Revisiting the 2006 Belgian Cup Final: The rise of Zulte Waregem | OneFootball

This week, Anderlecht and Union St Gilloise will face off in an all Brussels Belgian Cup final. Union St Gilloise, a side that dominated Belgian football before the World Wars, have experienced a renaissance in recent years, while Anderlecht remain one of the biggest clubs in Belgium.

Yet, 20 years ago, two very different sides were facing off in the Belgian Cup final. At the end of the 2005/2006 season in Belgium, Zulte Waregem and Mouscron faced off on the 13 May at the King Baoudouin Stadium in Brussels. For the winners, it was the culmination of a meteoric rise under head coach Franky Drury, who would go on to almost win the league for the side under a decade later.

Back in 2006, Zulte Waregem had only been around for five years. In 2001 a merger between Zultse VV and KSV Waregem had led to the creation of the club. During the 2001/2022 season, the side were corned champions of the third division, beating Hamme on the final game of the campaign to win the league. In a dramatic end of season clash, the two sides faced off with Frederik D’hollander scoring a late winner to see Zulte Waregem promoted.

Three years later, on the 17th April, Zulte Waregem reached the top flight of Belgian football for the first time. Under head coach Franky Drury, the side had gone from the third to the first division in rapid fashion, but they hadn’t yet reached their peak.

Their opponents in the 2006 cup final, Royal Excelsior Mouscron, sadly no longer exist in their current form. Like Zulte Waregem, they were born of a merger, albeit one that took place a few decades earlier. In 1964, Stade Mouscron and A.R.A Mouscron merged. Just on year after promotion to the top flight, in 1997 the side made it into the European qualification rounds for the UEFA Cup. They beat Apollon Limassol of Cyrprus over two legs before losing out to Metz in the next round. In 2002 they were back in qualification for the same tournament, having lost the 2001/2002 Belgian Cup final to Club Brugge.

Mouscron had beaten Thorhout, AEC Mons, SK Beveren and Charleroi on their way to the final. Zulte Waregem had beaten Club Brugge, Geel, Westerlo and Standard Liege, arguably a much tougher run to the final of the two sides. Gil Vandenbrouck was in the dugout for Mouscron, having only taken over as the sides manager in February of 2006. Vandenbrouck was the third manager at Mouscron that season, with the club having sacked Geert Broeckaert back in November of 2005. Vandebrouck had stepped in for fie games before Paul Put joined in January. Put only managed six games before departing, with Vandebrouck coming back in. He had guided the side to a 13th place finish.

Dury, on the other hand, had Zulte Waregem finishing in the top six in their first season in the top flight. Zulte Waregem’s success had been by committee, with Tony Sergaent leading the side with 10 goals. Ibrahim Salou had been in fantastic form with nine goals and six assists. Mouscon’s star man was Adnan Custovic out wide, with the winger having scored 11 goals and provided six assists during the league season.

Custovic would make his presence known during the final. After Zulte Waregem captain Stefan Leleu had given the side an early lead with a header from a set piece, Custovic grabbed an equaliser for Mouscron just after the hour mark with a well placed header. With the game winding down towards extra-time, Zulte Waregem delivered a sucker punch. Again, from a dead ball situation, but slightly different from the opener. Striker Tim Matthys looked set to whip the ball in, but instead he smashed it into the roof of the net, giving Patrice Luzi no chance.

Zulte Waregem held on to win their first piece of silverware, while Mouscron would have to wait a while longer. Sadly, financial issues meant the club had to merge again in 2010 after forfeiting its games. In March of that year, Royal Mouscron-Peruwelz were born out of a merger with R.R.C. Peruwelz. They made their return to the top flight in 2014, yet sadly the story once again ended in financial ruin. In 2022 the side folded again and has yet to make a return to the top two divisions of Belgian football.

Zulte Waregem, on the other hand, would go on a European adventure following their cup win, facing the likes of Newcastle United after escaping from a group with Austria Wien, Sparta Prague, Espanyol and Ajax. The side went on to have more cup success, losing the 2014 cup final to Lokeren before beating Oostende in 2017 on penalties.

GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson