2025–26 Belgian Pro League

2025–26 Belgian Pro League

The 2025–26 Belgian Pro League (officially known as the Jupiler Pro League due to sponsorship reasons) is the 123rd season of top-tier football in Belgium.

Format change

2025–26 Belgian Pro League

The Belgian Pro League will expand to 18 teams for the 2026–27 season, after completion of the relegation play-offs, no teams will be relegated automatically and last team will be required to play a promotion/relegation decider against the winner of the 2025–26 Challenger Pro League promotion play-offs. The winner of this decider will play in the 2026–27 Belgian Pro League.

Teams

2025–26 Belgian Pro League

Zulte Waregem and La Louvière were promoted respectively as champions and runners-up of the 2024–25 Challenger Pro League. Zulte Waregem returned to the top level after just two seasons, while La Louvière play in top tier for the first time in their history for this season since folding of RAA Louviéroise (including four seasons playing at the third level). If counting the predecessor, they returned after a 19 year absence. They replaced Beerschot and Kortrijk who were relegated at the end of previous season.

Stadiums and locations

Matricule	Club	Location	Venue	Capacity
35	Anderlecht	Anderlecht, Brussels	Constant Vanden Stock Stadium	21,500
1	Antwerp	Antwerp	Bosuilstadion	16,144
12	Cercle Brugge	Bruges	Jan Breydel Stadium	29,042
22	Charleroi	Charleroi	Stade du Pays de Charleroi	14,000
3	Club Brugge	Bruges	Jan Breydel Stadium	29,042
3900	Dender EH	Denderleeuw	Van Roystadion	06,429
322	Genk	Genk	Cegeka Arena	24,956
7	Gent	Ghent	Planet Group Arena	20,000
94	La Louvière	La Louvière	Easi Arena	8,050
25	Mechelen	Mechelen	AFAS-stadion Achter de Kazerne	16,700
18	OH Leuven	Leuven	Den Dreef	10,000
373	Sint-Truiden	Sint-Truiden	Stayen	14,600
16	Standard Liège	Liège	Stade Maurice Dufrasne	30,023
10	Union SG	Forest, Brussels	Stade Joseph Marien	09,400
2024	Westerlo	Westerlo	Het Kuipje	08,035
5381	Zulte Waregem	Waregem	Regenboogstadion	12,500

Number of teams by area

#	Province or region	Team(s)
3	Antwerp	Antwerp, Mechelen and Westerlo
West Flanders	Cercle Brugge, Club Brugge and Zulte Waregem
2	Brussels	Anderlecht and Union SG
East Flanders	Dender EH and Gent
Hainaut	Charleroi and La Louvière
Limburg	Genk and Sint-Truiden
1	Flemish Brabant	OH Leuven
Liège	Standard Liège

Personnel and kits

<table><thead><tr><th>Club</th><th>Manager</th><th>Captain</th><th>Kit Manufacturer</th><th>Shirt sponsors (front)</th><th>Shirt sponsors (back)</th><th>Shirt sponsors (sleeve)</th><th>Shorts sponsor</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Anderlecht</td><td>Jérémy Taravel (caretaker)</td><td>Colin Coosemans</td><td>Joma</td><td>Sunweb</td><td>Napoleon Sports & Casino</td><td>None</td><td>None</td></tr><tr><td>Antwerp</td><td>Joseph Oosting</td><td>Vincent Janssen</td><td>Stanno</td><td>Circus Daily</td><td>Heylen Vastgoed, Ghelamco</td><td>None</td><td>None</td></tr><tr><td>Cercle Brugge</td><td>Lars Friis</td><td>Hannes Van der Bruggen</td><td>Puma</td><td>Golden Palace News, Volvo Automobilia</td><td>Callant Insurance</td><td>Golden Palace Casino Sports</td><td>voetbalshop.be, Autoverhuur Meerschaert, Callant Insurance, Rodenbach</td></tr><tr><td>Charleroi</td><td>Hans Cornelis</td><td>Aiham Ousou</td><td>Kipsta</td><td>Napoleon Score</td><td>Unibet, QNT Sport</td><td>None</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Club Brugge</td><td>Ivan Leko</td><td>Hans Vanaken</td><td>Castore</td><td>Betsson.sport</td><td>Allianz</td><td>None</td><td>None</td></tr><tr><td>Dender EH</td><td>Yannick Ferrera (caretaker)</td><td>Kobe Cools</td><td>Mills</td><td>STAR SPORT TV</td><td>Star Casino, Valckenier</td><td>None</td><td>None</td></tr><tr><td>Genk</td><td>Nicky Hayen</td><td>Bryan Heynen</td><td>Nike</td><td>Beobank, Wilms NV</td><td>STAR SPORT TV, Carglass</td><td>STAR SPORT TV</td><td>Cegeka, Carglass</td></tr><tr><td>Gent</td><td>Rik De Mil</td><td>Davy Roef</td><td>Craft</td><td>baloise</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>La Louvière</td><td>Frédéric Taquin</td><td>Marcos Peano</td><td>Puma</td><td>Golden Palace News, Wanty</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Mechelen</td><td>Frederik Vanderbiest</td><td>Fredrik Hammar</td><td>Erreà</td><td>Telenet</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>OH Leuven</td><td>Felice Mazzù</td><td>Mathieu Maertens</td><td>Stanno</td><td>STAR SPORT TV</td><td>Tegelconcept, banqup</td><td>Star Casino</td><td>None</td></tr><tr><td>Sint-Truiden</td><td>Wouter Vrancken</td><td>Shogo Taniguchi</td><td>Olympic Sportswear</td><td>Maruhan, DMM.com</td><td>All Ads, PepperMill Casino</td><td>STAR SPORT TV</td><td>Septeni, Pauli Beton</td></tr><tr><td>Standard Liège</td><td>Vincent Euvrard</td><td>Marlon Fossey</td><td>Macron</td><td>Circus Daily</td><td>None</td><td>None</td><td>None</td></tr><tr><td>Union SG</td><td>David Hubert</td><td>Christian Burgess</td><td>Nike</td><td>Lotto</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Westerlo</td><td>Issame Charaï</td><td>Doğucan Haspolat</td><td>Nike</td><td>Soudal</td><td></td><td>Keukens Van Lommel</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Zulte Waregem</td><td>Steve Colpaert</td><td>Jelle Vossen</td><td>Patrick</td><td>lamett, Elindus</td><td></td><td></td><td>DL Chemicals, Nollens</td></tr></tbody></table>

Managerial changes

<table><thead><tr><th>Team</th><th>Outgoing manager</th><th>Manner of departure</th><th>Date of vacancy</th><th>Position</th><th>Replaced by</th><th>Date of appointment</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Gent</td><td>Danijel Milićević</td><td>Sacked</td><td>30 June 2025</td><td>Pre-season</td><td>Ivan Leko</td><td>5 June 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Standard Liège</td><td>Ivan Leko</td><td>Signed by Gent</td><td>Mircea Rednic</td><td>16 June 2025</td></tr><tr><td>OH Leuven</td><td>Chris Coleman</td><td>Sacked</td><td>David Hubert</td><td>16 June 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Westerlo</td><td>Timmy Simons</td><td>Mutual consent</td><td>Issame Charaï</td><td>17 June 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Cercle Brugge</td><td>Bernd Storck</td><td>Onur Cinel</td><td>19 June 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Antwerp</td><td>Andries Ulderink</td><td>End of contract</td><td>Stef Wils</td><td>22 June 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Dender EH</td><td>Vincent Euvrard</td><td>Signed by Standard Liège</td><td>27 August 2025</td><td>16th</td><td>Frédéric Stilmant & Steve Colpaert (caretakers)</td><td>27 August 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Standard Liège</td><td>Mircea Rednic</td><td>Sacked</td><td>8th</td><td>Vincent Euvrard</td><td>27 August 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Dender EH</td><td>Frédéric Stilmant & Steve Colpaert (caretakers)</td><td>Caretakers replaced</td><td>6 September 2025</td><td>16th</td><td>Hayk Milkon</td><td>6 September 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Union SG</td><td>Sébastien Pocognoli</td><td>Signed by Monaco</td><td>9 October 2025</td><td>1st</td><td>David Hubert</td><td>13 October 2025</td></tr><tr><td>OH Leuven</td><td>David Hubert</td><td>Signed by Union SG</td><td>13 October 2025</td><td>15th</td><td>Hans Somers (caretaker)</td><td>13 October 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Hans Somers</td><td>Caretaker replaced</td><td>26 October 2025</td><td>15th</td><td>Felice Mazzù</td><td>26 October 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Antwerp</td><td>Stef Wils</td><td>Sacked</td><td>23 November 2025</td><td>14th</td><td>Faris Haroun & Robert Molenaar (caretakers)</td><td>23 November 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Faris Haroun & Robert Molenaar (caretakers)</td><td>Caretakers replaced</td><td>27 November 2025</td><td>14th</td><td>Joseph Oosting</td><td>27 November 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Club Brugge</td><td>Nicky Hayen</td><td>Sacked</td><td>8 December 2025</td><td>3rd</td><td>Ivan Leko</td><td>8 December 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Gent</td><td>Ivan Leko</td><td>Signed by Club Brugge</td><td>8 December 2025</td><td>7th</td><td>Rik De Mil</td><td>10 December 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Charleroi</td><td>Rik De Mil</td><td>Signed by Gent</td><td>10 December 2025</td><td>12th</td><td>Hans Cornelis</td><td>10 December 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Genk</td><td>Thorsten Fink</td><td>Sacked</td><td>15 December 2025</td><td>7th</td><td>Domenico Olivieri (caretaker)</td><td>15 December 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Domenico Olivieri (caretaker)</td><td>Caretaker replaced</td><td>22 December 2025</td><td>7th</td><td>Nicky Hayen</td><td>22 December 2025</td></tr><tr><td>Anderlecht</td><td>Besnik Hasi</td><td>Sacked</td><td>1 February 2026</td><td>4th</td><td>Edward Still (caretaker)</td><td>1 February 2026</td></tr><tr><td>Edward Still</td><td>Signed by Watford</td><td>9 February 2026</td><td>4th</td><td>Jérémy Taravel (caretaker)</td><td>9 February 2026</td></tr><tr><td>Dender EH</td><td>Hayk Milkon</td><td>Sacked</td><td>25 February 2026</td><td>16th</td><td>Yannick Ferrera</td><td>26 February 2026</td></tr><tr><td>Zulte Waregem</td><td>Sven Vandenbroeck</td><td>Sacked</td><td>9 March 2026</td><td>12th</td><td>Steve Colpaert</td><td>9 March 2026</td></tr><tr><td>Cercle Brugge</td><td>Onur Cinel</td><td>Sacked</td><td>18 March 2026</td><td>15th</td><td>Jimmy De Wulf (caretaker)</td><td>18 March 2026</td></tr><tr><td>Jimmy De Wulf</td><td>Caretaker replaced</td><td>20 March 2026</td><td>15th</td><td>Lars Friis</td><td>20 March 2026</td></tr></tbody></table>

Regular season

League table

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification or relegation</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>Union SG</td><td>30</td><td>19</td><td>9</td><td>2</td><td>50</td><td>17</td><td>+33</td><td>66</td><td>Qualification for the Europa League and Champions' play-offs</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>Club Brugge</td><td>30</td><td>20</td><td>3</td><td>7</td><td>59</td><td>36</td><td>+23</td><td>63</td><td>Qualification for the Champions' play-offs</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>Sint-Truiden</td><td>30</td><td>18</td><td>3</td><td>9</td><td>47</td><td>35</td><td>+12</td><td>57</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>Gent</td><td>30</td><td>13</td><td>6</td><td>11</td><td>49</td><td>43</td><td>+6</td><td>45</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>Mechelen</td><td>30</td><td>12</td><td>9</td><td>9</td><td>39</td><td>37</td><td>+2</td><td>45</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>Anderlecht</td><td>30</td><td>12</td><td>8</td><td>10</td><td>43</td><td>39</td><td>+4</td><td>44</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>Genk</td><td>30</td><td>11</td><td>9</td><td>10</td><td>46</td><td>47</td><td>−1</td><td>42</td><td>Qualification for the Europe play-offs</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>Standard Liège</td><td>30</td><td>11</td><td>7</td><td>12</td><td>27</td><td>35</td><td>−8</td><td>40</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>Westerlo</td><td>30</td><td>10</td><td>9</td><td>11</td><td>36</td><td>40</td><td>−4</td><td>39</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td>Antwerp</td><td>30</td><td>9</td><td>8</td><td>13</td><td>31</td><td>32</td><td>−1</td><td>35</td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td>Charleroi</td><td>30</td><td>9</td><td>7</td><td>14</td><td>38</td><td>42</td><td>−4</td><td>34</td></tr><tr><td>12</td><td>OH Leuven</td><td>30</td><td>9</td><td>7</td><td>14</td><td>32</td><td>43</td><td>−11</td><td>34</td></tr><tr><td>13</td><td>Zulte Waregem</td><td>30</td><td>8</td><td>8</td><td>14</td><td>38</td><td>47</td><td>−9</td><td>32</td><td>Qualification for the Relegation play-offs</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td>Cercle Brugge</td><td>30</td><td>7</td><td>10</td><td>13</td><td>39</td><td>47</td><td>−8</td><td>31</td></tr><tr><td>15</td><td>La Louvière</td><td>30</td><td>6</td><td>13</td><td>11</td><td>30</td><td>37</td><td>−7</td><td>31</td></tr><tr><td>16</td><td>Dender EH</td><td>30</td><td>3</td><td>10</td><td>17</td><td>24</td><td>51</td><td>−27</td><td>19</td></tr></tbody></table>

Positions by round

The table lists the positions of teams after each round, with postponed matches and points deductions included only when they occur. Teams with fewer matches played are shown with their position underlined, with each line representing one fewer match.

Colored cells refer to being in Champions' Play-offs (green), in Europe Play-offs (blue), or Relegation play-offs (red).

Play-offs

Champions' play-offs

The champions' play-offs decide the overall league champion. The top six teams of the Regular season play a round-robin tournament, with each team starting with half the points obtained during the regular season. The starting points are rounded up, in case of ties in standings at the end of the champions' play-offs, any half points gained at the start are deducted first. The points of Club Brugge, Sint-Truiden, Gent, and Mechelen were rounded up, and thus in the event of a tie on points, Union SG and Anderlecht would always be ranked ahead of those four teams.

The teams finishing in the top three positions after conclusion of the champions' play-offs qualify for European football, with the team in position four facing the winner of the Europe play-offs for the final ticket, unless the winner of the Belgian Cup (Union SG or Anderlecht) finishes in one of the top four positions, in which case the fifth team will take part instead.

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation		USG	CLU	STR	GNT	MEC	AND
1	Union SG	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	33	Qualification for the Champions League league phase		—	19 Apr	4 Apr	22 Apr	10 May	24 May
2	Club Brugge	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	32	Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round		17 May	—	26 Apr	24 May	22 Apr	6 Apr
3	Sint-Truiden	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	29	Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round		2 May	11 Apr	—	16 May	24 May	23 Apr
4	Gent	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	23	Qualification for the European competition play-off		21 May	26 Apr	19 Apr	—	6 Apr	10 May
5	Mechelen	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	23			12 Apr	21 May	26 Apr	3 May	—	18 Apr
6	Anderlecht	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	22		26 Apr	3 May	21 May	12 Apr	17 May	—

Europe play-offs

The Europe play-offs will be played by the teams in positions 7 through 12 at the conclusion of the Regular season. Teams will play round-robin tournament, with each team starting with half the points obtained during the regular season. The starting points are rounded up, in case of ties in standings at the end of the Europe play-offs, any half points gained at the start will be deducted first. The points of Westerlo and Antwerp were rounded up, and thus in the event of a tie on points, Genk, Standard Liège, Charleroi and OH Leuven would always be ranked ahead of those three teams.

The winner of the Europe play-offs will face the team finishing fourth in the champions' play-offs to decide which team qualified for European football.

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation		GNK	STA	WES	ANT	CHA	OHL
1	Genk	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	21	Qualification for the European competition play-off		—	25 Apr	10 May	19 May	21 Apr	12 Apr
2	Standard Liège	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	20			16 May	—	11 Apr	21 Apr	23 May	8 May
3	Westerlo	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	20		18 Apr	19 May	—	25 Apr	5 Apr	2 May
4	Antwerp	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	18		3 Apr	3 May	23 May	—	10 May	18 Apr
5	Charleroi	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17		2 May	18 Apr	16 May	10 Apr	—	19 May
6	OH Leuven	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17		23 May	4 Apr	21 Apr	15 May	25 Apr	—

European competition play-off

A single match will be played between the fourth-place finisher of the Champions' play-offs and the winner of the Europe play-offs, with home advantage for the team from the Champions' play-offs. The winner will qualify for the Conference League second qualifying round.

In case one of the teams finishing in the top four wins the 2025–26 Belgian Cup, this team will already be guaranteed a (better) European ticket, in which case the fifth team of the Champions' play-offs would be facing the winner of the Europe play-offs.

Relegation play-offs

The bottom four teams after the regular season will play the relegation play-offs, a round-robin tournament in which they start with the full points obtained during the regular season. Due to the league reform and the expansion to 18 teams from the 2026–27 season, only the bottom team after the conclusion of the relegation play-offs has a chance of relegation, by having to play the winner of the promotion play-offs, with only the winner of that match playing in the 2026–27 Belgian Pro League.

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation		ZWA	CER	LAL	DEN
1	Zulte Waregem	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	32			—	4 Apr	26 Apr	9 May
2	Cercle Brugge	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	31		1 May	—	11 Apr	24 Apr
3	La Louvière	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	31		19 Apr	9 May	—	6 Apr
4	Dender EH	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	19	Qualification for the promotion/relegation play-offs		12 Apr	19 Apr	3 May	—

Promotion/relegation play-offs

The promotion/relegation play-offs will be contested by the four highest-eligible finishers who are not already promoted directly. Normally, this will be the teams in positions 3 to 6 in the 2025–26 Challenger Pro League, unless one of the U23-teams would end up in the top six positions, in which case the next eligible team will take their spot. These four teams are to meet in a knockout tournament with both quarter-finals and semi-finals over two legs, and the highest season finisher always has home advantage in the return leg. The winner of the semi-finals will play the 16th place finisher of the 2025–26 Belgian Pro League over two legs. The Belgian Pro League team will have home advantage in the return leg; the winner of the final will qualify to play in the 2026–27 Belgian Pro League, with the loser playing in the 2026–27 Challenger Pro League.

Season statistics

2025–26 Belgian Pro League

Despite teams not playing the same amount of matches due to the play-offs, goals during the play-offs do count in determining the top scorer.

Top goalscorers

Rank	Player	Club	Goals
1	Nicolo Tresoldi	Club Brugge	12
2	Thorgan Hazard	Anderlecht	11
3	Keisuke Gotō	Sint Truiden	10
4	Promise David	Union Saint-Gilloise	9
Jeppe Erenbjerg	Zulte Waregem
Wilfried Kanga	Gent
Christos Tzolis	Club Brugge
6	Parfait Guiagon	Charleroi	8
Pape Moussa Fall	La Louvière
Bruny Nsimba	Dender EH
Kevin Rodríguez	Union SG