Oud-Heverlee Leuven
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| Full name | Oud-Heverlee Leuven | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | OHL, OH Leuven | ||
| Founded | 2002 | ||
| Ground |
Stadium "Den Dreef", Heverlee, Leuven | ||
| Capacity | 10,020 [1] | ||
| Owner | King Power International Group | ||
| Chairman | Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha | ||
| Manager | Nigel Pearson | ||
| League | Belgian First Division B | ||
| 2017–18 | Belgian First Division B, 2nd | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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Oud-Heverlee Leuven (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈʌut ˈɦeː.vər.ˌleː ˈløː.və(n)]), also called OH Leuven or OHL, is a Belgian football club from the city of Leuven. It results from the 2002 fusion between F.C. Zwarte Duivels Oud-Heverlee, which registration number it inherited, Daring Club Leuven and Stade Leuven. The home ground of OH Leuven is stadium "Den Dreef", located in Heverlee.
The club currently plays in the country's second level, Belgian First Division B, but has played four seasons at the highest level, the last time during the 2015–16 season.
History
F.C. Zwarte Duivels Oud-Heverlee (matricule 6142) was founded in 1957, climbing out of the provincial leagues in 1996 and winning the Belgian Fourth Division title during the 1999–2000 season, promoting into the Belgian Third Division where they were joined by their Leuven neighbours Stade Leuven (matricule 18) founded in 1905, which had played over 30 seasons in the Belgian Second Division and only one year the highest level, namely during the 1949–50 season. However, as of 2002 the club was in bad financial shape, moving up and down between third and fourth division since 1991.
As a result, in 2002 the city of Leuven wanted to improve the level of football played in the city and it was decided that both third division teams Zwarte Duivels Oud-Heverlee and K. Stade Leuven would merge, together also with the third club from Leuven, K. Daring Club Leuven (matricule 223), who were at that time playing at the fifth level. Daring Club Leuven was founded in 1922, had played several seasons in the Belgian Second Division and was the leading club from the Leuven region between 1958 and 1964, but had dropped down into the provincial leagues in 1979 and had been stuck there since. The new club kept the matricule number 6142 of Zwarte Duivels Oud-Heverlee and started playing in the Belgian Third Division under the name Oud-Heverlee Leuven, commonly abbreviated as OHL.
At the end of its first season, the club narrowly lost out on promotion, going down on penalty kicks to Eendracht Aalst in the 3rd division play-off final after finishing 2nd in the 3rd division B, just 5 points behind champions Tubize. After a 3rd place in the same division in season 2003–04, Oud-Heverlee Leuven finished 2nd once again in season 2004–05 and this time they did win the promotion play-off and subsequently entered the second division competition in season 2005–06. After two decent seasons, finishing 6th and 5th, OH Leuven got closer to the Belgian top division as they finished 3rd in the 2007–08 Belgian Second Division season with 61 points, allowing them to take part in the promotion playoff league. However the team finished 4th and bottom of league, losing all six matches to Tubize, Antwerp and Lommel United.
Two moderate seasons, with the team finishing 9th and 14th, were followed by a second division title on Sunday 24 April 2011, when Oud-Heverlee Leuven secured the 2010–11 2nd division championship and gained promotion to the 1st division for season 2011–12, following a 2–2 draw at Antwerp. The team rounded off the season the following Sunday with a 2–0 home win against Lommel United, amassing a total of 73 points from 34 games and finishing 8 points ahead of 2nd placed Lommel United. Their promotion brought 1st division football to the city of Leuven for the first time since season 1949–50, when Stade Leuven finished bottom of the league and were relegated.
OH Leuven secured its top flight status following a 0–0 draw at home against Lierse on 3 March 2012, marking the first time a team from the city of Leuven managed to remain at the highest level of Belgian football for more than a single season. In the 2013–14 season OH Leuven was relegated after losing the 2014 promotion/relegation play-offs. Although only finishing 6th, the team promoted back to the highest level via the 2015 promotion/relegation play-offs, but were immediately relegated again after finishing last in the 2015–16 Belgian Pro League.
In September 2016, OH Leuven were caught up in an ongoing scandal affecting football in England. In relation to allegations made against individuals within English football, OH Leuven chairman Jimmy Houtput was alleged to have offered up the club as a "conduit" to allow third-party companies to gain ownership of football players in England.[2] Houtput claimed he was "merely trying to obtain the identity of the possible investor(s) and would never take part in illegal activities to circumvent the third-party ownership", but subsequently resigned as OH Leuven chairman on 30 September.[3] Later that same season, with the club struggling financially, OH Leuven was taken over by the King Power International Group led by Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha who already owns Leicester City.[4]
In July 2018, OH Leuven reclaimed the old matricule 18 which originally belonged to Stade Leuven, to "reclaim the glorious past".[5]
Evolution throughout the league
Green denotes the highest level of football in Belgium; yellow the second highest; red the third highest.
Stadium
Their stadium is called Stadion Den Dreef and is situated on Kardinaal Mercierlaan in the south Leuven suburb of Heverlee (not to be confused with 'Oud-Heverlee' in the club name, which is in fact a separate municipality). The entrance for visiting fans is on Tervuursevest.
Players
Current squad
- As of 31 August 2018[6]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Managers
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Former players
For details on former players, see Category:Oud-Heverlee Leuven players.
Top goal scorers
The following list the top scorers for OH Leuven per season, counting only goals scored during official matches: league, cup and playoffs.
| Player | Goals | Season |
|---|---|---|
 | 13 | 2017–18 |
| 8 | 2016–17 |
| 9 | 2015–16 |
 | 14 | 2014–15 |
| 11 | 2013–14 |
 | 19 | 2012–13 |
| 16 | 2011–12 |
 | 28 | 2010–11 |
| 13 | 2009–10 |
| 9 | 2008–09 |
| 16 | 2007–08 |
| 14 | 2006–07 |
| 14 | 2005–06 |
| 32 | 2004–05 |
| 15 | 2003–04 |
| 12 | 2002–03 |
Internationals
The list below consists of current and former players of OH Leuven that have gained caps for their national team.
- Flags indicate national teams they played for.
- Between brackets listed is the number of caps gained.
- Only first team caps are counted, not U21 or unofficial matches.
Footnotes
- ↑ Although Copa never played an official match for OH Leuven, he was part of the squad for the 2017-18 season and is hence counted as former OH Leuven player.
References
- ↑ / King Power at Den Dreef stadion, ohl.be (last check 30/03/2018)
- ↑ "Belgium football club offered itself as a conduit to help a fictitious investment firm get around third party ownership - against FA and Fifa rules". The Telegraph. 29 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
- ↑ "Belgian football club chairman resigns after offering club as conduit for banned third party ownership scheme". The Telegraph. 30 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
- ↑ "OH Leuven komt in Thaise handen: "Zo snel mogelijk weer naar 1e klasse A"". Sporza. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
- ↑ "Oud-Heverlee Leuven draagt voortaan stamnummer 18" [Oud-Heverlee Leuven carries matricule 18 from know on]. ohl.be. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
- ↑ "Team". OH Leuven. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
- (in Dutch) Official website