Cercle Brugge K.S.V.

Early years (1899–1919)

Cercle Brugge was founded on 9 April 1899 as Cercle Sportif Brugeois by former students of the Saint Francis Xavier Institute, colloquially known as De Frères (English: The Friars) in Bruges. Originally, the organisation focused on five sports: football, cricket, lawn tennis, running and cycling. Cercle Brugge became a member of the Royal Belgian Football Association in 1900 and were awarded matricule number 12. The same year the club moved from their football field in Sint-Michiels, which was owned by De Frères, to a pitch in Sint-Andries, which offered better facilities and was closer to Bruges' main railway station in 't Zand square. Cercle achieved their first success in the 1902 Henri Fraeys Cup, defeating Olympique Iris Club Lillois (the predecessor of Lille OSC) and US Tourcoing. After winning another few friendly cups, Cercle achieved their first big success, winning the national title in the 1910–11 season. Cercle ended a single point ahead of their main rivals FC Bruges, after their confrontation on the season's last matchday ended in a 1–1 draw. Three years later, Belgian football was devastated by World War I: Cercle lost two first-team players, Louis Baes and Joseph Evrard, and their stadium and facilities sustained heavy damage. Former player Alphonse Six also died.

Rebuilding (1919–1924)

Cercle resumed competitive football in 1919 with an almost completely new team. Louis Saeys was the only player to remain in the…

Note: Please consider that the flags of each club's player not only indicate one's citizenship (jus soli principle), but a nationality as well (jus sanguinis principle).

Most appearances for Cercle Brugge

As of matches played 11 June 2011 and according to www.cerclemuseum.be

Most goals for Cercle Brugge

As of matches played 11 June 2011 and according to www.cerclemuseum.be

Top league goalscorers per season

According to www.cerclemuseum.be. Names in italic means that only partial match history for the season could be retrieved.

Pop Poll d'Echte

This prize is awarded by the club's supporters, in an election held by d'Echte, a Cercle Brugge supporters' association. The election is held in two rounds. At the last home game before the winter break, and at the last home game of the season, supporters can receive a paper and vote for three players. The player with most votes after the second round wins the Pop Poll. The main criteria taken into account are performances on the pitch and the players' love for the team.

1 Alex Querter never received the award, because of his move to city rivals Club Brugge the same season. The organisers of the award concluded that Querter's decision failed to satisfy the criterion of "love for the team".

Domestic

Belgian First Division A: Winners (3): 1910–11, 1926–27, 1929–30 Belgian Second Division: Winners (5): 1937–38, 1970–71, 1978–79, 2002–03, 2017–18 Runners-up (1): 1960–61 Belgian Cup: Winners (2): 1926–27, 1984–85 Runners-up (5): 1912–13, 1985–86, 1995–96, 2009–10, 2012–13 Belgian Supercup: Runners-up (2): 1985, 1996

International

Tournoi Pascal Winners (1): 1914 Runners-up (1): 1924

Individual

African Footballer of the Year Kalusha Bwalya (1988) Belgian First Division top scorer: Josip Weber (1991–92: 26 goals, 1992–93: 31 goals, 1993–94: 31 goals), Kévin Denkey (2023–24: 27 goals) Professional Footballer of the Year (Second Division) Xavier Mercier (2017–18)