Football Club Wezel Sport is a Belgian

football club In association football, a football club (or association football club, alternatively soccer club) is a sports club that acts as an entity through which association football teams organise their sporting activities. The club can exist either as ...

based in Mol,

Antwerp Province Antwerp Province (; ; ; ), between 1815 and 1830 known as Central Brabant ( , , ), is the northernmost Provinces of Belgium, province both of the Flemish Region, also called Flanders, and of Belgium. It borders on the North Brabant province of t ...

. The club's first team play their home games at G. Claesstadion. The club colours, reflected in their crest and kits, are red, white and blue. Formed in 1921, the club has spent most of its existence in the provincial tiers with some extended stints in the national divisions. It has ''matricule'' number 844, and is part of the

Royal Belgian Football Association The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA; ; ; ) is the governing body of football in Belgium. It was a founding member of FIFA in 1904 and UEFA in 1954 and was based in Brussels, not far from the King Baudouin Stadium. Since October 2021, th ...

(KBVB).

History

FC Wezel Sport originated from the factory team of zinc mine

Vieille Montagne Vieille Montagne () was a zinc mine in Kelmis (La Calamine), a town in Belgium between Liège and Aachen. The mine's name is French for "old mountain" or "old mine", and this is also reflected in its German name, (earlier, ). The mine was once ...

in Wezel. Initially playing in the Kempische Voetbalbond, the club joined the

(RBFA) in 1926, receiving the ''matricule'' number 844. The club played on factory grounds until 1935 when a new pitch was built. In 1937, the club reached the national promotion series ( third level), winning their series in their debut season and advancing to the second level in 1938. However, they finished last and were relegated back to the third level in 1939. Despite

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

interruptions, the club remained in the third tier until 1949 when they were relegated to regional leagues. The club quickly returned to the national promotion series in 1950 but faced another relegation in 1952. A new Fourth Division was introduced, allowing the club to continue their stint in the national divisions. They fluctuated between levels, achieving promotions and facing relegations in subsequent years. They played in the third tier under legendary manager

Guy Thys Guy Jean-Leonard Thys (6 December 1922 – 1 August 2003) was a Belgian football manager, mostly known for being the most successful manager in the history of the Belgium national football team as he managed to lead the national side to the ...

until they were relegated in 1969. By 1972, they dropped to the

Belgian Provincial Leagues The Belgian Provincial leagues are the lower leagues for Belgian football. Until 2016, these were at levels 5-8 in the Belgian football league system however as part of the reform an extra level was created causing the provincial leagues to drop ...

, returning briefly to the fourth level in 1978 but relegating again in 1982. In the 1990s, Wezel Sport resurged, returning to the national fourth division in 1993. They consistently finished near the top, achieving promotion to the third level in 1999. However, in 2002, they faced relegation and merged with KSV Mol to form KFC Racing Mol-Wezel, which played in the provincial leagues. KFC Racing Mol-Wezel experienced success, returning to the fourth level in 2004 and advancing to the third level in 2007. Financial difficulties arose, leading to a collaboration with KVSK United Overpelt-Lommel in 2009, though the original registration number 844 remained. A new club, Wezel Sport FC, was formed in 2010 after dissatisfaction among members of the former club, and later merged back with KFC Wezel to form FC Wezel Sport. Former Belgium international

Sepp De Roover Sepp De Roover (; born 12 November 1984) is a retired Belgian footballer who played as a right back and is currently managing Young Reds Antwerp. Career Club career De Roover played as a defender and was born in Geel. He made his debut in pr ...

managed the team between 2020 and 2022, and achieved promotion from the Belgian First Provincial to the

Belgian Division 3 The Belgian Division 3, commonly referred to as simply Derde Afdeling (in Dutch) or Division 3 (in French) is the fifth-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian Division 2. It was created by the Royal Be ...

. In 2022, Wim Mennes took over as head coach, and led the team to a second successive promotion to the fourth-tier

Belgian Division 2 The Belgian Division 2, commonly referred to as simply Tweede Afdeling (in Dutch) or Division 2 (in French) is the fourth-highest division in the Football in Belgium, Belgian football Belgian football league system, league system, one level below ...

in 2023.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wezel Sport Association football clubs established in 1921 Football clubs in Belgium 1921 establishments in Belgium Wezel Sport Mol, Belgium Association football clubs established in 2010 2010 establishments in Belgium