Belgian Second Amateur Division

Last updated
Belgian Second Amateur Division
Founded2016
CountryBelgium
Confederation UEFA
Number of teams48
Level on pyramid4
Promotion to Belgian First Amateur Division
Relegation to Belgian Third Amateur Division
Domestic cup(s) Belgian Cup
Current champions Knokke (A), Tienen (B) and Francs Borains (C)
(2019–20)
Soccerball current event.svg 2019–20 Belgian Second Amateur Division

The Belgian Second Amateur Division is the fourth-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian First Amateur Division. It was created by the Royal Belgian Football Association in 2016, replacing the Belgian Third Division. The division consists of three separate leagues with 16 teams each, two of these leagues consist of teams playing with a license from the Voetbalfederatie Vlaanderen (VFV, the Dutch speaking wing of the RBFA) and one with teams with a license from the Association des Clubs Francophones de Football (ACFF, the French speaking wing of the RBFA).

Contents

History

The Belgian Second Amateur Division was created in 2016 as successor of the Belgian Third Division following an overhaul of the Belgian football league system which saw the number of professional clubs reduced to 24. As a result, from the third level and below only amateur clubs remain. [1] The two remaining levels above the Belgian Provincial leagues were reformed into three amateur levels, namely the Belgian First Amateur Division, the Belgian Second Amateur Division and the Belgian Third Amateur Division. As a result, the Belgian Provincial leagues dropped to the sixth level of the league system.

Competition format

In each of the three separate leagues, the season is a regular round-robin tournament with 16 teams. The winners of each league are directly promoted to the Belgian First Amateur Division. Besides these three promoting teams, one additional promotion is possible: for this twelve other teams are in contention as four teams in each league qualify for the end of season playoffs. The eight teams from the VFV side are grouped together to compete in a VFV playoff for two spots in the playoff final, the four teams from ACFF side playoff for one spot. The two VFV winners and the ACFF winner are joined by the 13th placed team from the Belgian First Amateur Division in the playoff final, with the winner of those four taking the final promotion spot (in case the team from the Belgian First Amateur Division wins, this team remains at that level and no extra team from the Belgian Second Amateur Division is promoted besides the three league winners).

Regarding relegation, on ACFF side the bottom three teams are relegated to the Belgian Third Amateur Division, while on VFV side only the bottom two teams from each league are relegated. Additionally, based on the language group of the directly relegating teams from the Belgian First Amateur Division each season, it is possible that there will be up to three extra relegations on each side. On ACFF side this just means that any additional required relegations will happen from bottom upwards, starting with the 13th finisher, then 12th finisher and so on. On VFV side, a relegation playoff is organised each season between the two teams finishing 14th, with the losing team first in line to drop in case needed, followed by the winner. If an additional relegation would be necessary, the 13th placed teams would need to playoff as well. [2]

Past winners

SeasonDivision A winner (VFV)Division B winner (VFV)Division C winner (ACFF)Promotion play-off winner
2016–17 Knokke Berchem Sport Châtelet Aalst
2017–18 Rupel Boom Tessenderlo RWDM47 RFC Liège
2018–19 Sint-Eloois-Winkel Patro Eisden Maasmechelen La Louvière Centre Visé
2019–20 Knokke Tienen Francs Borains not held due to coronavirus pandemic

Related Research Articles

The playoffs, play-offs, postseason and/or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be either a single game, a series of games, or a tournament, and may use a single-elimination system or one of several other different playoff formats. Playoff, in regard to international fixtures, is to qualify or progress to the next round of a competition or tournament.

The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in England, with five teams from Wales, one from Guernsey and one from Jersey also competing. The system has a hierarchical format with promotion and relegation between leagues at different levels, allowing even the smallest club the theoretical possibility of ultimately rising to the very top of the system. There are more than 140 individual leagues, containing more than 480 divisions.

The Belgian Fourth Division was the lowest nationwide division in Belgian football. The division was split into four separate leagues, A, B, C and D. The team with the most points in the four leagues together was declared the overall winner. If several league winners had the same number of points, the one with the most wins was declared champion, or if that was still tied, then the one with the best goal average was declared champion. Finally, if two teams were still equal, a single match was played on a neutral ground to determine the team to be added to the palmares. For 2016–17 the Belgian Fourth Division was replaced by the Belgian Third Amateur Division.

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 to levels 6-9. The provincial leagues are divided into 9 regional league systems. Each league system is itself divided into 4 levels. The number of leagues at each level depends on the province, but every province must have only one league at the top level. The best teams from the 9 first divisions can promote to the Belgian Third Amateur Division, the fifth and lowest level in the national leagues.

The Romanian football league system, also known as the football pyramid, refers to the system in Romanian club football that consists of several football leagues bound together hierarchically by promotion and relegation. The first three leagues are organized at a national level and consist of fully professional teams. Lower divisions are organized at county levels, with each county's football association controlling its respective leagues.

The following article is a summary of the 2015–16 football season in Belgium, which is the 113th season of competitive football in the country and runs from July 2015 until June 2016.

The 2015–16 season of the Belgian Third Divisions is the 89th season of the third-tier football league in Belgium, since it was established in 1926.

Belgian First Division B second level of mens association football in Belgium

The Belgian First Division B is the second-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian First Division A. It was created by the Royal Belgian Football Association in 2016, replacing the Belgian Second Division.

The Belgian First Amateur Division is the third-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian First Division B. It was created by the Royal Belgian Football Association in 2016, coming in at the third level and pushing all divisions one level down.

The Belgian Third Amateur Division is the fifth-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian Second Amateur Division. It was created by the Royal Belgian Football Association in 2016 as a new layer at the fifth level of the league system. The division consists of four separate leagues with 16 teams each, two of these leagues consist of teams playing with a license from the Voetbalfederatie Vlaanderen and two with teams with a license from the Association des Clubs Francophones de Football.

The 2016–17 Belgian Second Amateur Division is the inaugural season of the division in its current format, as it replaces the former Belgian Third Division and is now placed at the fourth-tier of football in Belgium.

The 2017–18 Belgian Third Amateur Division is the second season of the division in its current format, replacing the former Belgian Fourth Division.

The 2017–18 Belgian First Amateur Division was the second season of the third-tier football league in Belgium, as it was established in 2016. The fixtures were announced near the end of June 2017.

The 2016–17 Belgian Third Amateur Division was the inaugural season of the division in its current format, replacing the former Belgian Fourth Division and now placed at the fifth-tier of football in Belgium.

The 2017–18 Belgian Second Amateur Division is the second season of the division in its current format, placed at the fourth-tier of football in Belgium.

The 2018–19 Belgian Second Amateur Division is the third season of the division in its current format, placed at the fourth-tier of football in Belgium.

The 2018–19 Belgian Third Amateur Division is the third season of the division in its current format, replacing the former Belgian Fourth Division.

The following article is a summary of the 2017–18 football season in Belgium, which is the 1145th season of competitive football in the country and runs from July 2017 until June 2018.

The 2019–20 Belgian Second Amateur Division was the fourth season of the division in its current format, placed at the fourth-tier of football in Belgium. Mid-March all matches were temporarily postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium, only to be canceled permanently two weeks later, with the standing as of March 12th counting as final. As a result, Knokke, Tienen and Francs Borains were crowned champions in their respective league and were each promoted to the 2020–21 Belgian First Amateur Division.

The 2019–20 Belgian Third Amateur Division was the fourth season of the division in its current format. Mid-March all matches were temporarily postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium, only to be canceled permanently two weeks later, with the standing as of March 12th counting as final. As a result, Knokke, Tienen and Francs Borains were crowned champions in their respective league and were each promoted to the 2020–21 Belgian Second Amateur Division.

References

  1. "La réforme du championnat approuvée: une grande lessive se prépare en D2 (INFOGRAPHIE)" (in French). dh.be. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  2. "Bondsreglement" (PDF) (in Dutch). Royal Belgian Football Association. 14 April 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2016.