 | ||||
| Full name | Koninklijke Racing Club Genk | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Blauw-Wit (Blue-White) Racing KRC De Smurfen (The Smurfs) | |||
| Founded | 1988; 37 years ago (1988), merge of Thor Waterschei with KFC Winterslag | |||
| Ground | Cegeka Arena | |||
| Capacity | 23,718[1] 21,500 (UEFA matches)[2] | |||
| Chairman | Peter Croonen | |||
| Head coach | Thorsten Fink | |||
| League | Belgian Pro League | |||
| 2024–25 | Belgian Pro League, 3rd of 16 | |||
| Website | krcgenk.be | |||
 Current season | ||||
Koninklijke Racing Club Genk (Dutch pronunciation:[ˈkoːnɪŋkləkəˈreːsɪŋˌklʏpˈxɛŋk]),[a] commonly known asKRC Genk orRacing Genk, is a Belgian professionalfootball club based in the city ofGenk inBelgian Limburg. Racing Genk plays in theBelgian Pro League and have won four championship titles; in1998–99, in2001–02, in2010–11 and in2018–19. They have also won fiveBelgian Cups, most recently in2020–21. They qualified for theUEFA Champions League group stage in the2002–03,2011–12 and2019–20.
The club formed in1988 by the merger ofWaterschei Thor withKFC Winterslag, from which it took over thematricule number. It has been one of the most successful clubs in Belgium since the late 1990s and so they regularly qualify for European competitions. The club has been playing in the first division since the1996–97 season. They play their home matches in theCegeka Arena. Their main outfit is blue and white.
The clubFC Winterslag was founded in1923 and that gave it the matricule number 322. On its 35th anniversary the club added the Royal prefixKoninklijke to their name to become KFC Winterslag. In1972–73 Winterslag reached thesecond division and they eventually qualified for the1974–75 Belgian First Division after finishing second in thesecond division final round. They had taken advantage of the increase in the number of first division clubs (from 16 to 20). The club ended the season in last place but won the second division right after.
KFC Winterslag reached the 5th place in1981 which allowed them to play UEFA Cup matches, where it defeatedBryne FK from Norway and English Premier league giantArsenal.[3] In the next round it was knocked out byDundee United from Scotland. Two seasons later it was relegated to the second stage after a disappointing last place. That seasonStandard Liège won the championship on bribery in a match against the club of Waterschei Thor that would eventually merge with the matricule number 322. Following a spell of four seasons in the second division, Winterslag found its place again in thefirst division by winning the1987 final round, one point ahead ofTongeren. It finished 15th on 18 but at the end of the season, the club merged with the neighbour club of Waterschei Thor which was playing in the second division since its relegation in1986.
K Waterschei SV Thor was created in1919 as Waterschei's Sport Vereeniging Thor with Thor being the acronym ofTot Herstel Onzer Rechten (English:To recover our rights). It received matricule number n°533. The club enjoyed a spell in the first division in the late 1950s to the early 1960s and again from 1978 to 1986.
During the 1982–83 season, the match betweenStandard Liège and Waterscheihad been fixed [fr] and Standard eventually won the championship. Waterschei won the Belgian Cup twice (1980 and 1982). The latter victory led to them reaching the semi-finals of theEuropean Cup Winners Cup in the 1982–83 season. After defeatingPSG in the quarter-finals, Waterschei lost the first leg of the semi-final 5–1 atPittodrie Stadium, home of the eventual winners,Aberdeen A 1–0 victory in Waterschei, courtesy of Eddy Voordeckers, could not reverse the position.
After two seasons in the second division, K. Waterschei SV Thor Genk merged with KFC Winterslag in 1988 to form the current KRC Genk.
1990s and 2000s
The new club was named KRC Genk and as it kept the Winterslag ranking, it began in the first division but finished last. The next year Genk won the final round in 2nd division and then played 4 seasons in thefirst division. In 1995 the club hiredAimé Anthuenis a coach and Racing finished second and skipped the final round as two first division teams merged (Seraing and Standard Liège). After an eighth place in 1997, the club had a good 1997–98 season with a cup win and a second place in the championship. In its first European season, Racing Genk eliminated successivelyApolonia Fier andMSV Duisburg but it lost toMallorca in the round of 16 after two draws (1–1 on aggregate) in the lastCup Winners' Cup. The season was ended well as Genk won its first Belgian championship in May, with manager Aimé Anthuenis then moving toAnderlecht.
Genk played in theUEFA Champions League in 1999–2000 but lost in the second qualifying round toMaribor. The season was salvaged by winning the Belgian Cup again, this time to Standard, but Genk ended the championship in 9th place. It finished 11th in the following season and lost in theUEFA Cup second round toWerder Bremen after a win againstFC Zürich. After this poor spell, Genk won the championship once more in the 2001–02 season. In 2002–03, they reached the Champions League group stages for the first time in their history. Although they came 4th, they impressed fans with draws againstReal Madrid,Roma andAEK Athens.
In the 2006–07 season, Genk finished second to Anderlecht. The Limburgians had been ahead almost the entire season but were pipped at the post by Anderlecht after losing at Germinal Beerschot. The 2007–08 season was a disaster, as Genk failed to finish in the top half of the division, ending in a disappointing tenth place.
Three bad seasons followed. Genk finished the 2007–08 season on 45 points and in 10th spot in the league: their worst result in seven years. The 2008–09 season was poor for Genk as well, finishing 8th in the league. The season ended on a positive note with them winning theBelgian Cup, which gave them a ticket to the fourth Europa League qualifying round. The 2009–10 season started badly when they were knocked out of the Europa League byLille. Things did not go well in the domestic league either. Manager Hein Vanhaezebrouck was fired in December and was replaced byFranky Vercauteren. Genk finished 11th, but Vercauteren led the club to European football by beating derby rivalSint-Truiden in the final of Play-offs II.
2010s
The 2010–11 season started well for KRC Genk when they beatInter Turku with 1–5 in Finland. They progressed to the 4th qualifying round of the Europa League and drew thePortuguese clubPorto. Genk lost both games against Porto, despite two good performances.
On 30 January 2010, KRC Genk announced that coach Franky Vercauteren signed a new contract that ran untl June 2013.
They only lost their first game of the season on the 20th matchday and started the Play-offs in second place. The club won the2010–11 Belgian Pro League after drawing 1–1 with title challengersStandard Liége.[4]This was KRC Genk's third league win in its history and its supporters celebrated with a pitch invasion straight after the final whistle.
On 11 August, coach Frank Vercauteren confirmed he was leaving Genk and signed withUnited Arab Emirate clubAl-Jazira. In the 3rd Qualifying Round of the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League KRC Genk beatFK Partizan over two legs and drewMaccabi Haifa in the play-off Round. Maccabi Haifa beat Genk 2–1 in the first leg in Israel, while the second leg was won by Genk with the same 2–1 score in Belgium. During the penalty shoot-out, goalkeeperLászló Köteles helped Genk to qualify by saving two penalties.[5] For the second time in its history, KRC Genk reached the group stages of the UEFA Champions League. They were drawn in Group E withChelsea,Valencia andBayer Leverkusen.
In late August 2011,Mario Been was announced as the new manager.The Champions League campaign was one with ups and downs. Genk got a 1–1 result against both Chelsea and Bayer Leverkusen and a goalless draw against Valencia. Away from home, Genk lost all three games.The season in the Jupiler League was a difficult one, with Genk only just qualifying for the play-offs by finishing sixth in the regular competition. In the play-offs however, Genk started to play better and climbed up to third place. By finishing in third place, KRC Genk qualified for the third qualifying round of theEuropa League.
The 2012–13 season started well for Genk by qualifying for the Europa League group stage after beatingAktobe andFC Luzern. In this group stage KRC Genk performed very well and ultimately won the group without a single defeat. Genk finished first with three points more thanBasel and by doing so, qualified for the next round where they facedVfB Stuttgart. It was the first time in the club's history that they played European football after the winter break.Stuttgart got the better of Genk over the two games.In the league, Genk qualified for the play-offs and performed well until the title was out of reach; fifth place was the result. Genk ended their season on a positive note by winning the Belgian Cup. They defeatedCercle Brugge in the final, in front of 30,000 Genk fans.
In the 2016–2017 season, Genk participated in theUEFA Europa League; they started playing in the second qualifying round andqualified for the third qualifying round (on 21 July 2016)[6] and the play-off round (on 4 August 2016).[7] They won their group with 3 home victories overAthletic Bilbao,Rapid Wien andSassuolo and after defeatingAstra Giurgiu (2–2 and 1–0) in the 2nd round they drewKAA Gent from the domesticBelgian Pro League with 2 confusing games Gent-Genk, Genk-Gent and an impressive 2–5 away victory. Even when Genk got beaten in the quarter final againstCelta de Vigo (3–2 and 1–1), it was Genk's most successful European season.
Genk won the2018–19 Belgian First Division A for the fourth time in their history, hence they qualified for the2019–20 UEFA Champions League after an eight-year absence.[8]
Genk started their2019–20 UEFA Champions League campaign with a poor 6–2 loss against Austrian clubRed Bull Salzburg. In the second match they drew 0–0 against Napoli, and in the third match they lost 1–4 against Liverpool.
Prior to the merger of the clubs in 1988, KFC Winterslag played at De Noordlaan, whilst Thor Waterschei played at the Andre Dumont Stadium.[9] The Andre Dumont Stadium was renovated at significant cost following the merger and became known as theThyl Geyselinckstadion after Thyl Geyselinck, who oversaw the merger of the clubs, and it was where KRC Genk played their matches from 1990.[9][10][11] De Noordlaan was then used as a ground for the reserve and youth teams of KRC Genk before falling into disrepair around the year 2000 and being demolished in 2004 to make way for housing.[9] The Thyl Geyselinckstadion was redeveloped in 1999 to hold 24,500 spectators and was renamed to the Fenixstadion.[12] Following a sponsorship deal with IT companyCegeka in 2021, the stadium was renamed toCegeka Arena, having previously been known as theLuminus Arena due to a similar sponsorship deal withLuminus.[13]
Genk is well known for its outstanding youth academy. In 2003 they built their youth center next to their stadium and set up a youth program with Ronny Vangeneugden. There are further plans to build a boarding school and some synthetic pitches. In the past and now, many young players have found their way through the youth system. Some examples areYannick Carrasco,Jelle Vossen,Dennis Praet,Steven Defour,Christian Benteke,Thibaut Courtois,Divock Origi,Timothy Castagne,Leandro Trossard andKevin De Bruyne.
Their scouting is also highly regarded. Players such asKalidou Koulibaly,Wilfred Ndidi,Leon Bailey,Sergej Milinković-Savić,Daniel Muñoz andSander Berge all played for Genk.
| Tournament | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions League / European Cup | 22 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 20 | 41 | −21 | 022.73 |
| Europa League / UEFA Cup | 60 | 34 | 12 | 14 | 117 | 80 | +37 | 056.67 |
| Cup Winners' Cup | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 3 | +13 | 050.00 |
| UEFA Intertoto Cup | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 13 | +6 | 050.00 |
| Total | 98 | 47 | 25 | 26 | 172 | 137 | +35 | 047.96 |
From the quarter-finals upwards:
Correct as of 21 May 2025.[14]
| Rank | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 139 |  Servette FC | 11.500 |
| 140 |  FC Flora | 11.500 |
| 141 |  KRC Genk | 11.370 |
| 142 | Standard Liège | 11.370 |
| 143 | Royal Charleroi S.C. | 11.370 |
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Luc NilisDenis DasoulChristian KabaseleJelle VossenBranko StruparPieter GerkensTimothy CastagneSébastien PocognoliChristian BentekeSteven DefourLeandro TrossardKevin De BruyneThibaut CourtoisDivock OrigiKoen CasteelsThomas BuffelWesley Sonck| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| President | Peter Croonen |
| Vice-President | Mathieu Cilissen |
| Chief Executive Officer | Erik Gerits |
| Board Member | Herbert Houben |
| Head coach |  Thorsten Fink |
| Assistant coach | Sebastian Hahn Przemyslaw Lagozny |
| Goalkeeper coach | Guy Martens |
| Fitness coach | Glenn Vanryckeghem |
| Video analyst | Peter Persoons |
| Club doctor | Philip Thys Dr. Johan Jespers |
| Physiotherapist | Matthias Didden Martijn Smeets Erwin Kelchtermans |
| Medical department | Jan Theunis |
| Finance Director | Filip Aerden |
| Director of Marketing and Sales | Stephan Poelmans |
| Head of Youth Scouting | Jochen Janssen |
| Coordinator of talent management | Jos Daerden |
| Team Manager | Pierre Denier |
| Technical director | Dimitri De Condé |
Ernst Künnecke (July 1988 – Nov 88)Joseph Vliers (1988–89)René Desaeyere (1989)Paul Theunis (1990–91)Pier Janssen (1991–93)
Luka Peruzović (1993–94)Norbert Beuls (1994)Aimé Anthuenis (1996–99)Jos Heyligen (1999–2000)Johan Boskamp (31 Jan 2000 – 31 Dec 2000)Sef Vergoossen (1 July 2001 – 6 April 2004)René Vandereycken (17 May 2004 – 3 June 2005)Hugo Broos (13 June 2005 – 23 Feb 2008)Ronny Van Geneugden (17 Feb 2008 – 5 March 2009)Pierre Denier(interim) (6 March 2009 – 30 June 2009)Hein Vanhaezebrouck (1 July 2009 – 29 Nov 2009)Franky Vercauteren (3 Dec 2009 – 17 Aug 2011)Pierre Denier(interim) (18 Aug 2011 – 29 Aug 2011)Mario Been (30 Aug 2011 – 24 Feb 2014)Emilio Ferrera (24 Feb 2014 – 29 July 2014)
Alex McLeish (22 Aug 2014 – 2015)Peter Maes (2015 – 26 Dec 2016)Albert Stuivenberg (27 Dec 2016 – 10 Dec 2017)Philippe Clement (18 Dec 2017 – 24 May 2019)Felice Mazzù (3 June 2019 – 12 Nov 2019)Hannes Wolf (19 Nov 2019 – 15 Sep 2020)Domenico Olivieri(interim) (15 Sep 2020 – 24 Sep 2020)
Jess Thorup (24 Sep 2020 – 2 Nov 2020)John van den Brom (8 Nov 2020 – 6 Dec 2021)Bernd Storck (8 Dec 2021 – 22 May 2022)Wouter Vrancken (28 May 2022 – 9 May 2024)Domenico Olivieri(interim) (10 May 2024 – 4 June 2024)Thorsten Fink (5 June 2024 – Present)
