Football in Belgium Football in Belgium Football, a sport which has been played in Belgium since the end of the 19th century, is the country's most popular sport. The national association was founded in 1895 with the intention of bringing some order and organization to the sport. The first match of the Belgium national team was played on 1 May 1904, a 3–3 draw against France. Traditionally, the clubs Anderlecht, Club Brugge and Standard Liège are the three most dominant domestic teams, all of them also having played and/or won one or more European Cup final(s). Save for Standard Liège and Charleroi, most
Arsenal F.C. in European football clubs of Europe was made by Swiss club FC Servette. Founded in 1930, the Coupe des Nations featured clubs of ten major European football leagues and was deemed a success. Due to financial reasons, the competition was abandoned. In December 1954, French sports magazine "L'Equipe" published an article by journalist and former professional footballer Gabriel Hanot, who proposed the introduction of a European club competition. He initially suggested that each country should nominate a club to play in a mid-week European league; many clubs favoured a cup competition, which required less matches to play. A year later, "L'Equipe" sent out