The Belgium national rugby union team, nicknamed Diables Noirs / Zwarte Duivels (Black Devils), currently competes in the first division of the Rugby Europe International Championships, which they have been playing in since 2023. They have yet to participate in a Rugby World Cup. Rugby union in Belgium is administered by the Belgian Rugby Federation.
| Nickname | Diables Noirs / Zwarte Duivels (Black Devils) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Union | Belgian Rugby Federation | ||
| Head coach | Laurent Dossat | ||
| Captain | Jens Torfs | ||
| Most caps | Alan Williams (68) | ||
| Top scorer | Alan Williams (736) | ||
| Top try scorer | Julien Berger (15) | ||
| Home stadium | Various | ||
| |||
| World Rugby ranking | |||
| Current | 22 (as of 14 July 2025) | ||
| Highest | 21 (2012, 2013) | ||
| Lowest | 55 (2004) | ||
| First international | |||
| Netherlands 6–6 Belgium (Amsterdam, Netherlands; 13 March 1932) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
| United Arab Emirates 3–94 Belgium (Dubai, United Arab Emirates; 8 December 2012) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
| Spain 77–0 Belgium (Madrid, Spain; 8 December 1996) | |||
| Website | www.rugby.be | ||
History
The Belgium rugby team played their first match on 13 March 1932 against the Netherlands.[citation needed] They contested annual games against the Netherlands for half a decade starting in 1932. They drew the 1932 game, but lost subsequent matches during the 1930s. They also played Italy and Germany in 1937, losing both games.
During the 1950s, Belgium continued playing the Netherlands, as well as teams like Spain. They managed to obtain a draw in the 1960s against Portugal. In the 1970s they won the majority of their games, as well as playing a broader range of European nations. This trend continued throughout the 1980s. Belgium had a six-game winning streak in the late 1980s. They began playing more games against their regular European opponents as they entered the 1990s. A Belgium side played Argentina prior to the 2007 Rugby World Cup. A Belgium XV played the Barbarians on 24 May 2008.
Belgium has been steadily improving, ranked number 55th in 2004, the 'Black Devils' improved on the following years, obtaining good results against other European Nations, gaining entry to the IRB Ranking's Top 30 in 2010. Since their induction to the first 30 rugby nations in the international ranking, they have managed to maintain their place.
Belgium had a successful campaign during the 2010-2012 European Nations Cup, with a 10 match winning streak from March 2011 to December 2012. Following their promotion in 2023, Belgium is competing in the top division of the Rugby Europe International Championships. In the 2024 season of the Rugby Europe International Championships Belgium earned a historic win over Portugal following their impressive Rugby World Cup campaign.[citation needed]
Belgium narrowly failed to qualify for the 2027 Men's Rugby World Cup following a 13-13 draw against Samoa in the final qualifying tournament.
Jacques Rogge, the former International Olympic Committee president, was a member of the Belgium national team.
Rugby World Cup qualification
| World Cup record | World Cup Qualification record | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | P | W | D | L | F | A | P | W | D | L | F | A | |
| 1987 | Not invited | - | ||||||||||||
| 1991 | did not enter | did not enter | ||||||||||||
| 1995 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 1999 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2003 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2007 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2011 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2015 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2019 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2023 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| 2027 | did not qualify | |||||||||||||
| Total | - | |||||||||||||
Current squad
On 27 October, Belgium named a 31-player squad ahead of the 2027 Rugby World Cup Final Qualification Tournament.
Head Coach: Laurent Dossat
- Caps Updated: 13 November 2025 (after Belgium v Brazil)
| Player | Position | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club/province |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexandre Raynier | Hooker | 16 March 1994 | 21 | Auch |
| Vincent Tauzia | Hooker | 17 July 1992 | 13 | Martres de Veyre |
| Charlesty Berguet | Prop | 13 January 2000 | 13 | Vannes |
| Jean-Baptiste de Clercq | Prop | 23 February 1994 | 17 | Albi |
| Maxime Jadot | Prop | 6 January 1991 | 56 | Emak Hor |
| Basile van Parys | Prop | 30 June 2000 | 14 | Brussels Devils |
| Seppe Verelst | Prop | 28 November 2001 | 6 | Brussels Devils |
| Bruno Vliegen | Prop | 3 July 2001 | 17 | Olympique Marcquois |
| Gillian Benoy | Lock | 8 May 1995 | 31 | Béziers |
| Maurice Fromont | Lock | 10 September 2003 | 9 | Stade Métropolitain |
| Maximilien Hendrickx | Lock | 21 May 1997 | 27 | Suresnes |
| Jérémie Brasseur | Back row | 3 July 2000 | 14 | Orléans |
| Toon Deceuninck | Back row | 13 December 2000 | 24 | Auch |
| Jean-Maurice Decubber | Back row | 10 September 1996 | 20 | Angoulême |
| Felipe Geraghty | Back row | 27 February 1993 | 7 | Brussels Devils |
| Lucas Rassinfosse | Back row | 23 February 2001 | 14 | Anglet |
| William Van Bost | Back row | 1 August 1998 | 14 | Béziers |
| Julien Berger | Scrum-half | 10 January 1990 | 65 | La Roche-sur-Yon |
| Isaac Montoisy | Scrum-half | 9 September 1998 | 19 | Salles |
| Timothé Rifon | Scrum-half | 12 September 2001 | 13 | Mâcon |
| Hugo De Francq | Fly-half | 13 May 1998 | 20 | Agronomia |
| Matias Remue | Fly-half | 7 March 2003 | 13 | Toulouse Espoirs |
| Florian Remue | Centre | 7 March 2003 | 27 | Valence d’Agen |
| Jens Torfs | Centre | 26 May 1992 | 39 | Barbezieux |
| Maxime Vacquier | Centre | 15 January 2003 | 7 | Béziers |
| Robin Wedlake | Centre | 16 August 1994 | 0 | Camborne |
| Dazzy Cornez | Wing | 2 May 1996 | 25 | Aubenas |
| Lucas Michiels | Wing | 25 March 2004 | 4 | Alcobendas |
| Ervin Muric | Wing | 3 January 1997 | 19 | Olympique Marcquois |
| Thomas Wallraf | Wing | 21 January 1998 | 32 | Langon |
| Siméon Soenen | Fullback | 3 January 2003 | 15 | Albi |
Record
| Rank | Change | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Africa | 93.94 | |
| 2 | New Zealand | 90.33 | |
| 3 | England | 89.41 | |
| 4 | Ireland | 87.97 | |
| 5 | France | 87.24 | |
| 6 | Argentina | 84.97 | |
| 7 | Australia | 81.53 | |
| 8 | Fiji | 81.14 | |
| 9 | Scotland | 80.22 | |
| 10 | Italy | 78.98 | |
| 11 | Wales | 74.23 | |
| 12 | Japan | 74.09 | |
| 13 | Georgia | 73.18 | |
| 14 | Uruguay | 69.19 | |
| 15 | Spain | 69.01 | |
| 16 | United States | 68.26 | |
| 17 | Chile | 66.72 | |
| 18 | Tonga | 66.66 | |
| 19 | Samoa | 66.43 | |
| 20 | Portugal | 64.98 | |
| 21 | Belgium | 62.32 | |
| 22 | Romania | 61.50 | |
| 23 | Hong Kong | 59.61 | |
| 24 | Zimbabwe | 58.80 | |
| 25 | Canada | 58.75 | |
| 26 | Netherlands | 57.01 | |
| 27 | Namibia | 56.96 | |
| 28 | Switzerland | 55.26 | |
| 29 | Czech Republic | 54.78 | |
| 30 | Poland | 52.96 |
- Change from the previous week
| Belgium's historical rankings |
Graph updated to 29 December 2025
Below is a table of the representative rugby matches played by a Belgium national XV at test level up until 18 November 2025, updated after match with Samoa.
| Opponent | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armenia | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Barbarians | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Basque Country | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% |
| Brazil | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 33.33% |
| Canada | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 25% |
| Chile | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Croatia | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 50% |
| Czech Republic | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 57.14% |
| Czechoslovakia | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 16.67% |
| Denmark | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 60% |
| Fiji | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Georgia | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Germany | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 50% |
| Hong Kong | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 25% |
| Italy | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Latvia | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 50% |
| Lithuania | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Luxembourg | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Malta | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Moldova | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 71.43% |
| Monaco | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Morocco | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 25% |
| Namibia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Netherlands | 49 | 24 | 21 | 4 | 48.98% |
| Paraguay | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| Poland | 15 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 40% |
| Portugal | 18 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 22.22% |
| Romania | 12 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Russia | 7 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 14.29% |
| Samoa | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.0% |
| Serbia and Montenegro | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 87.5% |
| Slovenia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 66.67% |
| Spain | 17 | 2 | 14 | 1 | 11.76% |
| Sweden | 12 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 66.67% |
| Switzerland | 11 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 63.64% |
| Tunisia | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 20% |
| Ukraine | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 50% |
| United Arab Emirates | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% |
| United States | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Uruguay | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| West Germany | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 66.67% |
| Zimbabwe | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Total | 260 | 110 | 138 | 12 | 42.31% |
Past coaches
| Years | Coach |
|---|---|
| 2004–2014 | Richard McClintock |
| 2014–2019 | Guillaume Ajac |
| 2020–2022 | Frédéric Cocqu |
| 2022 | Chris Cracknell |
| 2023 | Mike Ford |
| 2024–present | Laurent Dossat |
See also
- Rugby union in Belgium
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