As for the City of Brussels, which provides the enclosure and is responsible for maintenance via a subcontractor, the explanation lies in several factors. “The year 2024 has been busy, with (four) Red Devils matches, but also, at the start of the season, seven RSCA Futures matches and three Union SG matches (in Ligua Europa)in addition to match day trainingexplains Pierre Clam, director of the sports department of the city of Brussels. Add to that the holding of the Van Damme Memorial, over a weekend instead of one day, with the throwing competitions and the installation of podiums and times which damage a 100% natural lawn.”
Low temperature seeding
Without underfloor heating or light therapy equipment, the lawn is more fragile and only protected by a tarpaulin in the event of snowfall or heavy rain. It was an intense rainy episode which also required the relocation of the Belgium – Serbia friendly match, from Brussels to Louvain, urgently, in November 2023.
The episode had been very bad publicity for the City, singled out by its former lawn manager in these columns. Both parties are explaining themselves in court, moreover, the verdict having not yet been rendered.
The new company which takes care of the lawn, Greenpoint, the same gardener as in Anderlecht, has undertaken specific maintenance at the end of the year, including sowing at low temperatures. No further activity will take place until January 23, and the Union’s match against Braga in the Europa League, but a more global decision could be taken.
Cost of possible works: around €1.5 million
“We commissioned a company to carry out a study on choosing the best lawn (natural, hybrid or synthetic) to be installed according to the activities organized at the stadiumexplains Pierre Clam. Because, in addition to football matches and the Van Damme memorial, there will be concerts.”
The results of the study are expected by the end of January at the latest. A decision will then be taken by the new Sports Alderwoman, Florence Frelinx (MR), to invest, or not, in work which could cost €1.5 million and whose duration is estimated between five and six weeks.
At the heart of a busy schedule at the start of 2025, with Union SG matches in the Europa League, RSCA Futures in the Challenger Pro League, and those of the national team, work for the laying of a new lawn, if this option is retained, could be carried out during the summer.
The Devils still with King Baudouin? City and federation will sit down at the table
The Belgian federation is seriously considering relocating several matches of the selection outside the King Baudouin stadium. In 2025, the Red Devils will face Ukraine in the Nations League play-off (March 23); Wales (June 9), Kazakhstan (September 7), North Macedonia (October 10) and Liechtenstein (November 18) in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
These are not posters that will attract a large audience, like France then Italy last October and November, when the stadium was sold out, “and the level of the team is not that of the previous generation, when they managed to bring 35,000 people to the stadium, even against an average opponent.”quite rightly observes one interlocutor.
In this vein, it is therefore a question of playing several matches far from Brussels. But the federation is held by an agreement with the city of Brussels. “This convention is not closed, it can be open for discussions (Editor’s note: under the guise of financial compensation?)”, explains Pierre Clam. A meeting between representatives of the Belgian Union and the city is scheduled for the beginning of this year to take stock.
