Constant Vanden Stock (; 13 June 1914 – 19 April 2008) was a Belgian football player, trainer, football manager and entrepreneur.
Vanden Stock was chairman of
RSC Anderlecht
Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht, commonly abbreviated to RSC Anderlecht (, , ) or RSCA (, , ), is a Belgian professional association football, football club based in Anderlecht, Brussels Capital-Region. Anderlecht plays in the Belgian First Div ...
from 1971 to 1996. Under his reign, Anderlecht won the
national title ten times, 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 ...
seven times, the
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
twice, the
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
once and the
European Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
twice. Constant Vanden Stock was also one of the founders of the introduction of professional football in Belgium. In addition to football, he built the
Belle-Vue brewery into a successful global brand. Vanden Stock managed the family brewery, famous for its
Kriek and
Lambic
Lambic ( , ; ) is a type of beer brewed in the Pajottenland region of Belgium southwest of Brussels since the 13th century. Types of lambic beer include gueuze, kriek lambic, and framboise. Lambic differs from most other beers in that it is Bre ...
, until he sold it to beer giant
Interbrew
Interbrew is subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV is based in Breda, Netherlands. It has one subsidiary, Ambev S.A. of São Paulo, Brazil.
Brands
Interbrew brands have historically included Budweiser, Stella Artois, Boddingtons Brewery, Boddi ...
, now
InBev
InBev () was a brewing company that resulted from the merger between Belgium-based company Interbrew and Brazilian brewer AmBev which took place in 2004. It existed independently until the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch in 2008, which formed Anheu ...
.
Early years and club career
Constant Vanden Stock was born in Anderlecht on 13 June 1914, just before the start of the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, as the son of beer brewer Philémon Vanden Stock and his wife Marie. Ten years later he started playing football for RSC Anderlecht, where he played only 52 league matches in the first team between 1933 and 1938 due to several serious injuries. Afterwards he switched to the neighbors of Union Saint-Gilloise. Five years later he retired as a player and concentrated on expanding Belle-Vue, his father's brewery.
Managerial career
In the early 1950s, Vanden Stock took up his first position at Anderlecht. He became responsible for the recruitment of youth for three years and also took charge of cadets and students. After a short stint as chairman of third division club La Forestoise, he was included in the selection committee of the
RBFA, two years later he became the coach of the
Belgium national football team
The Belgium national football team has represented Belgium in men's international Association football, football since Évence Coppée Trophy, their maiden match in 1904. The squad is under the global jurisdiction of FIFA and is governed in E ...
from 1958 to 1968. Then Anderlecht chairman Albert Roosens wanted to bring him back to Anderlecht, but Vanden Stock preferred a role as technical director at Club Brugge. However, a year later, in 1969, he returned to the capital city of Brussels. Vanden Stock became a board member and vice-chairman of Anderlecht before taking full control as chairman in 1971.
Presidential career
It became the start of a success story, because in the 25 years that Constant Vanden Stock was chairman of Anderlecht, the club managed to add many prizes to its list of achievements. He won the national title ten times, the Belgian Cup seven times, the European Cup Winners Cup twice, the UEFA Cup once and the European Super Cup twice. The successes in the eighties and nineties would be notably achieved with club manager
Michel Verschueren. In addition, the then Émile Versé Stadium was converted between 1983 and 1991 into a new and modern football temple with boxes and business seats, which gave it a new name: the
Constant Vanden Stock Stadium. Vanden Stock's legacy is somewhat tainted, however, by the fact he hired gangsters to bribe the referee
Emilio Guruceta in their
1983-84 UEFA Cup semi-final against
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football.
Founde ...
- Vanden Stock alleged he had lent the referee 1 million
Belgian franc
The Belgian franc was the currency of the Kingdom of Belgium from 1832 until 2002 when the euro was introduced. It was subdivided into 100 subunits, each known as a in Dutch, or in French and German.
History
The ''gulden'' (guilder) of 20 ''st ...
s because of the referee's financial issues.
In 1996, Vanden Stock transferred the chairmanship to his son
Roger
Roger is a masculine given name, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages">Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") ...
, although the then 82-year-old Constant remained associated with the club as honorary chairman. In 2005, the former chairman's health began to deteriorate, resulting in balance disorders and a heart attack. Vanden Stock died on 19 April 2008 after a long illness, just before the centenary of RSC Anderlecht. Constant Vanden Stock was 93 years old.
Honours
With Vanden Stock as president, Anderlecht won the following trophies:
*
Belgian First Division
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– ...
:
1971–72,
1973–74,
1980–81,
1984–85,
1985–86,
1986–87,
1990–91,
1992–93,
1993–94,
1994–95
*
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 ...
:
1971–72,
1972–73,
1974–75,
1975–76, 1988–89, 1989–90,
1993–94
*
Belgian League Cup: 1973, 1974
*
Belgian Supercup: 1985, 1987, 1993
*
European Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
:
1975–76,
1977–78; runners-up
1976–77,
1989–90
*
European Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
:
1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
,
1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...
*
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
:
1982–83; runners-up
1983–84
*
Amsterdam Tournament
The Amsterdam Tournament () was a pre-season association football competition, held in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The competition was hosted by Eredivisie club AFC Ajax, Ajax at the Amsterdam Arena. It was inaugurated in 1975 as the Amsterdam 700 T ...
: 1976
*
Tournoi de Paris: 1977
*
Jules Pappaert Cup: 1977, 1983, 1985
*
Belgian Sports Merit Award: 1978
*
Bruges Matins: 1985, 1988
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vanden Stock, Constant
1914 births
2008 deaths
Belgian men's footballers
R.S.C. Anderlecht players
Belgian football managers
Belgium national football team managers
Men's association football defenders
20th-century Belgian sportsmen