Belgium national rugby league team

Belgium
Badge of Belgium team
Team information
NicknameGolden Lions
Governing bodyRugby League Belgium
RegionEurope
Head coachValu Bentley
CaptainDamien Parée
Home stadiumCentre Sportif de Neder Over Hembeek
IRL ranking54th
Uniforms
First colours
Team results
First game
  28–22 Catalonia 
(Wavre, Belgium; 25 July 2009)
Biggest win
  60–12 Netherlands 
(Rotterdam, Netherlands; 2 May 2015)
Biggest defeat
 Spain 54–10  
(Moncada, Spain; 8 June 2014)

The Belgium national rugby league team represents Belgium in the sport of rugby league football.

History

The success of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup resulted in a popularity surge for the sport around the world. As a result, a number of new nations took up the sport. Belgium followed this trend in 2009.[1] Rugby League Belgium was started with a single franchise, Brabant Wallon Wavre Rugby XIII, and the creation of a national side to participate in the RLEF Euro Med Challenge and other international matches.[2]

Under new President Yves-Michael Kazadi, Belgium were granted observer membership of the Rugby League European Federation in June 2013.[3]

Their first international competition was in the 2009 RLEF Euro Med Challenge against Catalonia and Morocco.[4] In their first international, Belgium defeated Catalonia in front of a home crowd in Wavre. Belgium came in second in the Euro Med Challenge 2009, losing to Morocco 46-12. Following this tournament, the national team took a 4-year hiatus before being granted affiliate RLEF membership and returning to international competition in 2013.

Competitive record

Overall

Team First Played Played Win Draw Loss Points For Points Against Last played
CataloniaCatalonia 2009 1 1 0 0 28 22 2009
Czech RepublicCzech Republic 2015 2 1 0 1 54 26 2015
GermanyGermany 2016 1 1 0 0 26 12 2016
 Ireland 2015 1 0 0 1 0 34 2015
MaltaMalta 2015 1 0 0 1 34 35 2015
MoroccoMorocco 2009 1 0 0 1 12 46 2009
NetherlandsNetherlands 2013 4 4 0 0 150 48 2016
SpainSpain 2014 2 0 0 2 20 66 2014
Total   13 7 0 6 324 289  

Results

Year Date Result Venue City Attendance Competition Report
2009 25 July Belgium def. Catalonia 28-22 Wavre, Belgium 400 Euro-Med Challenge match report
2009 15 August Morocco def. Belgium 46-16 Stade de la Meditérrannée Beziers, France Euro-Med Challenge match report
2013 29 June Belgium def. Netherlands 22-6 Delft, Netherlands International friendly match report
2014 24 May Spain def. Belgium 12-10 Centre Sportif Neder-Over-Heembeek, Belgium International friendly match report
2014 8 June Spain def. Belgium 54-10 Campo de Rugby la Pelosa Moncada, Spain International friendly match report
2014 28 June Belgium def. Netherlands 32-16 Centre Sportif Neder-Over-Heembeek, Belgium Tri-Nation Challenge Cup match report
2015 18 April Belgium def. Czech Republic 50-12 Domaine van Puyenbroek Brussels, Belgium International Friendly match report
2015 2 May Belgium def. Netherlands 60-12 Rotterdam, Netherlands International Friendly match report
2015 21 June Malta def. Belgium 35-34 Headingley Carnegie Stadium Leeds, England International Friendly match report
2015 12 July Ireland def. Belgium 38-0 Carlisle Grounds Bray, Ireland International Friendly match report
2015 3 October Czech Republic def. Belgium 14-4 Tis, Czech Republic International Friendly match report

IRL Rankings

IRL Men's World Rankings
Official rankings as of July 2025
Rank Change Team Pts %
1 Steady  Australia 100
2 Steady  New Zealand 83
3 Steady  England 80
4 Steady  Tonga 62
5 Steady  Samoa 53
6 Steady  Papua New Guinea 51
7 Steady  Fiji 43
8 Steady  France 29
9 Increase 2  Netherlands 22
10 Steady  Cook Islands 22
11 Decrease 2  Serbia 18
12 Steady  Wales 18
13 Steady  Malta 16
14 Increase 1  Greece 14
15 Decrease 1  Ukraine 13
16 Steady  Lebanon 11
17 Steady  Italy 10
18 Steady  Ireland 9
19 Increase 5  United States 8
20 Decrease 1  Jamaica 8
21 Decrease 1  Czech Republic 8
22 Steady  Scotland 7
23 Decrease 2  Chile 7
24 Decrease 1  Philippines 7
25 Steady  Poland 5
26 Increase 1  Germany 5
27 Increase 1  Norway 5
28 Decrease 2  South Africa 5
29 Steady  Brazil 4
30 Steady  Kenya 4
31 Steady  Canada 4
32 Steady  Montenegro 3
33 Steady  North Macedonia 3
34 Increase 22  Morocco 3
35 Decrease 1  Argentina 3
36 Decrease 1  Albania 2
37 Decrease 1  Bulgaria 2
38 Decrease 1  Ghana 2
39 Decrease 1  Nigeria 2
40 Decrease 1  Turkey 1
41 Decrease 1  Cameroon 1
42 Decrease 1  Japan 1
43 Decrease 1  Spain 1
44 Decrease 1  Colombia 1
45 Decrease 1  El Salvador 0
46 Decrease 1  Russia 0
47 Decrease 1  Bosnia and Herzegovina 0
48 Decrease 1  Hong Kong 0
49 Decrease 1  Solomon Islands 0
50 Decrease 1  Vanuatu 0
51 Increase 6  Hungary 0
52 Decrease 1  Latvia 0
53 Decrease 1  Denmark 0
54 Decrease 1   0
55 Decrease 1  Estonia 0
56 Decrease 1  Sweden 0
57 Decrease 7  Niue 0
Complete rankings at
www.internationalrugbyleague.com

References

  1. ^ "BELGIUM RUGBY LEAGUE NATION OVERVIEW". Rugby League Planet. Archived from the original on 13 June 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
  2. ^ "Rugby 13". Rugby League Belgium XIII. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
  3. ^ "RLEF". Archived from the original on 1 January 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
  4. ^ "Catalonia Won 52 to 10 in the Czech Republic". Associació Catalana de Rugby Lliga. 22 June 2009. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
  • [www.belgiumrugby13.com/ Official site of Rugby League Belgium]
  • Belgium: European Rugby League
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