Carl Hoefkens (born 6 October 1978) is a Belgian football manager and former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a defender. He is currently the manager of

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; "Honour Division" or "Premier Division") is a professional association football league in the Netherlands and the highest level of the Dutch football league system. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start o ...

club

NAC Breda NAC Breda (), often simply known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Eredivisi ...

Club career

Early career

Born in Lier, Hoefkens started his career at Lierse and played there for six years. He made his breakthrough with Lierse in first division and won the

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (; ; ) is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Royal Belgian FA. The competition started in 1908 with provincial selections as the "Belgian Provinces Cup". Starting from 1912 only actual clubs were allowed ...

in 1999, beating

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège ( ; ; ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most successful clubs in Belgium, having won t ...

in the final with 3–1. Afterwards, he made a move to

Lommel Lommel () is a municipality and city in the Belgian province of Limburg. Lying in the Kempen, it has about 34,000 inhabitants and is part of the arrondissement of Maaseik. Besides the residential town, Lommel also has a number of nature reserv ...

but Lommel went bankrupt in 2003. In the summer of 2003, he came to

Germinal Beerschot Koninklijke Beerschot Antwerpen Club (), simply known as Beerschot AC, was a Belgian association football, football club based in southern Antwerp. Beerschot played in the Belgian Pro League from Belgian First Division 1999–2000, 1999–2000 ...

, a first division team in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. There, he became one of the pillars of the team. In his second season at Germinal Beerschot, he won the cup in the final against

Club Brugge (), known simply as Club Brugge (in English also: ''Club Bruges''), is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges, Belgium. It was founded in 1891 and its home ground is the Jan Breydel Stadium, which has a capacity of 29,042. They pl ...

, then champions of Belgium. Hoefkens is still appreciated by Beerschot fans; a group of fans from the club have travelled to England on numerous occasions to watch him play.

Stoke City

In the summer of 2005,

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...

manager

Johan Boskamp Johannes "Johan/Jan" Boskamp (born 21 October 1948) is a Dutch former football player and manager. He played the majority of his career for hometown club Feyenoord and Belgian side RWDM, and managed primarily in the Belgian leagues. Currently, ...

snapped him up for an undisclosed fee. He made his debut for the club in a 0–0 draw against

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

on 6 August 2005. Hoefkens became an ever-present in the Stoke line-up and wore the number 2 shirt. Hoefkens received acclaim for his performances in his first season in English football. He became a fans favourite at Stoke and was crowned 'Fans' Player of the year ( 2005–06). He then won his 9th cap for his country against

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

(0–0). During the January 2007

transfer window In association football, a transfer window is the period during the year in which a football club, club can add players to their squad who were previously under contract with another club. Such a Transfer (association football), transfer is comp ...

, he was linked with a return to Belgium, with

reportedly interested in him. He was also

penalty Penalty, The Penalty, Penalization, Penalisation, Penalize or Penalise may refer to: Sports * Foul (sports) ** Penalty (golf) ** Penalty (gridiron football) ** Penalty (ice hockey) ** Penalty (rugby) ** Penalty (rugby union) ** Penalty kick (assoc ...

taker for Stoke before the arrival of

Danny Higginbotham Daniel John Higginbotham (born 29 December 1978) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender. Born in England, he represented Gibraltar in international football. Higginbotham started his career in the Manchester United acad ...

; however, he still maintained a 100% record for the club. Hoefkens impressed both manager and fans alike with his technical ability during the 2006–07 season. He was also praised for his versatility, as he operated as a winger or a

central midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

on occasions in the latter stages of the season. It was feared that Hoefkens had broken a bone in his foot in a

Euro 2008 The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...

qualifier against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

however a scan revealed that there was no damage.

West Bromwich Albion

Stoke accepted a bid for Hoefkens from

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

on 4 August 2007. He joined Albion on 7 August 2007 in a £750,000 deal and was offered a two-year contract plus a further one-year as an option. Hoefkens made his Albion debut in a 2–1 defeat away at Burnley on the opening day of the 2007–08 season. One week later, Hoefkens was named in the Championship Team of the Week, following his performance in the 2–0 home win over

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

. He is known by his West Brom teammates as "

Wolverine The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

", due to his resemblance to the comic book hero from

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...

. Hoefkens was released in the summer of 2009.

Return to Belgium

On 25 August 2009,

signed the former

's Belgian right-back on a two-year deal. He became captain in the season 2010–11. After the season ended, he signed for an extra year with the club. After four years and 127 appearances for the club, Hoefkens moved to Lierse in 2013, spending a season there before a move to Oostende.

Gibraltar and retirement

In August 2015, after his release from Oostende, Hoefkens signed for

Gibraltar Premier Division The Gibraltar Premier Division was a football league established by the Gibraltar Football Association (GFA) in 1905, and the top tier of football in Gibraltar. It originally contained eight member clubs, but it has grown over the years. In 1 ...

side Manchester 62, who beat off competition from reigning champions Lincoln Red Imps for his signature. He signed undisclosed semi-professional terms for the side and aided in the development of David Ochello's young side, making his debut on 26 September in a 1–0 victory over Glacis United. After 19 league games and two goals, as the Red Devils of Gibraltar finished sixth in the league, he retired at the end of the 2015–16 season.

International career

Hoefkens played 22 times for the Belgium national team, scoring once. He also represented Belgium in the

1997 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, known as the 1997 FIFA/Coca-Cola World Youth Championship for sponsorship purposes, was the 11th staging of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA World Youth Championship. It was held from 16 June to 5 July 1997 i ...

. Hoefkens' one international goal came on 24 May 2006, in a friendly with

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Genk Genk () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality and City status in Belgium, city located in the Belgian Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality comprises only the town of Genk itself. It ...

. His last-minute goal secured a 3–3 draw.

Coaching and later career

At the end of January 2018, Hoefkens was hired as a scout for

Knokke Knokke () is a town in the municipality of Knokke-Heist, which is located in the province of West Flanders in Flanders, Belgium. The town itself has 15,708 inhabitants (2007), while the municipality of Knokke-Heist has 33,818 inhabitants (2009). ...

. On 28 May 2018, it was confirmed that Hoefkens would return to

from the upcoming season, where he would function as assistant coach and talent coach for the U21 and U18 teams. In June 2019, Hoefkens was placed in a new role as a part of the first team staff, where he would have the specific task of guiding young talents and provide the link between the academy and the first team. In May 2022, Hoefkens took over as head coach of Club Brugge, signing a contract with indefinite duration. In the

2022–23 UEFA Champions League The 2022–23 UEFA Champions League was the 68th season of Europe's premier club Association football, football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 31st season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions ...

, he led Club Brugge to the

knockout phase A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...

for the first time in the Champions League era. On 28 December 2022, Club Brugge announced the termination of his contract. Hoefkens was named as manager of

on 16 June 2023, on a three-year deal. He replaced Ronny Deila, who went to Brugge. Hoefkens named

Yaya Touré Gnégnéri Yaya Touré (born 13 May 1983) is an Ivorian professional football coach and former player who played as a midfielder. He is currently an assistant coach for the Saudi Arabia national team. Touré aspired to be a striker during h ...

as part of his coaching staff. Later that year, on 31 December, he was dismissed by the club due to disappointing results. Hoefkens was then announced as

manager on the 6 June 2024 for the 24/25 season in the

, which was NAC's first season in the division since 2018/19.

Personal life

Hoefkens married model Vanessa D'Hooghe in 2001.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Score and result list Belgium's goal tally first, score column indicates score after Hoefkens goal.''

Manager

Honours

Player

Lierse *

Belgian First Division A The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023– ...

: 1996–97 *

: 1998–99 *

Belgian Super Cup The Belgian Super Cup ( ; ; ), ''Pro League Supercup'', is a Belgian club competition played as a single match between the Belgian Pro League champions (also received the Super Cup host) and the Belgian Cup winners. If both teams are the same, ...

: 1997, 1999 Beerschot A.C. * Belgian Cup: 2004–05 West Bromwich Albion *

Football League Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, i ...

: 2007–08 Individual * Stoke City Player of the Year:

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

Manager

Club Brugge *

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoefkens, Carl 1978 births Living people Footballers from Lier, Belgium Belgian men's footballers Men's association football defenders Lierse S.K. players K.F.C. Lommel S.K. players Beerschot A.C. players K.V.C. Westerlo players Club Brugge KV players Stoke City F.C. players West Bromwich Albion F.C. players K.V. Oostende players Manchester 62 F.C. players Belgian Pro League players Premier League players English Football League players Belgium men's youth international footballers Belgium men's under-21 international footballers Belgium men's international footballers Belgian expatriate men's footballers Belgian expatriate sportspeople in England Belgian expatriate sportspeople in Gibraltar Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Gibraltar Belgian football managers Club Brugge KV managers Standard Liège managers NAC Breda managers Belgian Pro League managers Eredivisie managers Belgian expatriate football managers Belgian expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands Expatriate football managers in the Netherlands