Koninklijke Voetbal Club Westerlo (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈkoːnɪŋkləkə ˈvudbɑl ˌklʏp ˈʋɛstərloː]; often simply called Westerlo) is a Belgian professional football club located in the municipality of Westerlo in the province of Antwerp. Since 1997–98, Westerlo has been mostly playing in the Belgian Pro League, save for a short stint in the Belgian Second Division between 2012 and 2014, and another between 2017 and 2022. Their highest finish is a 6th place in 1999–00, 2003–04 and 2008–09. They have won one Belgian Cup. The only player who has ever been called up for the Belgium national football team while at Westerlo is Toni Brogno (7 caps, all of them while at Westerlo).

The club was founded in 1933, receiving the matricule number 2024. Their colours are yellow and blue. They play their home matches at the Het Kuipje.

History

K.V.C. Westerlo was founded in the town of Westerlo by students in 1917, and it was named Sportkring De Bist Westerlo. After five years of existence, the club retired. The club Bist Sport was created in 1931 and it changed its name to Sportkring Westerlo two years later. At that time. some players left the club to found Westerlo Sport, the ancestor of K.V.C. Westerlo. In 1939, the club won its league for the first time. Five years later, Sportkring Westerlo and dissident Westerlo Sport decided to merge in spite of the rivalry between the teams, and the new club was called V.C. Westerlo.

It became champion of the Antwerp second division in 1960. Eight years later it played its first season at the national level in Promotion and it won its league to play the third division in 1969. At the end of the season, Westerlo missed a third title in a row, finishing second behind Eupen. The next year, the club was relegated after the playoff and it stayed in the Promotion for ten seasons. The club then underwent two relegations in a row and thus played in the Antwerp second division in 1982–83. Westerlo was then promoted for three consecutive years to qualify for the third division once again. In 1993, the club promoted to the second division and then to the first division in 1997. In 1996, the club added the prefix Koninklijke (meaning "Royal" in Dutch) to its name.

On 18 June 2019 it was officially announced that the club was taken over by Turkish businessman Oktay Ercan. He immediately made it clear that KVC Westerlo will remain a regional family club, and that more attention will be paid to the social dimension and sporting ambitions. Ercan expressed his commitment in 2019 to a year-long plan called 'KVC Westerlo 2024'.[2]

Stadium

Westerlo plays its home matches at Het Kuipje. Its capacity is 8,035.[1]

Honours

Historical chart of KVC Westerlo league performance

European record

Competition Appearances Matches Won Drawn Lost GF GA
UEFA Cup / Europa League2611428
UEFA Intertoto Cup2401 3014
Season Competition Round Opponent Home Away
2000 UEFA Intertoto Cup 1R Slovenia Primorje 0–6 0–5
2001–02 UEFA Cup 1R Germany Hertha Berlin 0–2 0–1
2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup 2R Czech Republic Tescoma Zlín 0–0 0–3
2011–12 UEFA Europa League Q2 Finland TPS Turku 0–0 1–0
Q3 Switzerland Young Boys 0–2 1–3

Current squad

As of 9 July 2026[3]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
3 DF  CIV Bakary Haidara
4 DF  BEL Amando Lapage
5 DF  JPN Seiji Kimura
6 DF  GER Reno Münz
8 MF  UKR Serhiy Sydorchuk
10 FW  POR Afonso Patrão
11 FW  BEL Naoufal Bohamdi-Kamoni
12 MF  MAR Reda Laalaoui
13 FW  JPN Isa Sakamoto
17 MF  BEL Raf Smekens
18 MF  POL Karol Borys
23 DF  BEL Lucas Mbamba
No. Pos. Nation Player
24 DF  BEL Michée Ndembi
26 MF  POL Enzo Geerts
28 DF  FRA Dylan Ourega
31 GK  BEL Oskar Annell
33 DF  RUS Roman Neustädter
34 MF  TUR Doğucan Haspolat (captain)
38 FW  JPN Shunsuke Saito
39 MF  BEL Thomas Van den Keybus
40 DF  TUR Emin Bayram
61 GK  BEL Bill Lathouwers
77 FW  CRC Josimar Alcócer
99 GK  DEN Andreas Jungdal

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player

Coaching staff

Position Staff
Head coachMorocco Issame Charaï
Assistant coach(es)Belgium Bart Goor
Belgium Kevin Van Haesendonck
Goalkeeping coach(es)Belgium Paul Peeters
Serbia Vladan Kujović
Fitness coachBelgium Damien Broothaerts
Head of scoutingBelgium Niel Cuijvers
ScoutBelgium Francesco Carratta
Belgium Stan Van den Buijs

Managers

References

  1. 1 2 het kuipje Archived 30 March 2018 at the Wayback Machine, kvcwesterlo.be (last check 30 March 2018)
  2. "KVC Westerlo 2024". 21 November 2020.
  3. "Doelmannen" (in Dutch). K.V.C. Westerlo. Archived from the original on 13 October 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2019.