Alongside the King Baudouin Stadium, Lotto Park is one of the largest sporting venues in the Brussels-Capital Region, with a capacity of 22,000. Since its inauguration in 1917, this splendid stadium has been home to football club RSC Anderlecht, the most decorated club in Belgium. It is located in Astrid Park, a 15-hectare slice of greenery and relaxation in the heart of the commune of Anderlecht. The site has already hosted countless thrilling encounters, including some magnificent European Cup fixtures, with Anderlecht crowned European champions in the 1970s and 1980s!

2 avenue Théo Verbeeck, Anderlecht

Located on the edge of the beautiful Duden Park, the Joseph Mariën Stadium has the privileged position of being nestled within a delightful green setting. A particular feature is that it forms part of the Royal Donation, which leases it out. For over 100 years, Royale Union Saint-Gilloise – one of Brussels’ historic clubs, crowned Belgian champions 12 times – has played on this splendid pitch, in an atmosphere that is both convivial and electrifying! Its supporters, known for their exemplary behaviour, have a reputation for attracting a mix of groundhoppers – enthusiasts who love visiting stadiums – and hipsters. This remarkable stadium is also famed for its listed facade and stunning Art Deco stained glass windows.

223 chaussée de Bruxelles, Forest

Built in the 1950s and flanked by an athletics track, this stadium is the perfect spot for nostalgia lovers, with its old, abandoned stands now partly reclaimed by vegetation… Once home to La Forestoise, a football club founded in 1909 that played five seasons in Belgium’s top division, the site very nearly became the home of the Red Devils, before the Heysel complex was chosen instead. Bertelson Stadium served only as a training ground for the national team. If you happen to be nearby, note that Forest National – the city’s famous concert venue – is just next door.

46 avenue du Globe, Forest

Situated in the commune of Uccle, in the south of Brussels, this stadium is historic in more ways than one. Built in 1902, it became home to Racing Club de Bruxelles, founded in 1890 as an athletics club, with a football section added in 1894 – at the time one of Belgium’s strongest sides. The stand you can still see is truly exceptional: constructed in reinforced concrete, a pioneering technique at the start of the 20th century, it is one of the very first covered stands in Europe (beyond the earlier wooden ones) and is probably the only one to remain intact.

Did you know that the first ever match between Belgium and France was played on this pitch? The encounter ended in a 3-3 draw, but what is most remembered is that FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) was founded just weeks later, sparked by the enthusiasm generated by the match. Today, the site is home to the Racing Club de Bruxelles hockey club.

125 avenue des Chênes, Uccle

Less well-known in football circles, the Stade des Trois Tilleuls is somewhat hidden, yet cherished by the Watermael-Boitsfort community and by stadium enthusiasts. Built between 1946 and 1948, it was conceived at the time for Royal Racing Club de Bruxelles as a vast football temple, with stands resembling an ancient theatre and a capacity of 40,000 spectators – something long since banned for safety reasons. Even so, this stadium remains today the second largest in Belgium, right after King Baudouin Stadium.

If you visit, you will see how the passage of time has weathered the stands… and you may also spot the large lime tree, likely a century old, standing like a spectator within the terrace! It is a reminder of a landowner who agreed to sell the plot for the stadium only on the condition that the tree be preserved. Both the tree and the stand are listed monuments.

1a avenue des Nymphes, Watermael-Boitsfort

This impressive sports complex, inaugurated in 1956, literally immerses you in the world of sport with its 22 hectares of facilities, including six adjoining football pitches, an athletics track and, of course, the magnificent Aero-Elascon stand. It was constructed using what was an innovative technique at the time, allowing a roof to be raised without the use of structural columns – one of the few surviving examples in the Brussels-Capital Region.

In footballing terms, the site is renowned for having hosted Racing White, one of the predecessors of Racing White Daring Molenbeek (RWDM), before the club moved to the commune of Molenbeek-Saint-Jean and the Machtens Stadium (see below).

Did you know that the athletics track was the preferred training ground of the famous Brussels family of athletes the Borlées? Or that Pope John Paul II held a ceremony here for the city’s Polish community in 1985, during his visit to Belgium?

1 chemin du Struykbeken, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert 

In the upper part of Josaphat Park, you’ll find the Stade Communal du Crossing, an integral part of Brussels’ sporting heritage since its inauguration in 1914. Today, almost nothing remains of the original facilities, which were gradually replaced over time. The stadium was completely modernised in 2010–2011, restoring it to its full splendour. At the end of the 20th century, the site had fallen into such disrepair that it narrowly escaped demolition. That did not stop the great Bob Dylan from performing there in 1984, in mudbath-like conditions!

The stadium was home to Royal Crossing Club de Schaerbeek, which, although no longer among the elite today, still ranks as Brussels’ fourth club, behind Union, Anderlecht and RWDM. It is, therefore, no coincidence that renowned players such as Georges Leekens or Joseph Masopust – Ballon d’Or winner in 1962 – once played there.

22 avenue du Suffrage Universel, Schaerbeek

Without doubt one of the most iconic stadiums in Brussels, the Edmond Machtens Stadium has a capacity of 12,266. It is currently home to Racing White Daring Molenbeek (RWDM), a club in Belgium’s second division (D1B), which has had a long history of restructurings, mergers and name changes.

This legendary stadium, although it has undergone many transformations and retains few traces of its original 1920 features, has been the scene of countless Brussels derbies, often played in a heated atmosphere! Most famously the so-called Zwanze derbies, between Daring Club de Bruxelles – RWDM’s predecessor – and Union Saint-Gilloise, a rivalry that inspired the celebrated Belgian play Bossemans et Coppenolle. It has also witnessed fierce encounters between Anderlecht and RWDM.

RWDM, renowned for the passion of its supporters, were crowned Belgian champions in 1975.

61 rue Charles Malis, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean