Theophilus Verbeeck (17 July 1889, in

Berchem Berchem () is a southern district of the municipality and city of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. Berchem is located along the old ''Grote Steenweg'' (Dutch for 'Big Paved Road') that has connected Brussels to Antwerp for several centur ...

– 2 August 1951, in Antwerp) was a former football player and chairman, best known as chairman of

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

club

R.S.C. Anderlecht Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht, usually known as Anderlecht (, , ) or RSCA (, , ), is a Belgian professional football club based in Anderlecht, Brussels Capital-Region. Anderlecht plays in the Belgian First Division A and is the most successful B ...

(1911–1951). Théo Verbeeck first played for

Daring Club de Bruxelles Royal Daring Club Molenbeek was a football team from the city of Brussels, Belgium until 1973. It was created in 1895 as Daring Club de Bruxelles and was the second club to register to the Belgian Football Association (it thus received the ...

since there was no club in Anderlecht at the time, and then moved to SC Anderlechtois in 1908, when the club was founded. In 1911, he became also the chairman of the club at 23 years. Six years later Théo Verbeeck decided that his club would move to

Astrid Park Astrid Park (french: Parc Astrid, nl, Astridpark) is an urban public park in the municipality of Anderlecht in Brussels, Belgium. The park was inaugurated on 13 August 1911 and was named the / ("Meir Park") until 1935, when the mayor of Anderl ...

Anderlecht Anderlecht (, ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, and Saint-Gilles, as well as th ...

where they still play now. In 1922 the club first reached the top level of Belgian football. In 1942, Théo Verbeeck signed

Jef Mermans Joseph Mermans (16 February 1922 in Merksem – 20 January 1996 in Wildert), usually referred to as Jef Mermans (nicknamed "The Bomber") was a football striker from Belgium, who played much of his career at Anderlecht, with whom he won seven ...

, a striker with whom SC Anderlechtois would win their first Belgian title, in 1951. Days after the first title of his club, Théo Verbeeck died. He was replaced by

Albert Roosens Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...

at the head of the club. The street where the

Constant Vanden Stock Stadium The Constant Vanden Stock Stadium (french: Stade Constant Vanden Stock, nl, Constant Vanden Stockstadion), also known as the Lotto Park for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in the municipality of Anderlecht in Brussels, Belgium. It is ...

is located was renamed after Théo Verbeeck on 2 August 1951.

References

Anderlecht-online
R.S.C. Anderlecht players Belgian men's footballers 1951 deaths People from Berchem 1889 births Footballers from Antwerp Men's association football players not categorized by position {{Belgium-footy-bio-stub