The 2007–08 season of the
Belgian First Division began on August 3, 2007 and concluded on May 10, 2008. The championship was decided in the 31st round on April 20, 2008, when
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège.
They are one of the mo ...
beat
Anderlecht 2–0 at home. For Standard it was their 9th League Championship, but just their first in the last 25 years. At the other end of the table,
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
and
Sint-Truiden
Sint-Truiden (; french: link=no, Saint-Trond ; li, Sintruin ) is a city and municipality located in the province of Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium, and has over 41,500 inhabitants, which makes it one of the largest cities in Limburg. The mu ...
were relegated on matchdays 31 and 32 respectively. Behind Standard,
Anderlecht and
Club Brugge fought until the end for the second place which gives right to a place in the qualifying rounds of the
2008–09 UEFA Champions League
The 2008–09 UEFA Champions League was the 54th edition of Europe's premier club football tournament and the 17th edition under the current UEFA Champions League format. The final was played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on 27 May 2009. It was ...
. On the penultimate matchday, Anderlecht won against Club Brugge with 2–0 which proved decisive in the end for them to become second.
Clubs
Eighteen teams played in the
Belgian First Division season 2007–08. Twelve teams were from
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
, four clubs from
Wallonia
Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—al ...
and two clubs from the
Brussels-Capital Region
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
.
New teams
K.S.K. Beveren
Koninklijke Sportkring Beveren (''Royal Sporting Club of Beveren'') is a Belgian association football club from the town of Beveren in East Flanders. KSK Beveren was particularly successful during the late 1970s and early 1980s in which it wo ...
had been relegated at the end of the previous season with
F. C. Verbroedering Dender E.H.
Football Club Verbroedering Dender Eendracht Hekelgem, also simply known as Dender or Verbroedering Dender, is a Belgian association football club based in Denderleeuw. From the 2022–23 season, the club will be playing in the Challenger Pro ...
replacing them as they won the
Belgian Second Division
The Belgian Second Division (known as the Proximus League for sponsorship reasons) was the second-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian Pro League. It was founded by the Royal Belgian Football Asso ...
.
Lierse
Koninklijke Lierse Sportkring (), often simply known as Lierse, was a Belgian professional football club from the city of Lier in the Antwerp province. Lierse have won four championship titles and two Belgian Cups. Lierse was one of the six Be ...
lost their spot during the
promotion playoff
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
and were replaced by
Y.R. K.V. Mechelen.
Overview
Managerial changes
Kits
Stadiums
League standings
Results
Season statistics
Scoring
*First goal of the season:
Marcin Wasilewski for
Anderlecht against
Mechelen
Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...
(3 August 2007)
*Widest winning margin: 6:
Westerlo 6–0
Roeselare
Roeselare (; french: Roulers, ; West Flemish: ''Roeseloare'') is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Roeselare proper and the towns of Beveren, Oekene and Rumbeke.
...
(20 October 2007)
*Most goals in a match: 9:
Westerlo 7–2
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
(19 January 2008)
*Best offensive team:
Cercle Brugge with 62 goals.
*Best defensive team:
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège.
They are one of the mo ...
with 19 goals.
*Hattricks scored:
**
Milan Jovanović for
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège.
They are one of the mo ...
against
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
(11 August 2007)
**
Milan Jovanović for
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège.
They are one of the mo ...
against
Roeselare
Roeselare (; french: Roulers, ; West Flemish: ''Roeseloare'') is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Roeselare proper and the towns of Beveren, Oekene and Rumbeke.
...
(25 August 2007)
**
Joseph Akpala
Joseph Eneojo Akpala (born 24 August 1986) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a forward.
Club career
Akpala is a product of the Pepsi Football Academy in Lagos. His first professional contract came in April 2003 with Bendel Un ...
for
Charleroi
Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593. against
Sint-Truiden
Sint-Truiden (; french: link=no, Saint-Trond ; li, Sintruin ) is a city and municipality located in the province of Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium, and has over 41,500 inhabitants, which makes it one of the largest cities in Limburg. The mu ...
(26 August 2007)
**
Bertin Tomou for
Mouscron
Mouscron (; Dutch and vls, Moeskroen, ; Picard and Walloon: ''Moucron'') is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Hainaut, along the border with the French city of Tourcoing, which is part of the Lille metropo ...
against
Dender EH (27 October 2007)
**
Bryan Ruiz for
Gent against
Lokeren
Lokeren () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders, and belongs to the Waasland, also called ''Land van Waas'', of which it is the second most important city after Sint-Niklaas. The city, located on the river D ...
(8 December 2007)
**
Elyaniv Barda for
Genk
Genk () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality only comprises the town of Genk itself. It is one of the most important industrial towns in Flanders, located on the Albert Canal, ...
against
Zulte-Waregem (14 December 2007)
**
Bart Van Den Eede for
Westerlo against
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
(19 January 2008)
**
Joseph Akpala
Joseph Eneojo Akpala (born 24 August 1986) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a forward.
Club career
Akpala is a product of the Pepsi Football Academy in Lagos. His first professional contract came in April 2003 with Bendel Un ...
for
Charleroi
Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593. against
Genk
Genk () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality only comprises the town of Genk itself. It is one of the most important industrial towns in Flanders, located on the Albert Canal, ...
(12 April 2008)
**
Nicolás Frutos for
Anderlecht against
Sint-Truiden
Sint-Truiden (; french: link=no, Saint-Trond ; li, Sintruin ) is a city and municipality located in the province of Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium, and has over 41,500 inhabitants, which makes it one of the largest cities in Limburg. The mu ...
(26 April 2008)
Cards
*First yellow card:
Nicolas Pareja
Nicolas or Nicolás may refer to:
People Given name
* Nicolas (given name)
Mononym
* Nicolas (footballer, born 1999), Brazilian footballer
* Nicolas (footballer, born 2000), Brazilian footballer
Surname Nicolas
* Dafydd Nicolas (c.1705–1774), ...
for
Anderlecht against
Mechelen
Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...
(3 August 2007)
*First red card:
Wim Mennes for
Westerlo against
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
(4 August 2007)
Top goal scorers
''As of May 6, 2008:''
† François Sterchele died on May 8, 2008 in a car crash and thus did not complete the full season.
References
See also
*
2007–08 R.S.C. Anderlecht season
{{DEFAULTSORT:2007-08 Belgian First Division
Belgian First Division A seasons
Belgian
1