July 27 – Mark van Bommel has been named the new manager of Belgium, succeeding Rudi Garcia who led the team to the last eight of the 2026 World Cup.
The Dutchman signed a two-year contract until Euro 2028. He returns to Belgium following a stint with Antwerp where he led the club to the league and cup double in 2023.
“Belgium possesses outstanding players and enormous potential,” said Van Bommel. “Together with my technical staff, we want to build a team that is disciplined, ambitious, and brave enough to compete with the very best. Success is never guaranteed, but hard work, honesty, and dedication are.”
Van Bommel enjoyed success with Antwerp in Belgium, but his managerial track record has been mixed with average stints at both PSV Eindhoven and Wolfsburg.
As a player, he featured for FC Barcelona, Bayern München and AC Milan and won 79 caps for the Netherlands.
Boudewijn Zenden and Reinier Robbemond will serve on Van Bommel’s backroom staff.
Van Bommel’s arrival comes weeks after Spain eliminated Belgium from the World Cup in a tight quarterfinal, the unexpected culmination of a wobbly campaign for the Red Devils.
They had laboured in the group stages, but clawed their way back against Senegal to engineer an improbable 3-2 in the round of 32 before defeating the United States 4-1 in a match overshadowed by the review of Folarin Balogun’s suspension.
The Belgian FA issued various statements, but came under fire for not taking a stronger stance against the political interference.
Belgian FA president Pascale Van Damme refused to talk to the media. A FIFA Council member, she earns $250,000 from the role and attended the FIFA reception at Trump Tower on the eve of the World Cup final.
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