canon Francis Dessain, brought together an amount of money to purchase 2,5 hectare of adjoining farmland. On it, several practice pitches were laid out - heralding the birth of the club's youth academy, still situated at Liersesteenweg today.
• 1951 / Francis Dessain, who served as chairman of the Belgian Football Association for the last eight years of his life, passes away at the age of 76.
• 1980 / In a thorough renovation of the youth academy of the by now renamed KV Mechelen at Liersesteenweg, a new clubhouse is erected. Upon the inauguration of the new facilities by Mechlin's mayor, Jos Vanroy, on October 17th, 1980, the ground is officially renamed Sportcentrum Francis Dessain.
• ± 1981 / Although the year of inauguration is no more than a wild guess, at some stage in the 1980s or 1990s, the city of Mechlin had a new communal sports park inaugurated at Provinciaal Domein De Nekker, which included a small stadium for athletics and football. Since, KV Mechelen - and its successor Yellow-Red KV Mechelen - made us of this ground for part of their youth academy. This stadium was the venue of the club's B team's home matches for many years, thereby diminishing the importance of the pitches at Liersesteenweg.
• 2022 / The home matches of Yellow-Red KV Mechelen's B squad, integrated into the national league pyramid at the start of the 2022-23 season, are moved to Bornem's Domein Breeven.
• 2023 / Due to the bad state of the pitch at KSV Bornem's Domein Breeven, YR KV Mechelen moves its B team's home matches to Sportcentrum Francis Dessain in October 2023. Meanwhile, a synthetic pitch is put in place at Breeven. 
• 2024 / YR KV Mechelen B moves back to Domein Breeven in Bornem in February 2024 upon the inauguration of the synthetic pitch.

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