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| Full name | Royal Antwerp Football Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Great Old, The Reds | |||
| Founded | 1880; 145 years ago (1880) | |||
| Ground | Bosuilstadion | |||
| Capacity | 16,144[1] | |||
| Owner | Paul Gheysens [nl] | |||
| Chairman | Paul Gheysens | |||
| Manager | Andries Ulderink | |||
| League | Belgian Pro League | |||
| 2023–24 | Belgian Pro League, 6th of 16 | |||
| Website | www | |||
 Current season | ||||
Royal Antwerp Football Club (commonly referred to asRoyal Antwerp or simplyAntwerp) is a Belgian professionalfootball club based in the city ofAntwerp. They compete in theBelgian Pro League, the top flight ofBelgian football. The club was founded around 1880 asAntwerp Cricket Club by English students residing in Antwerp, 15 years before the creation of theRoyal Belgian Football Association; Antwerp is regarded as the oldest club in Belgium.[2] At first there was no organised football played by its members, until 1887 when the football division was founded with its own board, namedAntwerp Football Club. Being the oldest active club at the time, it was the first club to register to the Association in 1895. Consequently, whenmatricule numbers were introduced in 1926, the club received matricule number one.[3][4]
The team has won theBelgian league title five times and theBelgian Cup four times, including adouble in 2022–23. In European competitions, it reached the final of theUEFA Cup Winners' Cup in1992–93 and qualified for the Group stage ofUEFA Champions League for the first time in 2023.
Over the course of the club's history, Royal Antwerp have won fiveBelgian league titles as well as fourBelgian Cups. In 1900, most of the players left the club for the new neighbouring club of K. Beerschot V.A.C., and this was the start of a long rivalry between both clubs.
The club is the most recent Belgian team to have reached a UEFA competition final, the1993 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, where they lost 3–1 againstParma atWembley Stadium.[5]
Royal Antwerp had a long-term partnership with theEnglish clubManchester United, taking their young players on loan so that their development can be aided with first team football, and young players who require European work-permits can benefit from Belgium's more relaxed laws.[6] An example of the latter wasChina internationalDong Fangzhuo, who was unable to play for United immediately due to work permit problems and was loaned to allow him to gain first team experience.[7]
Despite being one of Belgium's best-supported clubs, Antwerp had been under-achievers for several years. They hadn't won a league title between 1957 and 2023, and have spent several seasons in the second division. They were promoted to the top flight in 2000, only to be relegated in short order in 2004. They returned to the first division after 13 years in 2017, after a 5–2 aggregate win overRoeselare.[8]
After achieving promotion back to the top flight, the club appointed experienced Romanian managerLászló Bölöni, and demoted his predecessorWim De Decker to assistant.[9] In his second season,2018–19, the club qualified for theUEFA Europa League, their first European competition for the first time in 25 years. They won 3–2 in the playoff final againstCharleroi, who had led 2–0 after 12 minutes.[10] Their European campaign began with a win overViktoria Plzeň on theaway goals rule in the third qualifying round, followed by a 5–2 loss toAZ Alkmaar of the Netherlands in the playoff.[11]
In May 2020, Bölöni left at the end of his contract.[12] Four months later, the Great Old won their first major trophy in nearly 30 years when they upset league championsClub Brugge in the final of theBelgian Cup, with a lone goal from former Brugge playerLior Refaelov.[13]Ivan Leko, who managed the team in the cup final, led the team through the Europa League group stage in second place with four wins including one overJosé Mourinho'sTottenham Hotspur;[14] he left forShanghai Port at the end of 2020.[15]
FormerNetherlands internationalMark van Bommel was appointed manager in May 2022.[16] He brought in several compatriots, includingVincent Janssen, who scored the first goal of a 2–0 win over neighboursMechelen in the2023 Belgian Cup final.[17] On 4 June 2023, Antwerp won their fifth league title on the final day of the2022–23 Belgian Pro League season. The 2–2 draw atGenk was secured in the fourth minute of added time by a screamer fromToby Alderweireld.[18]
On 30 August 2023, the club secured a spot in the group stage of theUEFA Champions League for the first time ever, following a 3–1 aggregate win overAEK Athens in the play-off round.[19]
Royal Antwerp have played their home matches at theBosuilstadion since 1923.[20]
Royal Antwerp share a fierce rivalry with city neighboursBeerschot A.C. (nowK Beerschot VA). Although in the 2000s-2010s the two clubs have met sparingly, when they do, there is usually fan violence.[21] Royal Antwerp are often seen as a culture club with a diverse, cross-class support across the city while Beerschot have either heavily working class or upper class support, locally based in South Antwerp.[22] Beerschot supporters often refer to RAFC fans as "joden" or "Jews" due to the fact that to get to Antwerp's stadium they must pass through the Jewish district, while Great Old supporters refer to Beerschot followers as "the rats".
| Season | Division | Royal Antwerp vs K Beerschot VAC | K Beerschot VAC vs Royal Antwerp | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Venue | Score | Attendance | Date | Venue | Score | Attendance | |||
| 1976–77 | First Division | 28 November 1976 | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 1 | 26 November 1977 | Olympisch Stadion | 2 – 0 | |||
| 1977–78 | First Division | 15 April 1978 | Bosuilstadion | 0 – 0 | 26 November 1977 | Olympisch Stadion | 4 – 2 | |||
| 1978–79 | First Division | 10 December 1978 | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 2 | 20 May 1979 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 3 | |||
| 1979–80 | First Division | 20 January 1980 | Bosuilstadion | 1 – 1 | 15 September 1979 | Olympisch Stadion | 1 – 1 | |||
| 1980–81 | First Division | 5 October 1980 | Bosuilstadion | 3 – 2 | 13 February 1981 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 1 | |||
| 1982–83 | First Division | 28 November 1982 | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 1 | 9 April 1983 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 1 | |||
| 1983–84 | First Division | 15 October 1983 | Bosuilstadion | 0 – 1 | 18 February 1984 | Olympisch Stadion | 1 – 4 | |||
| 1984–85 | First Division | 17 April 1985 | Bosuilstadion | 3 – 1 | 8 September 1984 | Olympisch Stadion | 2 – 0 | |||
| 1985–86 | First Division | 20 October 1985 | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 2 | 15 March 1986 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 0 | |||
| 1986–87 | First Division | 15 February 1987 | Bosuilstadion | 1 – 1 | 13 September 1986 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 0 | |||
| 1987–88 | First Division | 4 October 1987 | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 1 | 19 March 1988 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 2 | |||
| 1988–89 | First Division | 25 February 1989 | Bosuilstadion | 4 – 1 | 2 September 1988 | Olympisch Stadion | 5 – 1 | |||
| 1989–90 | First Division | 17 February 1990 | Bosuilstadion | 4 – 0 | 16 September 1989 | Olympisch Stadion | 1 – 1 | |||
| 1990–91 | First Division | 7 October 1990 | Bosuilstadion | 3 – 0 | 23 March 1991 | Olympisch Stadion | 1 – 2 | |||
| Season | Division | Royal Antwerp vs K Beerschot VA | K Beerschot VA vs Royal Antwerp | |||||||
| Date | Venue | Score | Attendance | Date | Venue | Score | Attendance | |||
| 2017–18 | Europa League playoff | 15 April 2018 | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 0 | 14,194 | 29 April 2018 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 0 | 8,600 | |
| 2020–21 | First Division A | 25 October 2020 | Bosuilstadion | 3 – 2 | 0 | 7 February 2021 | Olympisch Stadion | 1 – 2 | 0 | |
| 2021–22 | First Division A | Bosuilstadion | 2 – 1 | 16,144 | 5 December 2021 | Olympisch Stadion | 0 – 1 | 11,000 | ||
| 2024–25 | Pro League | 29 September 2024 | Bosuilstadion | 5 – 0 | 16,430 | |||||
RAFC also have developed a long-standing rivalry withClub Brugge.[23] They also have a local rivalry withKV Mechelen, although there is mutual respect due to a shared hatred of Beerschot.[24]
The best football players of Antwerp and Rotterdam contested a yearly match between 1909 and 1959 for the Meuse- and Scheldt Cup (Maas- en Schelde Beker). It was agreed to play the game at Antwerp's stadium De Bosuil in Belgium and atSparta Rotterdam's Het Kasteel stadium in theNetherlands. The cup was provided in 1909 by P. Havenith from Antwerp and Kees van Hasselt from Rotterdam.
| Type | Competition | Titles | Seasons | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | Belgian First Division | 5 | ||
| Belgian Second Division | 2 | 1999–2000,2016–17 | ||
| Belgian Cup | 4 | |||
| Belgian Super Cup | 1 |
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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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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| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Vacant |
| Assistant manager |  John Stegeman |
| First-team coach | Jürgen DirkxEgid Kiesouw |
| Goalkeeping coach | Brian Vandenbussche |
| Fitness coach | Peter Catteeuw |
| Match analyst | Jerry Vanacker |
| Physiotherapist | Jan Vandenhouten |
| Technical director | Marc Overmars |
This is a list of former players acquired on-loan via Manchester United's partnership with Royal Antwerp from 1998 to 2013.
Jamie Wood
Dong Fangzhuo
Hussein Yasser
Fraizer CampbellLuke ChadwickJohn CofieJimmy DavisSylvan Ebanks-BlakeAdam EckersleyDavid FoxLuke GiverinColin HeathTom HeatonKirk HiltonEddie JohnsonRitchie JonesMichael LeaLee MartinPaul RachubkaRyan ShawcrossDanny SimpsonAlan TateRonnie WallworkNeil Wood
Arthur Gómez
Danny Higginbotham
Darron GibsonJohn O'SheaGyliano van Velzen
Craig CathcartJonny Evans
Phil BardsleyDavid Gray
Souleymane Mamam(in Dutch)
Media related toRoyal Antwerp FC at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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