De Saedeleer played the majority of his career at hometown club Racing Mechelen with whom he was runner-up in the 1951–52 Belgian First Division and was once called up for the Belgium national team for a 1949 friendly match against a squad made up of London-based professionals.
Media career
After retiring as a player, De Saedeleer wanted to be a football coach[1] but instead became columnist at Het Laatste Nieuws and Belgium's best known football commentator, reporting from several World Cups. He was known for his emotional and humorous reports.[2] He retired after the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France.
He died on 3 March 2013 after spending most of his final years in hospital. He was survived by his wife and two daughters.[3]
Bibliography
Rik De Saedeleer (1990). Goooooal! Goal! Goal! (in Dutch). ISBN9789050960632.
Carl Huybrechts; Benno Wauters; Rik De Saedeleer (2011). Rik De Saedeleer: de stem van ons voetbal: memoires [Rik De Saedeleer: the voice of our football: memoirs] (in Dutch). ISBN9789089312501.