2003–04 Belgian First Division
The 2003–04 season of the Belgian First Division was held between August 8, 2003 and May 15, 2004. Sporting Anderlecht became champions on April 24, 2004.
Contents
Promoted teams
These teams were promoted from the second division at the start of the season:
- Cercle Brugge K.S.V. (second division champions)
- K. Heusden-Zolder (playoff winner)
Relegated teams
These teams were relegated to the second division at the end of the season:
Anderlecht's title success
The battle for the title was not great as Anderlecht had a big lead over their opponents (mainly Club Brugge). However, a bad finish from Anderlecht kept the suspense until the 31st matchday when Club Brugge drew with Mouscron while the team from Brussels also drew (1-1) at Herman Vanderpoortenstadion, the homeground of Lierse.
Battle for Europe
The next week, Club Brugge was sure to enter the UEFA Champions League Preliminary Round with a 1-0 win against Standard Liège, then lying third. In spite of this defeat, Standard managed to qualify for the UEFA Cup as they were 6 points ahead of Mouscron after the 32nd matchday. The suspense was killed after a 1-1 draw against Charleroi the next Saturday.
The relegation dog fight
The end of the league was thus centered on the battle against relegation. Four teams were concerned : R.A.E.C. Mons and Charleroi, which finally saved themselves, R. Antwerp F.C. and K. Beringen-Heusden-Zolder finishing respectively 6 and 5 points adrift.
Final league table
| Pos | Team | Pld | Won | Drw | Lst | GF | GA | Pts | GD | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | R.S.C. Anderlecht | 34 | 25 | 6 | 3 | 77 | 27 | 81 | +50 | Qualified for 2004-05 UEFA Champions League.[1] |
| 2 | Club Brugge | 34 | 22 | 6 | 6 | 77 | 31 | 72 | +46 | |
| 3 | Standard Liège | 34 | 18 | 11 | 5 | 68 | 31 | 65 | +37 | Qualified for 2004-05 UEFA Cup. |
| 4 | K.R.C. Genk | 34 | 17 | 8 | 9 | 58 | 40 | 59 | +18 | Qualified for 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup. |
| 5 | R.E. Mouscron | 34 | 15 | 14 | 5 | 64 | 42 | 59 | +22 | |
| 6 | K.V.C. Westerlo | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 51 | 45 | 52 | +6 | Qualified for 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup. |
| 7 | K.F.C. Germinal Beerschot | 34 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 34 | 40 | 44 | -6 | |
| 8 | R.A.A. Louviéroise | 34 | 10 | 14 | 10 | 45 | 46 | 44 | -1 | |
| 9 | K.A.A. Gent | 34 | 8 | 16 | 10 | 33 | 34 | 40 | -1 | Qualified for 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup. |
| 10 | K.S.C. Lokeren Oost-Vlaanderen | 34 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 45 | 54 | 39 | -9 | |
| 11 | Lierse S.K. | 34 | 8 | 15 | 11 | 33 | 40 | 39 | -7 | |
| 12 | K.S.K. Beveren | 34 | 11 | 5 | 18 | 45 | 58 | 38 | -13 | Qualified for 2004-05 UEFA Cup. |
| 13 | K. Sint-Truidense V.V. | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 36 | 50 | 38 | -14 | |
| 14 | Cercle Brugge K.S.V. | 34 | 7 | 14 | 13 | 28 | 52 | 35 | -24 | |
| 15 | R. Charleroi S.C. | 34 | 8 | 9 | 17 | 35 | 47 | 33 | -12 | |
| 16 | R.A.E.C. Mons | 34 | 7 | 12 | 15 | 29 | 52 | 33 | -23 | |
| 17 | K. Beringen-Heusden-Zolder | 34 | 7 | 7 | 20 | 36 | 68 | 28 | -32 | Relegated to Division II. |
| 18 | R. Antwerp F.C. | 34 | 7 | 6 | 21 | 30 | 67 | 27 | -37 |
[1] Club Brugge competed in the UEFA Cup First Round after being eliminated in the Champions League Third Qualifying Round.
Top goal scorers
| Scorer | Goals | Team |
|---|---|---|
 Luigi Pieroni |
28 | Mouscron |
| Émile Mpenza |
21 | Standard Liège |
 Tosin Dosunmu |
16 | Westerlo |
 Aruna Dindane |
15 | Anderlecht |
| Gert Verheyen |
15 | Club Brugge |
 Andrés Mendoza |
14 | Club Brugge |
| Cédric Roussel |
14 | Racing Genk |
See also
References
- (French) Sport.be website - Archive
