| Season | 2022–23 |
|---|---|
| Champions | RWD Molenbeek |
| Promoted | RWD Molenbeek |
| Relegated | Virton |
2023–24 → | |
The2022–23 season of theChallenger Pro League began in August 2022 and ended in May 2023. It was the first season under its new name after being renamed fromFirst Division B.
Four U23 teams were added to the league as part of a two-season trial, expanding the league from 8 to 12 teams. These twelve teams will play each other twice in a regular competition, after which the league is split, with the top and bottom six teams playing separate competitions from that point, continuing with the points gained. At the top end, only the champion is promoted as three teams are relegated from the2022–23 Belgian First Division A to reduce the size back from 18 to 16 teams. At the bottom end, the team finishing last will be relegated. U23 teams cannot be promoted to the Belgian First Division A, but can suffer relegation, furthermore they always have to play at least one level below their A team counterparts, hence could be relegated despite not finishing last.
| Matricule | Club | City | First season of current spell at second level | Coming from | 2021-22 result | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | RSCA Futures | Anderlecht,Brussels | 2022–23 | U23 competition | 2nd U23 competition | King Baudouin Stadium | 38,000 |
| 13 | K Beerschot VA | Antwerp | 2022–23 | Belgian First Division A | 18th (D1A) | Olympic Stadium | 12,771 |
| 4068 | S.K. Beveren | Beveren | 2021–22 | Belgian First Division B | 3rd (D1B) | Freethiel Stadion | 8,190 |
| 3 | Club NXT | Bruges[a] | 2022–23 | U23 competition | 3rd U23 competition | Schiervelde Stadion | 8,340 |
| 818 | K.M.S.K. Deinze | Deinze | 2020–21 | Belgian First Amateur Division | 4th (D1B) | Burgemeester Van de Wiele Stadion | 7,515 |
| 3900 | F.C.V. Dender E.H. | Denderleeuw | 2022–23 | Belgian National Division 1 | 1st (NatD1) | Van Roystadion | 6,429 |
| 322 | Jong Genk | Genk | 2022–23 | U23 competition | 1st U23 competition | Luminus Arena | 24,956 |
| 3970 | Lierse Kempenzonen | Lier | 2020–21 | Belgian First Amateur Division | 5th (D1B) | Herman Vanderpoortenstadion | 14,538 |
| 2554 | Lommel SK | Lommel | 2018–19 | Belgian First Amateur Division | 6th (D1B) | Soevereinstadion | 8,000 |
| 5479 | RWD Molenbeek | Molenbeek,Brussels | 2020–21 | Belgian First Amateur Division | 2nd (D1B) | Edmond Machtens Stadium | 12,266 |
| 16 | SL16 FC | Liège | 2022–23 | U23 competition | 4th U23 competition | Stade Maurice Dufrasne | 30,023 |
| 200 | R.E. Virton | Virton | 2021–22 | Belgian Division 2 | 8th (D1B) | Stade Yvan Georges | 4,015 |
| Club | Manager | Kit Manufacturer | Sponsors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beerschot |  Andreas Wieland | Erreà | Yelo |
| Beveren |  Wim De Decker | Uhlsport | Star Casino |
| Club NXT | Hayk Milkon[n 1] | Macron | Alheembouw |
| Deinze | Marc Grosjean[n 2] | Jako | PlaysiaTV |
| Dender EH | Regi Van Acker | Nike | Drankendiscount Stravbier |
| Jong Genk | Hans Somers | Nike | Beobank |
| Lierse Kempenzonen | Tom Van Imschoot | Jako | Keukens Van Lommel |
| Lommel |  Steve Bould | Masita | Bingoal |
| RSCA Futures | Guillaume Gillet[n 3] | Joma | DVV Insurance (home) Candriam (away) |
| RWD Molenbeek | Vincent Euvrard | Joma | Facebank |
| SL16 FC |  Joseph Laumann | Adidas | VOO |
| Virton | José Jeunechamps[n 4] | Kipsta | Leopard Natural |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position | Replaced by | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deinze | Wim De Decker | Mutual consent[1] | End of 2021–22 season | Pre-season |  Takahisa Shiraishi | 19 May 2022[2] |
| Beerschot | Greg Vanderidt | Replaced[3] | Andreas Wieland | 23 May 2022[3] | ||
| Lommel | Brian Eastick | End of contract[4] | Steve Bould | 3 June 2022[4] | ||
| Beveren |  Jordi Condom | End of contract[5] | Wim De Decker | 5 June 2022[5] | ||
| Club NXT | Rik De Mil | Promoted toClub Brugge as assistant[6] | Nicky Hayen | 15 June 2022[5] | ||
| Virton |  Pablo Correa | End of contract[7] |  Christian Bracconi | 9 July 2022[7] | ||
| SL16 FC | Geoffrey Valenne | Replaced[8] | Joseph Laumann | 11 July 2022[8] | ||
| Deinze | Takahisa Shiraishi | Resigned[9] | 29 September 2022 | 12th | Antonio Calderón (caretaker) | 30 September 2022[10] |
| Deinze | Antonio Calderón (caretaker) | Caretaker replaced[11] | 24 October 2022 | 12th | Marc Grosjean | 24 October 2022[11] |
| RSCA Futures |  Robin Veldman | Promoted toAnderlecht as caretaker[12] | 24 October 2022 | 5th | Guillaume Gillet | 24 October 2022[13] |
| Dender EH | Regi Van Acker | Sacked[14] | 7 February 2023 | 9th | Pieter De Bot (caretaker) | 7 February 2023[14] |
| Virton | Christian Bracconi | Sacked[14] | 7 February 2023 | 12th | José Jeunechamps | 7 February 2023[14] |
| Dender EH | Pieter De Bot | Caretaker replaced[15] | 13 February 2023 | 10th | Timmy Simons | 13 February 2023[15] |
| Club NXT | Nicky Hayen | Promoted toClub Brugge as assistant[16] | 15 March 2023 | 4th | Hayk Milkon | 15 March 2023[17] |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RWD Molenbeek(C, P) | 32 | 21 | 6 | 5 | 65 | 29 | +36 | 69 | Promoted toPro League |
| 2 | Beveren | 32 | 20 | 8 | 4 | 75 | 33 | +42 | 68 | |
| 3 | Beerschot | 32 | 15 | 4 | 13 | 43 | 41 | +2 | 49 | |
| 4 | Club NXT[a] | 32 | 14 | 7 | 11 | 51 | 48 | +3 | 49 | |
| 5 | Lierse Kempenzonen | 32 | 14 | 4 | 14 | 53 | 59 | −6 | 46 | |
| 6 | RSCA Futures[a] | 32 | 9 | 10 | 13 | 45 | 55 | −10 | 37 | |
| 7 | Lommel | 32 | 16 | 3 | 13 | 53 | 46 | +7 | 51 | |
| 8 | Deinze | 32 | 15 | 4 | 13 | 49 | 47 | +2 | 49 | |
| 9 | Dender EH | 32 | 11 | 6 | 15 | 41 | 47 | −6 | 39 | |
| 10 | SL16 FC[a] | 32 | 5 | 12 | 15 | 31 | 60 | −29 | 27 | |
| 11 | Jong Genk[a] | 32 | 6 | 8 | 18 | 35 | 57 | −22 | 26 | |
| 12 | Virton(R) | 32 | 5 | 10 | 17 | 32 | 51 | −19 | 25 | Relegated toNational Division 1 |
The table lists the positions of teams after the completion of each matchday, even if due to postponed matches this means the teams have an unequal number of games played. Coloured cells for matchdays 1 through 22 refer to being in the promotion play-offs (green) or relegation play-offs (red), after that only the 1st and last position are highlighted as these mean promotion and relegation respectively.
| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RWD Molenbeek | 6 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Beveren | 10 | 10 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Beerschot | 3 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Club NXT | 5 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Lierse Kempenzonen | 11 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| RSCA Futures | 9 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Lommel | 1 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Deinze | 8 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Dender EH | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| SL16 FC | 4 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 10 |
| Jong Genk | 2 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 |
| Virton | 7 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Home \ Away | RWD | BEV | BEE | LIE | NXT | AND | LOM | DEI | GNK | DEN | STA | VIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RWD Molenbeek | 3–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 3–1 | |
| Beveren | 1–1 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 5–2 | 2–1 | 2–2 | |
| Beerschot | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | |
| Lierse Kempenzonen | 1–2 | 1–5 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | |
| Club NXT | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | |
| RSCA Futures | 1–2 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 3–1 | |
| Lommel | 2–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 3–4 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | |
| Deinze | 1–2 | 1–4 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 1–1 | |
| Jong Genk | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | |
| Dender EH | 0–1 | 0–3 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 3–4 | |
| SL16 FC | 1–4 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2–4 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | |
| Virton | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–3 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 |
Top six[edit]
Source:Flashscore Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win. | Bottom six[edit]
|
Kévin Hoggas (Beveren)Lennart Mertens (Deinze)(includes 5 goals forClub NXT)
Alonso Martínez (Lommel)
Souleymane Anne (Virton)
Bafodé Dansoko (Deinze)Dylan De Belder (Deinze)Alessio Staelens (Deinze)Jellert Van Landschoot (Deinze)
Victory Beniangba (Jong Genk)Guillaume De Schryver (Lierse Kempenzonen)
Serge Tabekou (Lierse Kempenzonen)
Agustin Anello (Lommel)
Rafik Belghali (Lommel)Youssef Challouk (RWD Molenbeek)Kylian Hazard (RWD Molenbeek)Ilyes Ziani (SL16 FC)
David Hrnčár (Beveren)Daniel Maderner (Beveren)Bruny Nsimba (Beveren)Lenn De Smet (Club NXT)Noah Mbamba (Club NXT)
Daniel Pérez (Club NXT)Teo Quintero (Deinze)Lennard Hens (Dender EH)
Bastien Toma (Jong Genk)Nils Schouterden (Lierse Kempenzonen)Daan Vekemans (Lierse Kempenzonen)
Amar Fatah (Lommel)
Juho Talvitie (Lommel)Simion Michez (RSCA Futures)Killian Sardella (RSCA Futures)Florian Le Joncour (RWD Molenbeek)
Jake O'Brien (RWD Molenbeek)
Yan Vorogovsky (RWD Molenbeek)Anisse Brrou (SL16 FC)
Aleksander Buksa (SL16 FC)Brahim Ghalidi (SL16 FC)Léandre Kuavita (SL16 FC)
Yannick Aguemon (Virton)
Yann Mabella (Virton)Ilombe Mboyo (Virton)
Ayouba Kosiah (Beerschot)Hervé Matthys (Beerschot)Dante Rigo (Beerschot)Jan Van den Bergh (Beerschot)
Everton Luiz (Beveren)Joachim Van Damme (Beveren)
Aleksandar Vukotić (Beveren)Arne Engels (Club NXT)Ibe Hautekiet (Club NXT)Kyriani Sabbe (Club NXT)Mathis Servais (Club NXT)Joachim Carcela (Deinze)Ayman Kassimi (Deinze)
Mamadou Koné (Deinze)Jur Schryvers (Deinze)Kjetil Borry (Dender EH)Kobe Cools (Dender EH)Olivier Myny (Dender EH)Dario Cutillas Carpe (Jong Genk)Matisse Didden (Jong Genk)Jamie Yayi Mpie (Jong Genk)Joedrick Pupe (Lierse Kempenzonen)Toon Raemaekers (Lierse Kempenzonen)Jordan Attah Kadiri (Lommel)
Kolbeinn Þórðarson (Lommel)Ishaq Abdulrazak (RSCA Futures)Anouar Ait El Hadj (RSCA Futures)
Nilson Angulo (RSCA Futures)Henrik Bellman (RSCA Futures)David Hubert (RSCA Futures)Amando Lapage (RSCA Futures)Lucas Lissens (RSCA Futures)Chris Lokesa (RSCA Futures)Luke Plange (RWD Molenbeek)Rikelmi (RWD Molenbeek)Gilles Ruyssen (RWD Molenbeek)Alexandro Calut (SL16 FC)Noah Ohio (SL16 FC)
Abdoul Tapsoba (SL16 FC)
Ayyoub Allach (Virton)Emeric Dudouit (Virton)Abdullahi Ibrahim Alhassan (Beerschot)Chris Kablan (Beerschot)Andi Koshi (Beerschot)Ilias Sebaoui (Beerschot)Léo Seydoux (Beerschot)Axl Van Himbeeck (Beerschot)
Marco Weymans (Beerschot)Taofeek Ismaheel (Beveren)Sem Audoor (Club NXT)Liam De Smet (Club NXT)Joel Ordóñez (Club NXT)Jorne Spileers (Club NXT)Jano Willems (Club NXT)
Marselino Ferdinan (Deinze)
Denys Prychynenko (Deinze)Kenneth Schuermans (Deinze)Jannes Vansteenkiste (Deinze)Alexandre De Bruyn (Dender EH)Joachim Ngongo (Dender EH)Jasper Van Oudenhove (Dender EH)
Kelvin John (Jong Genk)
András Németh (Jong Genk)Cédric Nuozzi (Jong Genk)Tuur Rommens (Jong Genk)Mathias Delorge (Lierse Kempenzonen)Pieter De Schrijver (Lierse Kempenzonen)Brent Laes (Lierse Kempenzonen)Jarno Libert (Lierse Kempenzonen)Jens Naessens (Lierse Kempenzonen)Lucas Walbrecq (Lierse Kempenzonen)Nassim Chadli (Lommel)
Christophe Kabongo (Lommel)Laurent Lemoine (Lommel)Eric Monjonell (Lommel)Glenn Neven (Lommel)Caio Roque (Lommel)Zalán Vancsa (Lommel)Stijn Wuytens (Lommel)Mohamed Bouchouari (RSCA Futures)Nils De Wilde (RSCA Futures)Amadou Diallo (RSCA Futures)Julien Duranville (RSCA Futures)Théo Leoni (RSCA Futures)Barreto (RWD Molenbeek)Alexis De Sart (RWD Molenbeek)Jonathan Heris (RWD Molenbeek)Sacha Banse (SL16 FC)
Rayan Berberi (SL16 FC)
Birame Diaw (SL16 FC)Noah Dodeigne (SL16 FC)Mouad El Fanis (SL16 FC)Massis Guluk (SL16 FC)Pierre Bourdin (Virton)Marc-Olivier Doué (Virton)Ruben Droehnlé (Virton)Karim Ilunga (Virton)Kéres Masangu (Virton)Abdullahi Ibrahim Alhassan (Beerschot, scored forBeveren)
Apostolos Konstantopoulos (Beerschot, scored forRWD Molenbeek)Joachim Van Damme (Beveren, scored forRWD Molenbeek)
Owen Otasowie (Club NXT, scored forBeveren)Xavier Gies (Dender EH, scored forClub NXT)Amine Et Taïbi (Jong Genk, scored forDender EH)Maxime Delanghe (Lierse Kempenzonen, scored forRWD Molenbeek)
Nikola Ivezić (Lommel, scored forRWD Molenbeek)Eric Monjonell (Lommel, scored forRWD Molenbeek)Birame Diaw (SL16 FC, scored forDeinze)Jonas Vinck (Virton, scored forLommel)Upon completion of the regular season ateam of the season award was compiled, based upon the results of theteam of the week results throughout the season, constructed based on nominations from managers, assistant-managers, journalists and analysts. The results were announced from 22 May 2023, with one player revealed each day.
| Number of teams | Province or region | Team(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 |  East Flanders | Deinze,Dender EH andBeveren |
| 2 |  Antwerp | Beerschot andLierse Kempenzonen |
 Brussels | RSCA Futures andRWD Molenbeek | |
 Limburg | Jong Genk andLommel | |
| 1 |  Liège | SL16 FC |
 Luxembourg | Virton | |
 West Flanders | Club NXT |
| # | Club | Average |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beerschot | 3,366 |
| 2 | Beveren | 3,108 |
| 3 | RWDM | 2,798 |
| 4 | Lierse | 2,397 |
| 5 | Virton | 1,392 |
| 6 | Dender | 1,021 |
| 7 | Lommel | 963 |
| 8 | RSCA Futures | 861 |
| 9 | Jong Genk | 674 |
| 10 | Club NXT | 650 |
| 11 | Deinze | 578 |
| 12 | SL16 | 425 |
Source:[31]
Nicky Hayen was the manager for the regular season and the first three matchdays of the promotion play-off.Takahisa Shiraishi was the manager for matchdays 1 through 6,Antonio Calderón was caretaker manager from matchday 7 to 9.Robin Veldman was the manager for matchdays 1 through 10.Christian Bracconi was the manager for matchdays 1 through 16.
