April 23, 2023
Two years ago, we put out a video explaining the possibility of the Belgian Pro League and the Dutch Eredivisie merging, something that would have been named the BeNeLiga and had previously been experimented with in the domestic womens game and more recently in basketball.
The idea was, that in the face of European competitions becoming increasingly dominated by elite clubs from Spain, Germany, Italy, France and in particular England, that establishing a cross-border league could increase the quality of competition top Belgian and Dutch clubs face on a weekly basis, generate bigger television revenues and improve the overall standard of the domestic game, providing a more robust competition to rival those over the borders in Germany and France.
But while Belgian clubs voted in favour of exploring the possibility of a BeNeLiga in 2021, with then-Anderlecht manager Vincent Kompany one of its most prominent backers, their Dutch neighbours didn't follow suit, and talk of a merger has since gone quiet. But Belgian clubs look stronger than they have done in years, at least in terms of performance in Europe.
Union Saint-Gilloise, who were still battling for promotion in the second tier at the time of the 2021 vote, have made the quarter-finals of the 2022-23 Europa League, while both Gent and Anderlecht have made the quarters of the Europa Conference League, with the latter beating a strong Villarreal side to get there. In fact, no country provided those competitions with more quarter-finalists this term than Belgium, pretty impressive given France have only provided one – Nice – across all three European tournaments, with Spain providing just two – Real Madrid and Sevilla.
And considering no Belgian side has reached the semis of any continental competition since the 1990s, it's fair to say its domestic game is in good health right now, despite a poor showing at the Qatar World Cup suggesting otherwise. And while their national team's golden generation of the 2010s has run its course, the Pro League continues to produce players who go on to achieve bigger things overseas.
So what is the secret to their success? On today's EFD Explained, we're going to find out..
00:00-01:54 Rise Of The Pro League
01:54-06:09 The Talent Factory
06:09-08:18 The Stepping Stone
08:18-End The Second Chance Saloon
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By Euro Football Daily
