Waseige gives Belgium a boost

The avuncular Robert Waseige has proved a highly popular national coach of Belgium since taking the reins in August 1999. He is credited with forging an admirable spirit within the Red Devils’ ranks after the turbulent reign of Georges Leekens.

EURO 2000™ disappointment
The Waseige era began with a rollercoaster 5-5 friendly draw with Lowlands rivals the Netherlands. There have been plenty of peaks and troughs since, with the biggest disappointment being the side’s failure to progress beyond the group stages of EURO 2000™ on home soil - the first time the host nation of the European Championships had fallen at the first hurdle. However Waseige recovered from this crushing blow and succeeded in leading Belgium to the FIFA World Cup finals for an unprecedented sixth successive time.

Unity, grit and discipline
Waseige, the first Francophone to coach Belgium, has adhered to the philosophies that have served his country so well for the past two decades. “Successful Belgian teams from the past were built on their great unity, grit, discipline and self-sacrifice,” he claimed and he has moulded Belgium in this image.

Playing career
Waseige was born on 26 August 1939 in Rocourt, Liège. He played for his hometown side FC Liège in the Belgian First Division from 1959 until 1963, helping the club finish runners-up in the league in 1960. He later played for Racing White from 1963 until 1970, winning the second division title in 1965, before finishing his playing career in the third division with KFC Winterslag in 1971. He then took over as Winterslag coach, leading the side to the top flight in the space of three years. He moved on to R. Standard de Liège for three seasons from 1976 until 1979 before returning to Winterslag from 1979 to 1981.

Fortunes transformed
Waseige also had spells as coach of KSC Lokeren and FC Liège, with whom he won the Belgian Cup in 1990, before moving to R. Charleroi SC and R. Standard de Liège, who he guided to second in the league in 1995. He subsequently had a truncated spell in charge of Sporting Clube de Portugal and two seasons back at Charleroi before succeeding Georges Leekens as Belgium coach. Initially he transformed the country’s fortunes, leading them to victories over Morocco, Norway and Italy, and draws with the Netherlands and Portugal ahead of EURO 2000™.

Reward for loyalty
Belgium began the tournament promisingly by recording a 2-1 victory over Sweden, but were eliminated after two consecutive 2-0 defeats against Italy and Turkey. However, it is a measure of the high esteem with which Waseige is regarded that his position was not called into question. The Belgian Football Association (URBSFA) also stood by Waseige when he underwent emergency heart bypass surgery in spring 2001. The URBSFA were rewarded for their loyalty when Waseige led the Red Devils to the 2002 World Cup finals in Korea/Japan after finishing second in European qualifying group six and beating the Czech Republic in a two-legged play-off. This feat meant that Belgium became the first team in football history to qualify for six successive World Cups without the benefit of automatic qualifications as either hosts or tournament winners.