Belgium national under-21 football team
National under-21 association football team representing Belgium
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The Belgium national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Belgium and is controlled by the Belgian Football Association. The team competes in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, held every two years. Their biggest successes were winning the 2007–09 International Challenge Trophy and reaching the European Championship semi-finals in 2007 in the Netherlands. Thanks to the latter achievement, Belgium qualified for the football tournament at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Their current home stadium is Den Dreef in Leuven.
Nickname(s)Jonge duivels (Young demons)
Jeunes diables (Little devils)
Junge Teufels (Young Devils)
Jeunes diables (Little devils)
Junge Teufels (Young Devils)
AssociationRoyal Belgian Football Association
Head coachGill Swerts
| |||
| Nickname(s) | Jonge duivels (Young demons) Jeunes diables (Little devils) Junge Teufels (Young Devils) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Royal Belgian Football Association | ||
| Head coach | Gill Swerts | ||
| Captain | Aster Vranckx | ||
| Most caps | Jean-François Gillet (36) | ||
| Top scorer | Loïs Openda (13) | ||
| Home stadium | Den Dreef | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 France 1–1 Belgium  (Amiens, France; 3 September 1976) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Belgium 8–0 Luxembourg  (Mechelen, Belgium; 3 June 2007) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Czech Republic 7–0 Belgium (Prague, Czech Republic; 24 April 2001) | |||
| UEFA U-21 Championship | |||
| Appearances | 4 (first in 2002) | ||
| Best result | Semi-finals (2007) | ||
UEFA U-21 Championship Record
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 1978 | Did not qualify | ||||||
| 1980 | |||||||
| 1982 | |||||||
| 1984 | |||||||
| 1986 | |||||||
| 1988 | |||||||
| 1990 | |||||||
| 1992 | |||||||
 1994 | |||||||
 1996 | |||||||
 1998 | |||||||
 2000 | |||||||
 2002 | Group stage | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
 2004 | Did not qualify | ||||||
 2006 | |||||||
 2007 | Semi-finals | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
 2009 | Did not qualify | ||||||
 2011 | |||||||
 2013 | |||||||
| 2015 | |||||||
 2017 | |||||||
  2019 | Group stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 8 |
  2021 | Did not qualify | ||||||
 2023 | Group stage | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 2025 | Did not qualify | ||||||
  2027 | ongoing | ||||||
Current squad
The following players were called up for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification match against Austria on 27 March 2026 and the international friendly against the Netherlands on 30 March 2026.[1]
Caps and goals correct as of 30 March, against Netherlands. Names in bold denote players who have been capped for the senior team.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Mike Penders | 15 January 2005 | 4 | 0 | Strasbourg |
| 12 | GK | Martin Delavallée | 18 March 2004 | 1 | 0 | Charleroi |
| 21 | GK | Kjell Peersman | 21 May 2004 | 2 | 0 | Gent |
| 2 | DF | Kyriani Sabbe | 26 January 2005 | 4 | 0 | Club Brugge |
| 3 | DF | Jorne Spileers | 21 January 2005 | 19 | 0 | Club Brugge |
| 4 | DF | Matte Smets | 4 January 2004 | 8 | 1 | Genk |
| 5 | DF | Matteo Dams | 9 March 2004 | 5 | 0 |  Al-Ahli |
| 14 | DF | Jorthy Mokio | 29 February 2008 | 6 | 2 | Ajax |
| 16 | DF | Denzel De Roeve | 10 August 2004 | 2 | 0 |  Brann |
| 22 | DF | Josue Kongolo | 13 April 2006 | 1 | 0 | Genk |
| 6 | MF | Mathis Servais | 23 November 2004 | 6 | 0 | Mechelen |
| 8 | MF | Joseph Nonge | 15 May 2005 | 4 | 0 |  Kocaelispor |
| 11 | MF | Nicolas Verkooijen | 5 December 2006 | 1 | 0 | PSV Eindhoven |
| 15 | MF | Arthur Piedfort | 1 February 2005 | 3 | 0 | Westerlo |
| 18 | MF | Arthur Vermeeren | 7 February 2005 | 11 | 1 | Marseille |
| 23 | MF | Stanis Idumbo | 29 June 2005 | 8 | 1 | Monaco[a] |
| 7 | FW | Julien Duranville | 5 May 2006 | 5 | 1 | Basel |
| 9 | FW | Norman Bassette | 9 November 2004 | 10 | 6 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern |
| 10 | FW | Samuel Mbangula | 16 January 2004 | 12 | 0 | Werder Bremen |
| 17 | FW | Romeo Vermant | 24 January 2004 | 12 | 3 | Club Brugge |
| 19 | FW | Robin Mirisola | 8 December 2006 | 2 | 0 | Genk |
| 20 | FW | Noah Adedeji-Sternberg | 19 June 2005 | 6 | 1 | Genk |
Recent call-ups
The following players have been called up and remain eligible.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Matt Lendfers | 10 March 2006 | 1 | 0 | Sint-Truiden |
v.  Kazakhstan, 10 September 2024 |
| DF | Lucas Noubi | 15 January 2005 | 4 | 0 | Deportivo La Coruña |
v.  Austria, 27 March 2026 |
| DF | Nolan Martens | 7 July 2004 | 2 | 0 | De Graafschap |
v. Austria, 14 November 2025 |
| DF | Vincent Burlet | 23 September 2005 | 2 | 0 | Boulogne |
v.  Belarus, 4 September 2025 |
| DF | Amando Lapage | 8 November 2004 | 2 | 0 | Westerlo |
v.  Andorra, 23 March 2025 |
| DF | Bram Lagae | 14 January 2004 | 2 | 0 | Dunkerque |
v. Andorra, 23 March 2025 |
| DF | Semm Renders | 17 December 2007 | 2 | 0 | Antwerp |
v. Andorra, 23 March 2025 |
| DF | Richie Sagrado | 30 January 2004 | 1 | 0 | Venezia |
v. Czech Republic, 19 November 2024 |
| MF | Thomas Claes | 26 March 2004 | 0 | 0 | Zulte Waregem |
v. Austria, 14 November 2025 |
| MF | Kamiel Van de Perre | 12 February 2004 | 4 | 0 | Union SG |
v. Austria, 14 November 2025 |
| MF | Mathias Delorge | 31 July 2004 | 8 | 0 | Gent |
v. Austria, 14 November 2025 |
| MF | Tristan Degreef | 19 January 2005 | 1 | 0 | Anderlecht |
v. Denmark, 14 October 2025 |
| MF | Diego Moreira | 6 August 2004 | 2 | 1 | Strasbourg |
v. Denmark, 14 October 2025 |
| MF | Chris Lokesa | 7 November 2004 | 1 | 0 | Beveren |
v. Kazakhstan, 10 September 2024 |
| MF | Pierre Dwomoh | 21 June 2004 | 1 | 1 |  Watford |
v.  Morocco, 4 June 2024 |
| MF | Noah Mbamba | 5 January 2005 | 1 | 0 | Dender |
v. Spain, 26 March 2024 |
| MF | Roméo Lavia | 6 January 2004 | 1 | 0 | Chelsea |
v. Czech Republic, 23 March 2023 |
| FW | Benjamin Pauwels | 29 October 2004 | 2 | 1 | Voldendam |
v. Austria, 14 November 2025 |
| FW | Lucas Stassin | 29 November 2004 | 12 | 5 | Saint-Étienne |
v. Austria, 14 November 2025 |
| FW | Kaye Furo | 6 February 2007 | 1 | 0 | Brentford |
v. Belarus, 4 September 2025 |
| FW | Mika Godts | 7 June 2005 | 0 | 0 | Ajax |
v.  Scotland, 11 October 2024 |
| FW | Malick Fofana | 31 March 2005 | 9 | 0 | Lyon |
v. Kazakhstan, 10 September 2024 |
Overage players in Olympic Games
| Tournament | Player 1 | Player 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Sepp De Roover (DF) | Maarten Martens (MF) |
Statistics
Most capped players
Highlighted names denote a player still playing or available for selection.
| # | Name | Career | Caps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jean-François Gillet | 1996–2002 | 36 | 0 |
| 2 | Thomas Chatelle | 1999–2003 | 28 | 4 |
| Maarten Martens | 2003–2007 | 28 | 7 | |
| 4 | Faris Haroun | 2004–2008 | 24 | 4 |
| Hugo Siquet | 2021–2024 | 24 | 0 | |
| 6 | Siebe Schrijvers | 2016–2019 | 23 | 4 |
| 7 | Tom De Mul | 2004–2008 | 21 | 4 |
| Wout Faes | 2017–2020 | 21 | 0 | |
| Gunter Van Handenhoven | 1997–1999 | 21 | 1 | |
| 10 | Jonathan Blondel | 2002–2007 | 20 | 4 |
| Éric Deflandre | 1992–1995 | 20 | 1 |
Last updated: 22 June 2019
Source: Belgian Football Federation
Top goalscorers
Highlighted names denote a player still playing or available for selection.
| # | Player | Career | Goals | Caps | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Loïs Openda | 2019–2023 | 13 | 18 | 0.72 |
| 2 | Kevin Vandenbergh | 2003–2005 | 12 | 14 | 0.86 |
| 3 | Cédric Roussel | 1997–1999 | 10 | 12 | 0.83 |
| 4 | Wesley Sonck | 1997–1999 | 8 | 11 | 0.73 |
| 5 | Michy Batshuayi | 2012–2014 | 7 | 13 | 0.54 |
| Landry Dimata | 2016–2018 | 7 | 12 | 0.58 | |
| Maarten Martens | 2003–2007 | 7 | 28 | 0.25 | |
| Ronny Martens | 1978–1984 | 7 | 14 | 0.5 | |
| Sven Vermant | 1993–1995 | 7 | 8 | 0.88 | |
| Jeanvion Yulu-Matondo | 2005–2008 | 7 | 17 | 0.41 |
Last updated: 20 March 2019
Source: Belgian Football Federation
Honours
See also
Notes
- Monaco is a Monégasque club playing in the French football league system.