2023–24 Belgian Pro League
The 2023–24 Belgian Pro League (officially known as the Jupiler Pro League due to sponsorship reasons) will be the 121st season of top-tier football in Belgium.
| Season | 2023–24 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 28 July 2023 – 26 May 2024 |
← 2022–23 2024–25 → | |
Team changes
Due to the league format change which reduced the number of teams back from 18 to 16, three teams were relegated: Oostende (after ten seasons), Seraing (after two seasons) and Zulte Waregem (after 18 seasons) were relegated to Challenger Pro League. They will be replaced by only one team, the winner of the 2022–23 Challenger Pro League (RWD Molenbeek, which it will be their first ever season in the top flight).
Format change
After 3 seasons, Belgian Pro League returns to the "old" format featuring the number of teams reduced from 18 to 16 and with similar playoffs as pre-COVID19. After the regular season the top six teams qualify for the Champions' Play-offs (commonly called "Play-offs I"), teams from 7th to 12th place will qualify for the Europe Play-offs (commonly called "Play-offs II"), but most importantly the number of teams relegating increases from one to either two or three, as the bottom four teams (13th through 16th) will play relegation playoffs after completion of which the two last teams will be relegated directly, with the team finishing 14th overall to play the 3rd place finisher of the Challenger Pro League for the final spot in the 2024–25 Belgian Pro League.[1]
Teams
Stadiums and locations
| Matricule | Club | Location | Venue | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | Anderlecht | Anderlecht, Brussels | Constant Vanden Stock Stadium | 21,500 |
| 1 | Antwerp | Antwerp | Bosuilstadion | 16,144 |
| 12 | Cercle Brugge | Bruges | Jan Breydel Stadium | 29,042 |
| 22 | Charleroi | Charleroi | Stade du Pays de Charleroi | 14,000 |
| 3 | Club Brugge | Bruges | Jan Breydel Stadium | 29,042 |
| 4276 | Eupen | Eupen | Kehrwegstadion | 8,363 |
| 322 | Genk | Genk | Cegeka Arena | 24,956 |
| 7 | Gent | Ghent | Ghelamco Arena | 20,000 |
| 19 | Kortrijk | Kortrijk | Guldensporen Stadion | 9,399 |
| 25 | Mechelen | Mechelen | AFAS-stadion Achter de Kazerne | 16,700 |
| 18 | OH Leuven | Leuven | Den Dreef | 10,000 |
| 5479 | RWD Molenbeek | Molenbeek, Brussels | Edmond Machtens Stadium | 12,266 |
| 373 | Sint-Truiden | Sint-Truiden | Stayen | 14,600 |
| 16 | Standard Liège | Liège | Stade Maurice Dufrasne | 30,023 |
| 10 | Union SG | Saint-Gilles, Brussels | Stade Joseph Marien | 8,000 |
| 2024 | Westerlo | Westerlo | Het Kuipje | 8,035 |
Number of teams by provinces
| Number of teams | Province or region | Team(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 |  Antwerp | |
 Brussels | Anderlecht, RWD Molenbeek and Union SG | |
 West Flanders | Cercle Brugge, Club Brugge and Kortrijk | |
| 2 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Limburg |
Genk and Sint-Truiden |
 Liège | Eupen and Standard Liège | |
| 1 |  East Flanders | Gent |
 Flemish Brabant | Oud-Heverlee Leuven | |
 Hainaut | Charleroi | |
Personnel and kits
| Club | Manager | Kit Manufacturer | Sponsors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anderlecht |  Brian Riemer |
Joma | DVV Insurance (home) Candriam (away) |
| Antwerp |  Mark van Bommel |
Jako | betFIRST |
| Cercle Brugge |  Miron Muslic |
Kappa | Napoleon Games |
| Charleroi | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Felice Mazzù |
Kappa | Lotto |
| Club Brugge | Rik De Mil |
Macron | Unibet |
| Eupen | position vacant | Adidas | Qatar Airways |
| Genk | Wouter Vrancken |
Nike | Beobank |
| Gent | Hein Vanhaezebrouck |
Craft | VDK Bank |
| Kortrijk | position vacant | Jako | AGO Jobs & HR |
| Mechelen | Steven Defour |
Erreà | Telenet |
| OH Leuven | Marc Brys |
Stanno | Star Casino |
| RWD Molenbeek | Vincent Euvrard |
Joma | Facebank |
| Sint-Truiden |  Thorsten Fink |
Macron | DMM.com |
| Standard Liège |  Ronny Deila |
Adidas | VOO |
| Union SG | Karel Geraerts |
Nike [2] | Lotto |
| Westerlo | Jonas De Roeck |
Saller | Soudal |
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position | Replaced by | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eupen | Edward Still |
Mutual consent | End of 2022–23 season[3][4][5] | Pre-season | ||
| Kortrijk | Bernd Storck |
|||||
| Sint-Truiden | Bernd Hollerbach |
Thorsten Fink |
16 May 2023[6] |
Regular season
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anderlecht | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League and Play-offs I[lower-alpha 1] |
| 2 | Antwerp | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for the Play-offs I |
| 3 | Cercle Brugge | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | Charleroi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | Club Brugge | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 6 | Eupen | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 7 | Genk | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for the Play-offs II |
| 8 | Gent | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 9 | Kortrijk | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 10 | Mechelen | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 11 | OH Leuven | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 12 | RWD Molenbeek | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 13 | Sint-Truiden | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Qualification for the Relegation Play-Offs |
| 14 | Standard Liège | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15 | Union SG | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 16 | Westerlo | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Matches won; 3) Goal difference; 4) Goals scored; 5) Away matches won; 6) Away goal difference; 7) Away goals scored; 8) Play-off.[7]
Notes:
- The regular season winners will qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Europa Conference League if they do not qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League in the playoffs.
References
- "Witte rook over nieuwe competitieformule in 1A: 16 ploegen, tot 3 dalers, halvering blijft" [White smoke on new competition format in 1A: 16 teams, up to 3 teams facing relegation, halving of points remains] (in Dutch). 17 June 2022.
- "Union Saint Gilloise Announce "Sustainable" Nike Kit Deal - Fewer New Kits & Lower Prices". Footy Headlines. 1 May 2023.
- "Edward Still neemt na de pandoering op de slotspeeldag "in onderling overleg" afscheid van Eupen" [Edward Still bids farewell to Eupen "by mutual agreement" after 7–0 loss on final matchday] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2023-04-25.
- "Bernd Storck trekt na zondag de deur achter zich dicht bij Kortrijk" [Bernd Storck departs forgood at Kortrijk after next Sunday] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2023-04-21.
- "Coach Bernd Hollerbach verlaat STVV op het einde van het seizoen" [Manager Bernd Hollerbach to leave STVV at the end of the season] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2022-12-15.
- "Fink is een Bink" (in Dutch). stvv.com. 2023-05-16.
- "Bondsreglement Titel 7: Competities" [Association Rules Title 7: Competitions] (PDF). Royal Belgian Football Association. p. 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 September 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.