Men's Belgian Hockey League
The Men's Belgian Hockey League is a field hockey league organised by the Royal Belgian Hockey Association. The league was established in 1919 as the Division 1. Between the 2006–07 and the 2015–16 seasons it was known as the Honor Division. Since 2016–17 it has been sponsored by Audi and as it also known as the Audi Hockey League.
| Sport | Field hockey |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1919 |
| Inaugural season | 1919–20 |
| Administrator | Royal Belgian Hockey Association |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country | Belgium |
| Confederation | EHF (Europe) |
| Most recent champion(s) | Léopold (28th title) (2018–19) |
| Most titles | Léopold (28 titles) |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | National 1 |
| International cup(s) | Euro Hockey League |
Sixteen different clubs have won the league with a 28 times record for Léopold. The current champion is Léopold, having won the 2018–19 by defeating Beerschot in the championship final.[1]
Format
The season starts in August or September of each year and is interrupted by the indoor hockey season from November to February. The league is played by twelve teams grouped in two pools of six (Pool A and Pool B) based on the previous season's ranking. The teams of the same pool compete 2 times and face the teams of the other pool once. The first four of each pool are qualified for the play-offs and the last two of each pool play the play-downs.
The quarter-finals of the play-offs are played in best-of-3 (two winning rounds)[2] according to the following scheme:
- Series 1: 1A/4B
- Series 2: 2B/3A
- Series 3: 1B/4A
- Series 4: 2A/3B
The semi-finals are played in a two-legged tie between the winners of series 1 and 2 and the winners of series 3 and 4. The winners qualify for the championship final where the two teams compete in a two-legged tie to decide who will be crowned Belgian champion. Concerning relegation, the last two teams of each pool during the first part form a new play-downs pool. All the teams meet twice and at the end the last two teams of this new pool are relegated in National 1.
Champions
By year
Division 1
| No. | Season | Champion[3] |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | 1919-1920 | Brussels Hockey Lawn Tennis Club (1) |
| 02 | 1920-1921 | La Gantoise Hockey Club (1) |
| 03 | 1921-1922 | Royal Léopold Club (1) |
| 04 | 1922-1923 | Royal Léopold Club (2) |
| 05 | 1923-1924 | Royal Racing Club Bruxelles (1) |
| 06 | 1924-1925 | Royal Beerschot THC (1) |
| 07 | 1925-1926 | La Rasante HC (1) |
| 08 | 1926-1927 | Royal Beerschot THC (2) |
| 09 | 1927-1928 | Royal Léopold Club (3) |
| 10 | 1928-1929 | La Rasante HC (2) |
| 11 | 1929-1930 | La Rasante HC (3) |
| 12 | 1930-1931 | La Rasante HC (4) |
| 13 | 1931-1932 | Royal Beerschot THC (3) |
| 14 | 1932-1933 | Royal Racing Club Bruxelles (2) |
| 15 | 1933-1934 | Royal Beerschot THC (4) |
| 16 | 1934-1935 | Royal Racing Club Bruxelles (3) |
| 17 | 1935-1936 | Royal Racing Club Bruxelles (4) |
| 18 | 1936-1937 | La Rasante HC (5) |
| 19 | 1937-1938 | La Rasante HC (6) |
| 20 | 1938-1939 | Royal Léopold Club (4) |
| 21 | 1939-1940 | La Rasante HC (7) |
| 22 | 1940-1941 | Royal Racing Club Bruxelles (5) |
| 23 | 1941-1942 | Royal Beerschot THC (5) |
| 24 | 1942-1943 | La Rasante HC (8) |
| 25 | 1943-1944 | Royal Beerschot THC (6) |
| 26 | 1944-1945 | La Rasante HC (9) |
| 27 | 1945-1946 | Royal Daring Hockey Club (1) |
| 28 | 1946-1947 | Royal Daring Hockey Club (2) |
| 29 | 1947-1948 | Royal Daring Hockey Club (3) |
| 30 | 1948-1949 | Royal Daring Hockey Club (4) |
| 31 | 1949-1950 | Royal Victory Hockey Club (1) |
| 32 | 1950-1951 | Royal Léopold Club (5) |
| 33 | 1951-1952 | Royal Léopold Club (6) |
| 34 | 1952-1953 | La Rasante HC (10) |
| 35 | 1953-1954 | La Rasante HC (11) |
| 36 | 1954-1955 | Royal Léopold Club (7) |
| 37 | 1955-1956 | La Rasante HC (12) |
| 38 | 1956-1957 | La Rasante HC (13) |
| 39 | 1958-1959 | La Rasante HC (14) |
| 40 | 1958-1959 | Royal Léopold Club (8) |
| 41 | 1959-1960 | Royal Léopold Club (9) |
| 42 | 1960-1961 | Royal Léopold Club (10) |
| 43 | 1961-1962 | Royal Victory Hockey Club (2) |
| 44 | 1962-1963 | Not finished |
| 45 | 1963-1964 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (1) |
| 46 | 1964-1965 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (2) |
| 47 | 1965-1966 | Royal Léopold Club (11) |
| 48 | 1966-1967 | Royal Léopold Club (12) |
| 49 | 1967-1968 | Royal Léopold Club (13) |
| 50 | 1968-1969 | Royal Léopold Club (14) |
| 51 | 1969-1970 | Royal Léopold Club (15) |
| 52 | 1970-1971 | Royal Léopold Club (16) |
| 53 | 1971-1972 | Royal Léopold Club (17) |
| 54 | 1972-1973 | Royal Léopold Club (18) |
| 55 | 1973-1974 | Royal Léopold Club (19) |
| 56 | 1974-1975 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (3) |
| 57 | 1975-1976 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (4) |
| 58 | 1976-1977 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (5) |
| 59 | 1977-1978 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (6) |
| 60 | 1978-1979 | Royal Léopold Club (20) |
| 61 | 1979-1980 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (7) |
| 62 | 1980-1981 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (8) |
| 63 | 1981-1982 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (9) |
| 64 | 1982-1983 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (10) |
| 65 | 1983-1984 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (11) |
| 66 | 1984-1985 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (12) |
| 67 | 1985-1986 | La Rasante HC (15) |
| 68 | 1986-1987 | Royal Uccle Sport THC (13) |
| 69 | 1987-1988 | Royal Léopold Club (21) |
| 70 | 1988-1989 | Royal Léopold Club (22) |
| 71 | 1989-1990 | La Rasante HC (16) |
| 72 | 1990-1991 | Royal Léopold Club (23) |
| 73 | 1991-1992 | Royal Léopold Club (24) |
| 74 | 1992-1993 | Royal Baudouin THC (1) |
| 75 | 1993-1994 | Royal Baudouin THC (2) |
| 76 | 1994-1995 | Royal Baudouin THC (3) |
| 77 | 1995-1996 | Royal Evere White Star Hockey Club (1) |
| 78 | 1996-1997 | KHC Dragons (1) |
| 79 | 1997-1998 | Royal Herakles Hockey Club (1) |
| 80 | 1998-1999 | KHC Dragons (2) |
| 81 | 1999-2000 | KHC Dragons (3) |
| 82 | 2000-2001 | KHC Dragons (4) |
| 83 | 2001-2002 | Royal Léopold Club (25) |
| 84 | 2002-2003 | KHC Dragons (5) |
| 85 | 2003-2004 | Royal Léopold Club (26) |
| 86 | 2004-2005 | Royal Léopold Club (27) |
| 87 | 2005-2006 | Waterloo Ducks HC (1) |
Honor Division
| No. | Season | Champion[3] |
|---|---|---|
| 88 | 2006-2007 | Royal Antwerp HC (1) |
| 89 | 2007-2008 | KHC Leuven (1) |
| 90 | 2008-2009 | Waterloo Ducks HC (2) |
| 91 | 2009-2010 | KHC Dragons (6) |
| 92 | 2010-2011 | KHC Dragons (7) |
| 93 | 2011-2012 | Waterloo Ducks HC (3) |
| 94 | 2012-2013 | Waterloo Ducks HC (4) |
| 95 | 2013-2014 | Waterloo Ducks HC (5) |
| 96 | 2014-2015 | KHC Dragons (8) |
| 97 | 2015-2016 | KHC Dragons (9) |
Audi Hockey League
| No. | Season | Champion[3] |
|---|---|---|
| 98 | 2016-2017 | KHC Dragons (10) |
| 99 | 2017-2018 | KHC Dragons (11) |
| 100 | 2018-2019 | Royal Léopold Club (28) |
By club
| Club | Championship(s) | Year(s) won |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Léopold Club | 28 | 1922, 1923, 1928, 1939, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1979, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2019 |
| La Rasante HC | 16 | 1926, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1937, 1938, 1940, 1943, 1945, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1986, 1990 |
| Royal Uccle Sport THC | 13 | 1964, 1965, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987 |
| KHC Dragons | 11 | 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Royal Beerschot THC | 6 | 1925, 1927, 1932, 1934, 1942, 1944 |
| Royal Racing Club Bruxelles | 5 | 1924, 1933, 1935, 1936, 1941 |
| Waterloo Ducks HC | 5 | 2006, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014 |
| Royal Daring Hockey Club | 4 | 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949 |
| Royal Baudouin THC | 3 | 1993, 1994, 1995 |
| Royal Victory HC | 2 | 1950, 1962 |
| Brussels HLTC | 1 | 1920 |
| KHC Leuven | 1 | 2008 |
| La Gantoise Hockey Club | 1 | 1921 |
| Royal Antwerp HC | 1 | 2007 |
| Royal Evere White Star Hockey Club | 1 | 1996 |
| Royal Herakles Hockey Club | 1 | 1998 |
References
- "Belgian Hockey Finals 2019 : le Léo et l'Antwerp sacrés champions 2019 !". hockey.be (in French). Royal Belgian Hockey Association. 12 May 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
- "ARBH et Ligues : les AG ont décidé". okey.lalibre.be (in French). La Libre Belgique. 18 June 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
- "Le palmarès des championnats de Belgique". okey.lalibre.be (in French). La Libre Belgique. Retrieved 19 June 2019.