Belgium national rugby league team
| ||||||
| Team information | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Golden Lions | |||||
| Governing body | Rugby League Belgium | |||||
| Region | Europe | |||||
| Head coach | Valu Bentley | |||||
| Captain | Damien Parée | |||||
| Home stadium | Centre Sportif de Neder Over Hembeek | |||||
| IRL ranking | 54th | |||||
| Uniforms | ||||||
| ||||||
| Team results | ||||||
| First game | ||||||
 Belgium 28–22 Catalonia  (Wavre, Belgium; 25 July 2009) | ||||||
| Biggest win | ||||||
Belgium 60–12 Netherlands  (Rotterdam, Netherlands; 2 May 2015) | ||||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||||
 Spain 54–10 Belgium (Moncada, Spain; 8 June 2014) | ||||||
The Belgium national rugby league team represents Belgium in the sport of rugby league football.
History
[edit]The success of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup resulted in a popularity surge for the sport around the world. As a result, a number of new nations took up the sport. Belgium followed this trend in 2009.[1] Rugby League Belgium was started with a single franchise, Brabant Wallon Wavre Rugby XIII, and the creation of a national side to participate in the RLEF Euro Med Challenge and other international matches.[2]
Under new President Yves-Michael Kazadi, Belgium were granted observer membership of the Rugby League European Federation in June 2013.[3]
Their first international competition was in the 2009 RLEF Euro Med Challenge against Catalonia and Morocco.[4] In their first international, Belgium defeated Catalonia in front of a home crowd in Wavre. Belgium came in second in the Euro Med Challenge 2009, losing to Morocco 46-12. Following this tournament, the national team took a 4-year hiatus before being granted affiliate RLEF membership and returning to international competition in 2013.
Competitive record
[edit]Overall
[edit]| Team | First Played | Played | Win | Draw | Loss | Points For | Points Against | Last played |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catalonia |
2009 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 22 | 2009 |
 Czech Republic |
2015 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 54 | 26 | 2015 |
 Germany |
2016 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 12 | 2016 |
 Ireland |
2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 2015 |
 Malta |
2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 34 | 35 | 2015 |
 Morocco |
2009 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 46 | 2009 |
| Netherlands |
2013 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 150 | 48 | 2016 |
| Spain |
2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 20 | 66 | 2014 |
| Total | 13 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 324 | 289 |
Results
[edit]| Year | Date | Result | Venue | City | Attendance | Competition | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 25 July | Belgium def. Catalonia 28-22 | Wavre, Belgium | 400 | Euro-Med Challenge | match report | |
| 2009 | 15 August | Morocco def. Belgium 46-16 | Stade de la Meditérrannée | Beziers, France | Euro-Med Challenge | match report | |
| 2013 | 29 June | Belgium def. Netherlands 22-6 | Delft, Netherlands | International friendly | match report | ||
| 2014 | 24 May | Spain def. Belgium 12-10 | Centre Sportif | Neder-Over-Heembeek, Belgium | International friendly | match report | |
| 2014 | 8 June | Spain def. Belgium 54-10 | Campo de Rugby la Pelosa | Moncada, Spain | International friendly | match report | |
| 2014 | 28 June | Belgium def. Netherlands 32-16 | Centre Sportif | Neder-Over-Heembeek, Belgium | Tri-Nation Challenge Cup | match report | |
| 2015 | 18 April | Belgium def. Czech Republic 50-12 | Domaine van Puyenbroek | Brussels, Belgium | International Friendly | match report | |
| 2015 | 2 May | Belgium def. Netherlands 60-12 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | International Friendly | match report | ||
| 2015 | 21 June | Malta def. Belgium 35-34 | Headingley Carnegie Stadium | Leeds, England | International Friendly | match report | |
| 2015 | 12 July | Ireland def. Belgium 38-0 | Carlisle Grounds | Bray, Ireland | International Friendly | match report | |
| 2015 | 3 October | Czech Republic def. Belgium 14-4 | Tis, Czech Republic | International Friendly | match report |
IRL Rankings
[edit]| Official rankings as of July 2025 | |||
| Rank | Change | Team | Pts % |
| 1 |  |
 Australia |
100 |
| 2 | |
 New Zealand |
83 |
| 3 | |
 England |
80 |
| 4 | |
 Tonga |
62 |
| 5 | |
 Samoa |
53 |
| 6 | |
 Papua New Guinea |
51 |
| 7 | |
 Fiji |
43 |
| 8 | |
 France |
29 |
| 9 |  2 |
Netherlands |
22 |
| 10 | |
 Cook Islands |
22 |
| 11 |  2 |
 Serbia |
18 |
| 12 | |
 Wales |
18 |
| 13 | |
Malta |
16 |
| 14 | 1 |
 Greece |
14 |
| 15 | 1 |
 Ukraine |
13 |
| 16 | |
 Lebanon |
11 |
| 17 | |
 Italy |
10 |
| 18 | |
Ireland |
9 |
| 19 | 5 |
 United States |
8 |
| 20 | 1 |
 Jamaica |
8 |
| 21 | 1 |
Czech Republic |
8 |
| 22 | |
 Scotland |
7 |
| 23 | 2 |
 Chile |
7 |
| 24 | 1 |
 Philippines |
7 |
| 25 | |
 Poland |
5 |
| 26 | 1 |
Germany |
5 |
| 27 | 1 |
 Norway |
5 |
| 28 | 2 |
 South Africa |
5 |
| 29 | |
 Brazil |
4 |
| 30 | |
 Kenya |
4 |
| 31 | |
 Canada |
4 |
| 32 | |
 Montenegro |
3 |
| 33 | |
 North Macedonia |
3 |
| 34 | 22 |
Morocco |
3 |
| 35 | 1 |
 Argentina |
3 |
| 36 | 1 |
 Albania |
2 |
| 37 | 1 |
 Bulgaria |
2 |
| 38 | 1 |
 Ghana |
2 |
| 39 | 1 |
 Nigeria |
2 |
| 40 | 1 |
 Turkey |
1 |
| 41 | 1 |
 Cameroon |
1 |
| 42 | 1 |
 Japan |
1 |
| 43 | 1 |
Spain |
1 |
| 44 | 1 |
 Colombia |
1 |
| 45 | 1 |
 El Salvador |
0 |
| 46 | 1 |
 Russia |
0 |
| 47 | 1 |
 Bosnia and Herzegovina |
0 |
| 48 | 1 |
 Hong Kong |
0 |
| 49 | 1 |
 Solomon Islands |
0 |
| 50 | 1 |
 Vanuatu |
0 |
| 51 | 6 |
 Hungary |
0 |
| 52 | 1 |
 Latvia |
0 |
| 53 | 1 |
 Denmark |
0 |
| 54 | 1 |
Belgium |
0 |
| 55 | 1 |
 Estonia |
0 |
| 56 | 1 |
 Sweden |
0 |
| 57 | 7 |
 Niue |
0 |
| Complete rankings at www.internationalrugbyleague.com | |||
References
[edit]- ^ "BELGIUM RUGBY LEAGUE NATION OVERVIEW". Rugby League Planet. Archived from the original on 13 June 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
- ^ "Rugby 13". Rugby League Belgium XIII. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
- ^ "RLEF". Archived from the original on 1 January 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
- ^ "Catalonia Won 52 to 10 in the Czech Republic". Associació Catalana de Rugby Lliga. 22 June 2009. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
External links
[edit]- [www.belgiumrugby13.com/ Official site of Rugby League Belgium]
- Belgium: European Rugby League
| |