HistoryData
general2022

Royale Union Saint-Gilloise — association football club in Belgium

November 28, 2022

Union Saint-Gilloise's revival under Tony Bloom led to a return to the Belgian Pro League in 2021 and a first league title in 90 years in 2025.

Quick Facts

Year
2022
Category
general

Key Facts

Founded
1897 in Saint-Gilles, Brussels
National titles
12 (first in 1904, latest in 2025)
Unbeaten league run
60 matches (1933–1935), Belgian national record
Absence from top flight
48 years before returning in 2021
Europa League 2022–23
Reached quarter-finals
Home stadium
Joseph Marien Stadium, in use since 1920s

By the Numbers

1,897
Founded
12
National titles
60
Unbeaten league run
48
Absence from top flight

Location

Map of Brussels, BelgiumMap of Brussels, BelgiumBrussels, Belgium

Cause → Event → Consequence

Cause

After decades of decline that dropped the club to the fourth tier of Belgian football, a takeover by British businessman Tony Bloom—also chairman of Brighton & Hove Albion—provided the financial and organizational backing needed for a sustained rebuilding effort.

Event

Union Saint-Gilloise is a Belgian professional football club founded in 1897, historically dominant with eleven pre-war league titles and a 60-match unbeaten record. After returning to the top flight in 2021 following a 48-year absence, the club became a competitive force in both domestic and European competition during the early 2020s.

Consequence

The club clinched a twelfth league title in 2025, ending a 90-year championship drought, and reached the quarter-finals of the 2022–23 UEFA Europa League, later qualifying for the UEFA Champions League league phase for the first time in their history.

Timeline Context

Timeline around 202220222019202020212023202420252022 FIFA World Cup — 22nd FIFA World Cup2022 Winter Olympics — 24th edition of Winter Olympics, in Beijing, ChinaEurovision Song Contest 2022 — 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest2021 Africa Cup of Nations — 2021 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations2022 Kazakh unrest — series of protests in Kazakhstan that began on 2 January 2022 after an LPG price increaseMahsa Amini protests — Iranian protest movement in 2022–20232022 Formula One World Championship — 73rd running of the Formula One World ChampionshipDeaths in 2022 — list of notable deaths in 2022royale-union-saint-gilloise-association-football-club-in-b-2022