 | |||
| FIBA ranking | 35 5 (15 September 2025)[1] | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| JoinedFIBA | 1933 | ||
| FIBA zone | FIBA Europe | ||
| National federation | Basketball Belgium | ||
| Coach | Dario Gjergja | ||
| Nickname | Lions | ||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Appearances | 3 | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| FIBA World Cup | |||
| Appearances | None | ||
| EuroBasket | |||
| Appearances | 19 | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Belgium 17–31France  (Brussels, Belgium; 6 May 1928) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Belgium 114–11Albania  (Prague, Czechoslovakia; 28 April 1947) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Italy 91–50Belgium (Sofia, Bulgaria; 23 June 1957) | |||
TheBelgium men's national basketball team[a] has representedBelgium in internationalbasketball since 1928. The supervising body for the national team isBasketball Belgium.
Belgium has qualified for theEuroBasket 19 times throughout their history, achieving their best result at the event in1947, where they finished in fourth place. Moreover, Belgium has competed at theOlympic Games on three occasions, in1936,1948, and1952. However, Belgium is still in pursuit of making their first appearance at theFIBA Basketball World Cup.
The team is nicknamed and also represents itself asBelgian Lions.
Belgium played in their first official match on 6 May 1928, a 17–31 loss againstFrance in Brussels. Belgium became a member ofFIBA in 1933. In1935, Belgium participated in the firstEuropean Basketball Championship. In their first game of the tournament, Belgium was defeated bySpain 25–17.[2] Following the loss, Belgium was unable to advance into the semi-finals, and completed the rest of the competition in the classification round.
At the1936 Olympic Games, Belgium was quickly eliminated, after posting an (0–2) record during their tournament stint. Ten years later, Belgium reappeared on the international stage atEuroBasket 1946. Entering the competition, the national team lost their only two games of the preliminary round, which sent them into the classification phase. There, Belgium earned a victory againstPoland 22–39.[3] The team would pick up one more victory, overLuxembourg, to finish the event in seventh place. A year later, Belgium was back on the continental level forEuroBasket 1947. After dropping their first game of the tournament toEgypt, the national team turned around to heavily defeatAlbania 114–11.[4] In their final match of the preliminary round, Belgium won again, this time againstItaly to advance. Belgium opened up the second group phase of the competition with a win over France 26–27.[5] However, the team would go (2–2) for the rest of the event, including the classification round, for a fourth place finish.[6] At the1948 Olympic Games, Belgium failed to advance past the preliminary phase, and was once again relegated to the classification round to complete the event.
In 1950, Belgium participated in a European qualifying tournament for the inauguralFIBA World Cup. Ultimately, the team missed out on the competition, after narrow losses to Spain andYugoslavia.[7] The following year, Belgium entered theEuroBasket 1951, where the team went undefeated in the preliminary round at (3–0). However, the team would endure a complete reversal of their results in the quarter-final round, losing all three of their matches and being sent into the classification phase to finish out the tournament.[8]
At the1952 Olympic Games, Belgium made their third appearance in the competition, losing two out of their three matches, and failing to make it past the tournament's first round. Heading toEuroBasket 1953, the struggles for Belgium on the international stage continued, as the national team posted a (1–2) record in the preliminary round and was sent into the classification phase to closeout the event.[9]
After a disappointing tournament for Belgium, the team declined to enter the competition in 1955, and instead entered the event in1957. However, Belgium would once again compile subpar preliminary phase results at (0–3), and relegated to the classification round. Belgium would lose their first two matches of the phase, before earning their first win of the competition againstAustria 58–70.[10] Following the victory, Belgium prevailed in three out of their next four games, including a 90–48 win over Albania in their final game of the tournament. That was where national team guardEddy Terrace scored (63 points), which set a single game EuroBasket record to that point.[11][12] Two years later, Belgium made their seventh appearance in the competition forEuroBasket 1959, where they garnered a (2–1) record in the preliminary stage to qualify for the semi-final round. Although after losing two of the three games in the round, Belgium's chances for a medal finish were gone.[13]
Heading into the 1960s, Belgium's first competition of the decade came at theEuroBasket 1961. After finishing second in their preliminary round group, the team advanced into the second group phase. However, even after winning three out of their four games in the round, Belgium was eliminated from medal contention.[14] Two years later, at theEuroBasket 1963, Belgium won their opening match of the competition againstTurkey 71–52.[15] Although they would only manage to split their next six games in the round (3–3), and sent into the classification bracket to finish the tournament.[16] In the ensuing years for Belgium, frustration continued to mount, as they would only qualify for the Euros once (1967), over the next fourteen years.[17]
AtEuroBasket 1977, Belgium hosted the event for the first time, and won their opening game 107–98 againstFinland.[18] However, the national team would lose three of their next four games in the preliminary round, and once again have to finish the competition in the classification stage.[19] Two years later, Belgium's disastrous performance at the EuroBasket in1979, culminated with the team going winless (0–7); and completing the tournament in last place. Following the event, Belgium failed to qualify for every major international competition during the 1980s. Fourteen years after competing in their last EuroBasket, Belgium qualified for the tournament in1993. In Belgium's first game of the event, the national team defeatedSlovenia 61–82.[20] Ultimately, the victory for Belgium turned out to be their only one of the tournament, as they lost their next five games before being eliminated.[21]
After the turn of the century, the arrival of Belgium at the EuroBasket in2011, marked the first time the national team qualified for the continental stage in 18 years. However, they would endure a disappointing tournament, losing all five of their preliminary round matches to be eliminated.[22] Two years later, the team made it back to the competition forEuroBasket 2013. Following a 57–58 loss toUkraine in their first game of the tournament, Belgium displayed resilience in their second game, in a 73–77 overtime victory againstGermany.[23] Belgium went on to finish the preliminary phase with a (2–3) record, to advance into the second round. There, the team lost two of their three games before exiting the event.[24] Belgiumqualified forEuroBasket 2015, after finishing (5–1) during qualifying.[25] Entering the finals, Belgium split their first two games of the competition, before earning a buzzer-beating win overLithuania 74–76.[26] Belgium would finish the group stage with a (3–2) record to advance. Although in theRound of 16, Belgium would be eliminated byGreece 75–54.[27]
To reachEuroBasket 2017, Belgium once again went (5–1) during theirqualifying campaign to make the finals.[28] However, Belgium failed to sustain the momentum achieved during their qualification period, and were eliminated after a (1–4) record in the group stage.[29] The struggles for Belgium would continue duringEuropean Qualifiers for the2019 FIBA World Cup, as the team was ousted from the qualifiers following a (1–5) record.[30]
Belgium enteredPre-Qualifiers for theEuroBasket 2022, where the national team went undefeated at (4–0), to move closer to clinching qualification.[31] In theQualifiers, Belgium completely dominated Lithuania at home in their first game 86–65.[32] Following the victory, Belgium would go on to finish top of their qualifying group, to reach their fifth consecutive Euro finals.[33] Drawn intoGroup A at the tournament, Belgium split their first two games of the event, prior to their impressive 83–73 win against the eventual championsSpain.[34] Although after making it through the group stage, Belgium was eliminated in theRound of 16 to Slovenia 88–72.[35]
FIBA World Cup[edit]
Olympic Games[edit]
| EuroBasket[edit]
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Win Loss
v Belgium| 22 November 2024 | Latvia | 75–72 | Belgium | Riga, Latvia | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19:00 (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter: 17–25,25–19,17–13,16–15 | ||||
| Pts:Zoriks 22 Rebs:Strautiņš 9 Asts:Zoriks 8 | Boxscore | Pts:Obasohan 18 Rebs:De Rider 8 Asts:Obasohan 6 | Arena:Arena Riga Attendance: 8,827 Referees: Ademir Zurapović (BIH), Yener Yılmaz (TUR), Ivor Matějek (CZE) | ||
v Latvia| 25 November 2024 | Belgium | 83–85 | Latvia | Charleroi, Belgium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:15 (UTC+1) | Scoring by quarter:20–16,21–20,25–22, 17–27 | ||||
| Pts:Lecomte,Obasohan 20 Rebs:Vanwijn,Van Vliet 7 Asts:Obasohan 6 | Boxscore | Pts:Lomažs 19 Rebs:Strautiņš 9 Asts:Lomažs 7 | Arena:Dôme Attendance: 2,500 Referees: Saverio Lanzarini (ITA), Péter Praksch (HUN), Zafer Yılmaz (TUR) | ||
v
Slovakia| 20 February 2025 | Belgium | 93–63 | Slovakia | Charleroi, Belgium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:15 (UTC+1) | Scoring by quarter: 21–24,25–13,23–10,24–16 | ||||
| Pts:Obasohan 21 Rebs:Obasohan 8 Asts:Obasohan 8 | Boxscore | Pts:Brodziansky 19 Rebs:Ihring,Malovec 7 Asts:Ihring 8 | Arena:Dôme Attendance: 2,889 Referees: Marius Ciulin (ROU), Alexandre Deman (FRA), Can Mavisu (TUR) | ||
v Belgium| 23 February 2025 | Spain | 59–52 | Belgium | León, Spain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:00 (UTC+1) | Scoring by quarter: 11–11, 11–14,20–15,17–12 | ||||
| Pts:López-Arostegui 13 Rebs:Almansa,Guerrero 5 Asts:Saint-Supery 4 | Boxscore | Pts:Mwema 21 Rebs:De Ridder 13 Asts:Meeusen 5 | Arena:Palacio de los Deportes de León Attendance: 4,587 Referees: Julio Anaya (PAN), Martin Horozov (BUL), Orhan Hekimoğlu (TUR) | ||
v
France| 28 August 2025 | Belgium | 64–92 | France | Katowice, Poland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:00 (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter: 10–18, 17–25, 22–27, 15–22 | ||||
| Pts:Vanwijn 13 Rebs:Bako 7 Asts:Van Den Eynde 6 | Boxscore | Pts:Coulibaly,Okobo 12 Rebs:Coulibaly 7 Asts:Francisco 6 | Arena:Spodek Attendance: 2,472 Referees: Takaki Kato (JPN), Zafer Yilmaz (TUR), Mihkel Männiste (EST) | ||
v Belgium| 30 August 2025 | Iceland | 64–71 | Belgium | Katowice, Poland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14:00 (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter:21–17, 15–15,16–14, 12–23 | ||||
| Pts:Hlinason 20 Rebs:Hlinason 10 Asts:Hermannsson 8 | Boxscore | Pts:Lecomte 16 Rebs:Vanwijn 10 Asts:Lecomte 6 | Arena:Spodek Attendance: 4,957 Referees: Yilmaz Zafer (TUR), Kerem Baki (TUR), Juozas Barkauskas (LTU) | ||
v Belgium| 31 August 2025 | Slovenia | 86–69 | Belgium | Katowice, Poland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14:00 (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter:16–10,27–21,21–17,22–21 | ||||
| Pts:Dončić 26 Rebs:Dončić 10 Asts:Dončić 11 | Boxscore | Pts:Van Vliet 15 Rebs:Lecomte,Van Vliet 5 Asts:Lecomte 5 | Arena:Spodek Attendance: 6,659 Referees: Takaki Kato (JPN), Kerem Baki (TUR), Mihkel Männiste (EST) | ||
v
Israel| 2 September 2025 | Belgium | 89–92 | Israel | Katowice, Poland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14:00 (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter: 15–23, 21–28, 18–20,35–21 | ||||
| Pts:Lecomte 15 Rebs:Vanwijn 11 Asts:Vanwijn 9 | Boxscore | Pts:Avdija 22 Rebs:Ginat 13 Asts:Madar 7 | Arena:Spodek Attendance: 2,248 Referees: Gatis Saliņš (LAT), Zafer Yılmaz (TUR), Mihkel Männiste (EST) | ||
v Belgium| 4 September 2025 | Poland | 69–70 | Belgium | Katowice, Poland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20:30 (UTC+2) | Scoring by quarter:17–16, 16–23,25–19, 11–12 | ||||
| Pts:Ponitka 16 Rebs:Ponitka 9 Asts:Pluta 6 | Boxscore | Pts:Lecomte 19 Rebs:Vanwijn 7 Asts:Mwema 5 | Arena:Spodek Attendance: 8,666 Referees: Andris Aunkrogers (LAT), Kerem Baki (TUR), Zafer Yılmaz (TUR) | ||
Roster for theEuroBasket 2025.[36][37]
| Belgium men's national basketball team roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
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| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Bench 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Ismaël Bako | Kevin Tumba | |||
| PF | Hans Vanwijn | Andy Van Vliet | Godwin Tshimanga | ||
| SF | Jean-Marc Mwema | Mamadou Guisse | Siebe Ledegen | ||
| SG | Loïc Schwartz | Joppe Mennes | |||
| PG | Manu Lecomte | Niels Van Den Eynde |
Raymond Briot – (1946–1952) Louis van Hof – (1953–1956) Eddy Verswijvel – (1957–1960) René Mol – (1961) Roger Staes – (1962–1966) René Mol – (1967–1979) Tony Van den Bosch – (1989–1993) Yvan Slangen – (1993–1996) Tony Van den Bosch – (1997–2002)Eddy Casteels – (2005–2018)
/Dario Gjergja – (2018–present)1935 EuroBasket: finished6th among 10 teams
3René Demanck, 4Émile Laermans, 5 Louis Levaux, 6Pierre Van Basselaere, 7Gustave Vereecken, 8 Gaston de Houwer, 9Robert Breuwer (Coach: ?)
1936 Olympic Games: finished19th among 21 teams
1Robert Breuwer, 2Gustave Crabbe, 3René Demanck, 4Raymond Gérard, 5Émile Laermans, 6Guillaume Merckx, 7Pierre Van Basselaere, 8Gustave Vereecken (Coach: ?)
1946 EuroBasket: finished7th among 10 teams
3Armand Van Wambeke, 4 Henri Servaes, 5Julien Meuris, 6Georges Baert, 7Henri Hermans, 8Émile Kets, 9 Augustin Bernaer, 10Alexander Hollanders, 11Louis Van De Goor, 12Henri Hollanders, 13 Marcel de Haeck, 14Pierre Van Basselaere, 23 Fernand Rossius, 25 Auguste Wijns (Coach: Raymond Briot)
1947 EuroBasket: finished4th among 14 teams
3Armand Van Wambeke, 4René Steurbaut, 5Julien Meuris, 6Georges Baert, 7Henri Hermans, 8Émile Kets, 9Henri Coosemans, 10Gustave Poppe, 11Alexander Hollanders, 12Henri Hollanders, 13 Fernand Rossius, 14François De Pauw, 17 Joseph Pirard, 21 Guillaume van Damme (Coach: Raymond Briot)
1948 Olympic Games: finished11th among 23 teams
3Armand Van Wambeke, 4René Steurbaut, 5Julien Meuris, 6Georges Baert, 7Henri Hermans, 8Émile Kets, 9Henri Coosemans, 10Alexander Hollanders, 11Henri Hollanders, 12Augustin Bernaer, 13Louis Van De Goor, 14François De Pauw, 15Gustave Poppe, 16Léon Lampo (Coach: Raymond Briot)
1951 EuroBasket: finished7th among 17 teams
3Jef Eygel, 4Henri Crick, 5 Francois Plas, 6Georges Baert, 7François De Pauw, 8Émile Kets, 9Henri Coosemans, 10Désiré Ligon, 11Alexis Van Gils, 12 Philippe Dewandelaer, 13 Guy Gekiere, 14 Roger van Harck (Coach: Raymond Briot)
1952 Olympic Games: finished18th among 23 teams
3Jef Eygel, 4Yvan Delsarte, 5Julien Meuris, 6Félix Roosemont, 8Johannes Ducheyne, 9Henri Coosemans, 10Désiré Ligon, 11Alexis Van Gils, 12Henri Crick, 13Jules Boes, 14Jan Ceulemans, 16Josef du Jardin (Coach: Raymond Briot)
1953 EuroBasket: finished10th among 17 teams
3 Maurice Chavagne, 4René Steurbaut, 5Julien Meuris, 6Georges Baert, 7 André Vermeulen, 8Émile Kets, 9Henri Coosemans, 10Désiré Ligon, 11Alexis Van Gils, 12 Edouard Samson, 13 Jean Nolis, 14 Roger van Harck, 15 Joseph Decombe, 16Félix Roosemont (Coach: Louis van Hof)
1957 EuroBasket: finished12th among 16 teams
3 Albert van Mechelen, 4 Robert Jolijt, 5 Charles Storme, 6 Georges de Meyer, 7 Jean de Nayer, 8 Elie Deweerdt, 9 Emile Martin, 10Eddy Terrace, 11 John Loridon, 12 Alex van den Avondt, 13 Charles Feyen, 14 Lucien van Kersschaever (Coach: Eddy Verswijvel)
1959 EuroBasket: finished7th among 17 teams
3 Rene Aerts, 4 Richard Wagner, 5 Pierre van Huele, 6Jef Eygel, 7Francois de Pauw, 8 Elie Deweerdt, 9Jean Steveniers, 10 Lucien van Kersschaever, 11 John Loridon, 12 Henry Raets, 13 Lievin Vinck, 14 Maurice Chavagne (Coach: Eddy Verswijvel)
1961 EuroBasket: finished8th among 19 teams
4 Andre Desplats, 5 Pierre van Huele, 6Jef Eygel, 7 Rene Aerts, 8Jean Steveniers, 9 Henri Degraeve, 10 Guido Scholiers, 11 John Loridon, 12 Joseph Serron, 13 Alphonse Maes, 15 Oscar Wauters, 16 Charles Feyen (Coach: René Mol)
1963 EuroBasket: finished8th among 16 teams
4 Francois Clement, 5 Pierre van Huele, 6Jef Eygel, 7 Rene Aerts, 8 Francois d’Hoir, 9 Lucien Michelet, 10 Guido Scholiers, 11 John Loridon, 12 Pierre Dewandeler, 13 Lucien van Kersschaever, 14 Willy Ivens, 15 Camille Dierckx (Coach: Roger Staes)
1967 EuroBasket: finished15th among 16 teams
4 Camille Dierckx, 5 Willy Ivens, 6Jef Eygel, 7 Rene Aerts, 8 Lucien Michelet, 9 Robert van Herzele, 10 Raoul Schoeters, 11 John Loridon, 12 Willy d’Hondt, 13 Lucien van Kersschaever, 14 Etienne Geerts, 15 Alfons Declerck (Coach: René Mol)
1977 EuroBasket: finished8th among 12 teams
4 Alain Stollenberg, 5 Ive van Poppelen, 6 Robert van Herzele, 7 Olin "Corky" Bell, 8 Etienne Geerts, 9 Rene van den Broeck, 10 Imre Nytrai, 11 Jos Peeters, 12 Francois Huysmans, 13 Christian Becknel, 14 Roger Marien, 15 Hector Vermeersch (Coach: René Mol)
1979 EuroBasket: finished12th among 12 teams
4 Alain Stollenberg, 5Herman Reynders, 6 Eric Rogiers, 7 Jos Peeters, 8 Ive van Poppelen, 9 Tony Van den Bosch, 10 Imre Nytrai, 11 Rene van den Broeck, 12 Francois Huysmans, 13 Christian Becknel, 14 Etienne Geerts, 15 Rik Samaey (Coach: René Mol)
1993 EuroBasket: finished12th among 16 teams
4Jacques Stas, 5Éric Struelens, 6 Dirk Snyders, 7Ronny Bayer, 8 Rik Samaey, 9 Danny Herman, 10 Erik Cleymans, 11 Marc Deheneffe, 12 Herman Bruyninckx, 13 Ivan Verberckt, 14 Daniël Goethals, 15 Dimitri Lambrecht (Coach: Tony Van den Bosch)
2011 EuroBasket: finished21st among 24 teams
4Roel Moors, 5Sam Van Rossom, 6Christophe Beghin, 7 Randy Oveneke, 8Jorn Steinbach, 9Jonathan Tabu, 10Dimitri Lauwers, 11Guy Muya, 12Marcus Faison, 13Maxime De Zeeuw, 14Tomas Van Den Spiegel, 15D. J. Mbenga (Coach:Eddy Casteels)
2013 EuroBasket: finished9th among 24 teams
4Roel Moors, 5Sam Van Rossom, 6Christophe Beghin, 7Axel Hervelle, 8Jean-Marc Mwema, 9Jonathan Tabu, 10Quentin Serron, 11Guy Muya, 12Wen Mukubu, 13Maxime De Zeeuw, 14Sacha Massot, 15Yannick Driesen (Coach:Eddy Casteels)
2015 EuroBasket: finished13th among 24 teams
4Lionel Bosco, 5Sam Van Rossom, 7Axel Hervelle(C), 8Jean-Marc Mwema, 9Jonathan Tabu, 10Quentin Serron, 12Wen Mukubu, 13Pierre-Antoine Gillet, 14Maxime De Zeeuw, 22Kevin Tumba, 23Jean Salumu, 24Matt Lojeski (Coach:Eddy Casteels)
2017 EuroBasket: finished19th among 24 teams
4Manu Lecomte, 5Sam Van Rossom, 7Axel Hervelle(C), 8Jean-Marc Mwema, 9Jonathan Tabu, 10Quentin Serron, 12Jean Salumu, 13Pierre-Antoine Gillet, 14Maxime De Zeeuw, 16Kevin Tumba, 19Ismaël Bako, 22Vincent Kesteloot (Coach:Eddy Casteels)
2022 EuroBasket: finished14th among 24 teams
4Manu Lecomte, 8Jean-Marc Mwema, 9Jonathan Tabu, 13Pierre-Antoine Gillet, 14Maxime De Zeeuw(C), 16Kevin Tumba, 17Hans Vanwijn, 18 Alexandre Libert, 19Ismaël Bako, 21Vrenz Bleijenbergh, 25Haris Bratanovic, 32Retin Obasohan (Coach:Dario Gjergja)
2025 EuroBasket: finished18th among 24 teams
4Manu Lecomte, 8Jean-Marc Mwema, 10Hans Vanwijn, 11Loïc Schwartz, 16Kevin Tumba, 19Ismaël Bako, 24Andy Van Vliet, 29 Siebe Ledegen, 34Niels Van Den Eynde, 36 Joppe Mennes, 41 Godwin Tshimanga, 44 Mamadou Guisse (Coach:Dario Gjergja)
2015:Voo
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