2021–22 Belgian First Division B

Belgian First Division B
Season2021–22
ChampionsWesterlo
PromotedWesterlo
RelegatedExcel Mouscron
Matches played112
Goals scored322 (2.88 per match)
Top goalscorerDaniel Maderner
(13 goals)
Biggest home winLierse Kempenzonen 4–1 RWDM
(12 September 2021)
Lommel 3–0 Excel Mouscron
(17 October 2021)
Deinze 3–0 Virton
(3 December 2021)
Waasland-Beveren 4–1 Deinze
(12 December 2021)
Excel Mouscron 3–0 Waasland-Beveren
(5 February 2022)
Westerlo 3–0 Lommel
(6 February 2022)
Lommel 3–0 Virton
(13 February 2022)
RWDM 3–0 Virton
(20 March 2022)
Deinze 3–0 RWDM
(3 April 2022)
Biggest away winExcel Mouscron 0–4 Waasland-Beveren
(28 August 2021)
Lierse Kempenzonen 1–5 Westerlo
(20 November 2021)
Virton 0–4 Waasland-Beveren
(23 January 2022)
Excel Mouscron 2–6 Westerlo
(8 April 2022)
Highest scoringExcel Mouscron 2–6 Westerlo
(8 April 2022)
Longest winning run4 matches
Excel Mouscron and Westerlo
Longest unbeaten run9 matches
Lommel and Westerlo

The 2021–22 season of the Belgian First Division B began in August 2021 and ended in April 2022, with Westerlo winning the title by a considerable margin over RWDM, the latter losing the promotion play-off and hence not promoted together with Westerlo. Virton ended in last place and would have been relegated, were it not for the fact that after the season Excel Mouscron was not awarded a licence, causing them to be relegated instead.

Team changes

In

Out

Format changes

Initially, the plan was to change the format of the Belgian First Division B only for the 2020–21 season,[1] with the league no longer consisting of two separate competitions but instead, one single league in which all teams play each other four times, without playoffs. This was however extended with at least one season, meaning the 2021–22 Belgian First Division B continues with the same format as the previous season.

Team information

Stadiums and locations

class=notpageimage|
Locations of the 2021–22 Belgian First Division B teams
Matricule Club City First season of
current spell at
second level		 Coming from 2020-21 result Stadium Capacity
818 K.M.S.K. Deinze Deinze 2020–21 Belgian First Amateur Division 5th (D1B) Burgemeester Van de Wiele Stadion 7,515
216 Royal Excel Mouscron Mouscron 2021–22 Belgian First Division A 18th (D1A) Stade Le Canonnier 10,800
3970 Lierse Kempenzonen Lier 2020–21 Belgian First Amateur Division 7th (D1B) Herman Vanderpoortenstadion 14,538
2554 Lommel SK Lommel 2018–19 Belgian First Amateur Division 3rd (D1B) Soevereinstadion 8,000
5479 RWD Molenbeek Molenbeek 2020–21 Belgian First Amateur Division 6th (D1B) Edmond Machtens Stadium 12,266
200 R.E. Virton Virton 2021–22 Belgian Division 2 Unranked (D2) Stade Yvan Georges 4,015
4068 Waasland-Beveren Beveren 2021–22 Belgian First Division A 17th (D1A) Freethiel Stadion 8,190
2024 K.V.C. Westerlo Westerlo 2017–18 Belgian First Division A 4th (D1B) Het Kuipje 8,035

Personnel and kits

Club Manager Kit Manufacturer Sponsors
Deinze Belgium Wim De Decker Legea Dakota Vastgoed & Declercq Stortbeton
Excel Mouscron Belgium José Jeunechamps [n 1] Uhlsport Star Casino
Lierse Kempenzonen Belgium Tom Van Imschoot Jako Keukens Van Lommel
Lommel England Brian Eastick [n 2] Masita United Telecom
RWD Molenbeek Belgium Vincent Euvrard Joma Symbio
Virton Uruguay Pablo Correa [n 3]
Waasland-Beveren Spain Jordi Condom [n 4] Uhlsport Star Casino
Westerlo Belgium Jonas De Roeck Saller Soudal

Managerial changes

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position Replaced by Date of appointment
Deinze Belgium Cédric Vlaeminck (caretaker) Caretaker replaced [2] End of 2020–21 season Pre-season Belgium Wim De Decker 4 March 2020 [a]
Westerlo Belgium Bob Peeters Sacked [3] Belgium Jonas De Roeck 27 May 2021 [4]
Excel Mouscron Portugal Jorge Simão Hired by Portugal Paços Ferreira[5] Belgium Enzo Scifo 22 June 2021 [6]
Waasland-Beveren Belgium Nicky Hayen Sacked [7] Switzerland Marc Schneider 18 May 2021 [8]
Virton No manager since end of 2019–20 season Belgium Christophe Grégoire 27 July 2021 [9]
Lommel England Liam Manning Hired by England Milton Keynes Dons[10] 11 August 2021 Netherlands Peter van der Veen 11 August 2021 [11] [12] [b]
Excel Mouscron Belgium Enzo Scifo Sacked[13] 14 October 2021 8th Belgium Philippe Saint-Jean (caretaker) 14 October 2021[13]
Belgium Philippe Saint-Jean Caretaker replaced[14] 19 October 2021 8th Belgium José Jeunechamps 19 October 2021[14]
Virton Belgium Christophe Grégoire Sacked[15] 13 December 2021 8th France Emmanuel Coquelet (caretaker) 13 December 2021
Lommel Netherlands Peter van der Veen Resigned[16] 14 December 2021 7th Brazil Luíz Felipe 14 December 2021[16] [c]
Virton France Emmanuel Coquelet Caretaker replaced[17] 22 December 2021 8th Uruguay Pablo Correa 22 December 2021
Lommel Brazil Luíz Felipe Mutual Consent[18] 7 February 2022 7th Netherlands Patrick Greveraars (caretaker) 7 February 2022[18]
Netherlands Patrick Greveraars Caretaker replaced[19] 16 February 2022 7th England Brian Eastick 16 February 2022[19]
Waasland-Beveren Switzerland Marc Schneider Sacked [20] 28 February 2022 3rd Spain Jordi Condom 28 February 2022[20]
  1. ^ Wim De Decker was appointed the new manager of Deinze already on 4 March 2020, but would only be observing and analyzing the players for the remainder of the season. Assistant-manager Cédric Vlaeminck will take up the role of manager until the end of the season, leading the training sessions and being on the sideline during matches.
  2. ^ Peter van der Veen was initially appointed caretaker manager at Lommel following the departure of Liam Manning, but took over permanently just one week later.
  3. ^ Luíz Felipe was initially appointed caretaker manager at Lommel following the departure of Peter van der Veen, but was appointed permanent manager one month later.

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification WES RWD WAA DEI LIE LOM EXC VIR WES RWD WAA DEI LIE LOM EXC VIR
1 Westerlo (C, P) 28 17 5 6 52 29 +23 56 Promotion to the 2022–23 Belgian First Division A — 0–0 1–1 2–2 3–2 2–0 4–3 2–0 — 2–2 2–1 0–3 2–0 3–0 1–0 1–1
2 RWDM47 28 14 7 7 41 33 +8 49 Qualification to Promotion play-off 1–2 — 1–3 2–2 3–3 1–2 3–1 0–0 0–2[a] — 2–1 1–0 3–1 2–0 2–0 3–0
3 Waasland-Beveren 28 12 5 11 47 40 +7 41 0–2 2–3 — 0–2 1–3 2–1 0–2 4–3 2–1 1–0 — 4–1 0–1 1–1 2–0 3–1
4 Deinze 28 9 12 7 47 39 +8 39 2–1 1–2 0–0 — 1–1 3–3 3–1 3–0 1–2 3–0 3–3 — 1–2 1–1 2–2 2–1
5 Lierse Kempenzonen 28 9 9 10 39 42 −3 36 1–5 4–1 2–1 2–2 — 2–2 2–2 2–0 1–0 0–1 2–0 1–1 — 0–2 0–1 1–1
6 Lommel 28 9 8 11 39 40 −1 35 0–1 2–3 2–3 2–2 3–1 — 3–0 1–3 2–1 1–1 1–1 2–1 0–1 — 0–0 3–0
7 Excel Mouscron[b] (R) 28 8 6 14 31 45 −14 30 Folded as a team 1–2 1–1 0–4 2–0 2–1 0–1 — 1–1 2–6 0–1 3–0 1–2 0–0 2–1 — 2–1
8 Virton 28 5 6 17 24 52 −28 21 0–2 0–2 0–3 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–2 — 1–0 0–1 0–4 0–2 2–2 2–3 2–0 —
Updated to match(es) played on completed. Source: Belgian First Division B
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Matches won; 3) Goal difference; 4) Goals scored; 5) Away goals scored; 6) Away matches won; 7) Play-off.[26]
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ The match between RWDM and Westerlo of 10 December 2021 was postponed due to excessive snow and instead played on 25 January 2022.[21]
  2. ^ On 13 April 2022, the Belgian FA announced that Excel Mouscron had not been awarded a Belgian professional football license for the coming season, meaning that the club will not be allowed to play in the top two divisions of Belgian football and thus be relegated to the 2022–23 Belgian National Division 1 instead of Virton.[22] One day later, the committee awarding the licenses announced that the club had also not obtained a Belgian remunerated football license, which meant it will be relegated to the 2022–23 Belgian Division 2, where it will start with a three points handicap. The club has announced that it will appeal the decision, as it has done so successfully already no less than six times during the previous seven years.[23] On 10 May 2022, their appeal was rejected and the club's relegation was confirmed. [24] On 31 May 2022, the club announced it would be filing for bankruptcy, as no party was found willing to take over the club. It is in discussion with the ACFF to possibly continue with a team in the provincial leagues (5th level).[25]

Positions by round

The table lists the positions of teams after the completion of each round. In the overview below, not all teams had played the same number of matches:

  • The match between RWDM and Westerlo on matchday 15 was postponed and instead played between matchdays 17 and 18.
  • The match between Westerlo and Deinze on matchday 17 was postponed and instead played between matchdays 19 and 20.
  • The match between Lierse and Westerlo on matchday 21 was postponed and instead played between matchdays 24 and 25.
Team ╲ Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728
Westerlo2411111111111111111111111111
RWDM471345676766643333332222222222
Waasland-Beveren3624352222222222223333333443
Deinze5132245554454444444444444334
Lierse Kempenzonen4253423443335566656566666555
Lommel6566534335567677777777777766
Excel Mouscron7788888888876755565655555677
Virton8877767677788888888888888888
Updated to match(es) played on completed. Source: worldfootball.net

Season statistics

Top scorers

As of 17 April 2022[27]
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Austria Daniel Maderner Waasland-Beveren 13
2 Belgium Lennart Mertens Deinze 12
3 North Macedonia Erdon Daci Westerlo 10
4 Mauritania Souleymane Anne Virton 9
Belgium Dylan De Belder Deinze
France Kévin Hoggas Waasland-Beveren
7 Slovakia Ján Bernát Westerlo 8
Guinea Bafodé Dansoko Deinze
Brazil Arthur Sales Lommel
10 Madagascar Hakim Abdallah Lierse Kempenzonen 7
France Kévin Nzuzi Mata RWDM
Brazil Lucas Ribeiro Costa Waasland-Beveren
(includes 5 goals for Excel Mouscron)
6 goals (4 players)
5 goals (6 players)
4 goals (10 players)
3 goals (7 players)
2 goals (21 players)
1 goal (42 players)
2 own goals (1 player)
1 own goal (9 players)

Team of the season

Upon completion of the regular season a team of the season award was compiled, based upon the results of the team of the week results throughout the season, constructed based on nominations from managers, assistant-managers, journalists and analysts. The results were announced from 25 April 2022, with one player revealed each day.

Pos Player Club Ref
GK Belgium Théo Defourny RWDM [28]
RB Algeria Rafik Belghali Lommel [29]
CB Belgium Rubin Seigers Westerlo [30]
CB Belgium Kenneth Schuermans Lierse Kempenzonen [31]
LB Belgium Maxim De Cuyper Westerlo [32]
RW Belgium Youssef Challouk Deinze [33]
MF Belgium Lukas Van Eenoo Westerlo [34]
MF Belgium Nicolas Rommens RWDM [35]
LW Guadeloupe Lenny Nangis RWDM [36]
FW South Africa Lyle Foster Westerlo [37]
FW Austria Daniel Maderner Waasland-Beveren [38]

Number of teams by provinces

Number of teams Province or region Team(s)
2  Antwerp Lierse Kempenzonen and Westerlo
 East Flanders Deinze and Waasland-Beveren
1  Brussels RWD Molenbeek
 Hainaut Excel Mouscron
 Limburg Lommel
 Luxembourg Virton

Notes

  1. ^ Belgium Enzo Scifo was the manager for matchdays 1 through 7, Belgium Philippe Saint-Jean was the caretaker manager on matchday 8.
  2. ^ Netherlands Peter van der Veen was the manager for matchdays 1 through 14, Brazil Luíz Felipe was caretaker manager for matchdays 15 through 19, and Netherlands Patrick Greveraars was caretaker on matchday 20.
  3. ^ Belgium Christophe Grégoire was the manager for matchdays 1 through 15, while France Emmanuel Coquelet was the caretaker manager on matchday 16.
  4. ^ Switzerland Marc Schneider was the manager for matchdays 1 through 22.

References

  1. ^ "Communication à la suite de l'Assemblée Générale". jupilerproleague.be (in French). Archived from the original on 2020-06-12. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  2. ^ "Wim De Decker volgt ontslagen David Gevaert op bij Deinze" [Wim De Decker successor of sacked David Gevaert at Deinze] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2020-12-02.
  3. ^ "Bob Peeters en Westerlo komen niet meer overeen" [Bob Peeters and Westerlo no longer agree] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2021-05-11.
  4. ^ "Welkom Jonas De Roeck!" [Welcome Jonas De Roeck!]. kvcwesterlo.be. 2021-05-27.
  5. ^ "Jorge Simão ruilt degradant Moeskroen in voor de nummer 5 in Portugal" [Jorge Simão exchanges relegated Mouscron for number 5 in Portugal] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2021-05-14.
  6. ^ "Enzo Scifo moet Moeskroen weer naar de hoogste klasse loodsen" [Enzo Scifo to guide Mouscron back to top level]. sporza.be. 2021-06-22.
  7. ^ "Gedegradeerd Waasland-Beveren neemt afscheid van coach Nicky Hayen" [Relegated Waasland-Beveren says goodbye to manager Nicky Hayen] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2021-05-14.
  8. ^ "MARC SCHNEIDER IS THE NEW HEAD COACH OF W-B". waasland-beveren.be. 2021-05-18.
  9. ^ "Christophe Grégoire wordt coach van Virton (dat 2 spelers onder contract heeft)" [Christophe Grégoire becomes manager of Virton (which has only 2 players)]. sporza.be. 2021-07-27.
  10. ^ "Liam Manning named Head Coach". www.mkdons.com. 13 August 2021.
  11. ^ "Coach Liam Manning verlaat Lommel SK" [Manager Liam Manning leaves Lommel SK]. lommelsk.be. 2021-08-11.
  12. ^ "Ex-bondscoach van Nederlandse U17 moet Lommel naar 1A loodsen" [Former Dutch U17 manager to lead Lommel to 1A]. sporza.be. 2021-08-21.
  13. ^ a b "Verlies tegen amateurs van Mandel United is voor Scifo de nederlaag te veel" [Loss against amateur team Mandel United proves loss too many for Scifo] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2021-10-14.
  14. ^ a b "José Jeunechamps, net weg als T2, is opvolger van Scifo bij Moeskroen" [José Jeunechamps, only recently departed as assistant, now succeeds Scifo at Mouscron] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2021-10-19.
  15. ^ "Rode lantaarn Virton doet niet voort met coach Christophe Grégoire in 1B" [Red lantern Virton stops cooperation with Christophe Grégoire in 1B]. www.sporza.be. 13 December 2021.
  16. ^ a b "Nederlander Peter van der Veen stapt op als coach van Lommel" [Dutchman Peter van der Veen quits as manager of Lommel]. www.sporza.be. 14 December 2021.
  17. ^ "Bienvenue en gaume Pablo !" [Welcome in the Gaume Pablo !]. www.revirton.be. 22 December 2021.
  18. ^ a b "Tweedeklasser Lommel SK neemt afscheid van interim-trainer Luiz Felipe Ferreira" [Second division team Lommel SK says goodbye to caretaker Luiz Felipe Ferreira]. www.sporza.be. 7 February 2022.
  19. ^ a b "Lommel haalt ervaren Brian Eastick (70) aan boord als coach tot einde van het seizoen" [Lommel gets experienced Brian Eastick (70) on board until the end of the season]. www.sporza.be. 16 February 2022.
  20. ^ a b "Waasland-Beveren zet trainersduo Schneider en Cerrone aan de deur, Jordi Condom neemt over" [Waasland-Beveren sacks managerial duo Schneider and Cerrone, Jordi Condom takes over] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 2022-02-28.
  21. ^ "RWDM-Westerlo raakt ondergesneeuwd, 1B-topper wordt uitgesteld" [RWDM-Westerlo gets snowed in, 1B-top match postponed] (in Dutch). sporza.be. 10 December 2021. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  22. ^ "Moeskroen krijgt voor de zevende keer geen licentie, wel groen licht voor andere clubs". 13 April 2022.
  23. ^ "Moeskroen krijgt ook geen licentie voor eerste nationale". 14 April 2022.
  24. ^ "Belgique: l'Excel Royal Mouscron, propriété de Gérard Lopez, rétrogradé au niveau amateur".
  25. ^ "Geen redding meer voor Moeskroen: Club vraagt faillissement aan". 31 May 2022.
  26. ^ "General terms Belgian competition" (PDF). kbvb.be. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  27. ^ "Spelersstatistieken". Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  28. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // DOELMAN // Théo Defourny (RWDM)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // GOALKEEPER // Théo Defourny (RWDM)]. 25 April 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  29. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // RECHTSACHTER // Rafik Belghali (Lommel SK)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // RIGHTBACK // Rafik Belghali (Lommel SK)]. 29 April 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  30. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // CENTRALE VERDEDIGER (2) // Rubin Seigers (KVC Westerlo)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // CENTRAL DEFENDER (2) // Rubin Seigers (KVC Westerlo)]. 28 April 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  31. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // CENTRALE VERDEDIGER (1) // Kenneth Schuermans (Lierse K.)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // CENTRAL DEFENDER (1) // Kenneth Schuermans (Lierse K.)]. 27 April 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  32. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // LEFTACHTER // Maxim De Cuyper (KVC Westerlo)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // LEFTBACK // Maxim De Cuyper (KVC Westerlo)SK)]. 26 April 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  33. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // RECHTSBUITEN // Youssef Challouk (SK Deinze)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // RIGHT WINGER // Youssef Challouk (SK Deinze)]. 2 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  34. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // MIDDENVELDER CENTRAAL (2) // Lukas Van Eenoo (KVC Westerlo)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // MIDFIELD CENTRAL (2) // Lukas Van Eenoo (KVC Westerlo)]. 1 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  35. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // MIDDENVELDER CENTRAAL (1) // Nicolas Rommens (RWDM)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // MIDFIELD CENTRAL (1) // Nicolas Rommens (RWDM)]. 30 April 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  36. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // LINKSBUITEN // Lenny Nangis (RWDM)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // LEFT WINGER // Lenny Nangis (RWDM)]. 3 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  37. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // CENTRUMSPITS (2) // Lyle Foster (Westerlo)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // CENTER FORWARD (2) // Lyle Foster (Westerlo)]. 5 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  38. ^ "1B Pro League XI van het seizoen // CENTRUMSPITS (1) // Daniel Maderner (Waasland-Beveren)" [1B Pro League XI of the season // CENTER FORWARD (1) // Daniel Maderner (Waasland-Beveren)]. 4 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.