# 2017–18 Belgian First Division B

The 2017–18 season of the Belgian First Division B began in August 2017 and ended in April 2018. It was the second season of the First Division B following a change in league format from the old Belgian Second Division. The fixtures were announced near the end of June 2017. Cercle Brugge won the title and promotion on 10 March 2018. Although Tubize lost the relegation play-offs and therefore would have been relegated, they were saved as Lierse went bankrupt.

## Team changes
### In

* Westerlo were relegated from the 2016–17 Belgian First Division A after finishing in last place.
* Beerschot Wilrijk were promoted as 2016–17 Belgian First Amateur Division winners.

### Out

* Antwerp won the promotion play-offs against Roeselare and was thus promoted.
* Lommel United was relegated after they finished last in the relegation play-offs.

## Team information
### Stadiums and locations

| Matricule | Club | City | First season of current spell at second level | Coming from | 2016-17 result | Stadium | Capacity |
| 155 | FCO Beerschot Wilrijk | Antwerp | 2017–18 | Belgian First Amateur Division | 1st (D3) | Olympic Stadium | 12,771 |
| 12 | Cercle Brugge K.S.V. | Bruges | 2015–16 | Belgian Pro League | 7th (D2) | Jan Breydel Stadium | 29,945 |
| 6142 | Oud-Heverlee Leuven | Leuven | 2016–17 | Belgian Pro League | 6th (D2) | Den Dreef | 10,000 |
| 30 | Lierse S.K. | Lier | 2015–16 | Belgian Pro League | 1st (D2) | Herman Vanderpoortenstadion | 14,538 |
| 2024 | K.V.C. Westerlo | Westerlo | 2017–18 | Belgian First Division A | 16th (D1A) | Het Kuipje | 8,035 |
| 134 | K.S.V. Roeselare | Roeselare | 2010–11 | Belgian Pro League | 2nd (D2) | Schiervelde Stadion | 9,075 |
| 5632 | A.F.C. Tubize | Tubize | 2009–10 | Belgian Pro League | 5th (D2) | Stade Leburton | 9,000 |
| 10 | R. Union Saint-Gilloise | Saint-Gilles, Brussels | 2015–16 | Belgian Third Division | 4th (D2) | King Baudouin Stadium | 50,122 |

### Personnel and kits

| Club | Manager | Captain | Kit Manufacturer | Sponsors |
| Beerschot Wilrijk | Marc Brys | Tom Pietermaat | Joma | DCA |
| Cercle Brugge | Franky Vercauteren | Benjamin Lambot | Acerbis | ADMB |
| OH Leuven | Nigel Pearson | Dimitri Daeseleire | Vermarc | King Power |
| Lierse | David Colpaert | Frédéric Frans | Jako | Wadi Degla |
| Roeselare | Jordi Condom | Raphaël Lecomte | Joma | Euro Shop |
| Tubize | Philippe Thys | Quentin Laurent | Kappa | No shirt sponsor |
| Union SG | Marc Grosjean | Charles Morren | Patrick | Culture et Formation |
| Westerlo | Bob Peeters | Benjamin De Ceulaer | Saller | Soudal |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position | Replaced by | Date of appointment |
| Westerlo | Jacky Mathijssen | Mutual consent | 21 June 2017 | Pre-season | Vedran Pelić | 21 June 2017 |
| Roeselare | Arnauld Mercier | Sacked | 12 September 2017 | 5th | Dennis van Wijk | 28 September 2017 |
| OH Leuven | Dennis van Wijk | Replaced | 22 September 2017 | 4th | Nigel Pearson | 22 September 2017 |
| Lierse | Frederik Vanderbiest | Sacked | 6 October 2017 | 7th | William Still | 11 October 2017 |
| Cercle Brugge | José Riga | Sacked | 16 October 2017 | 3rd | Franky Vercauteren | 16 October 2017 |
| Tubize | Sadio Demba | Sacked | 13 November 2017 | Closing tournament: 6th Overall: 8th | Philippe Thys | 13 November 2017 |
| Lierse | William Still | Did not possess correct UEFA diploma to remain manager | 2 December 2017 | Closing tournament: 1st Overall: 3rd | David Colpaert | 2 December 2017 |
| Westerlo | Vedran Pelić | Replaced | 5 December 2017 | Closing tournament: 8th Overall: 7th | Bob Peeters | 5 December 2017 |
| Roeselare | Dennis van Wijk | Sacked | 19 January 2018 | Closing tournament: 7th Overall: 5th | Jordi Condom | 25 January 2018 |

## League table
### Opening tournament

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | B-W | OHL | CER | ROE | LIE | USG | WES | TUB |
| 1 | Beerschot Wilrijk | 14 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 29 | 10 | +19 | 29 | Qualification to Promotion play-offs | — | 2–2 | 0–3 | 5–0 | 4–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 |
| 2 | OH Leuven | 14 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 28 | 15 | +13 | 26 | | 1–1 | — | 7–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 |
| 3 | Cercle Brugge | 14 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 24 | 21 | +3 | 23 | | 0–1 | 0–3 | — | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 4–0 |
| 4 | Roeselare | 14 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 25 | −10 | 21 | | 0–4 | 3–1 | 2–1 | — | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 |
| 5 | Lierse | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 19 | 26 | −7 | 17 | | 2–2 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 2–2 | — | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 |
| 6 | Union SG | 14 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 16 | 18 | −2 | 14 | | 0–3 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 3–2 | — | 3–0 | 1–2 |
| 7 | Westerlo | 14 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 16 | 22 | −6 | 12 | | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 0–3 | — | 1–1 |
| 8 | Tubize | 14 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 20 | −10 | 10 | | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | — |

### Closing tournament

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | CER | LIE | OHL | USG | B-W | WES | ROE | TUB |
| 1 | Cercle Brugge | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 26 | 13 | +13 | 27 | Qualification to Promotion play-offs | — | 4–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 |
| 2 | Lierse | 14 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 16 | 21 | −5 | 22 | | 1–0 | — | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| 3 | OH Leuven | 14 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 15 | 12 | +3 | 21 | | 2–2 | 2–1 | — | 3–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 |
| 4 | Union SG | 14 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 16 | 15 | +1 | 18 | | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 |
| 5 | Beerschot Wilrijk | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 17 | −4 | 17 | | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | — | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| 6 | Westerlo | 14 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 13 | +2 | 15 | | 2–3 | 6–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | — | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 7 | Roeselare | 14 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 18 | −7 | 14 | | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 0–0 | 2–1 | — | 1–2 |
| 8 | Tubize | 14 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 11 | 14 | −3 | 13 | | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | — |
* ↑ The match between Tubize and Beerschot-Wilrijk of 10 December was cancelled as the pitch was not deemed suited for football following long periods of rain and some snow. The match was instead played on 10 January.

### Aggregate table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Cercle Brugge | 28 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 50 | 34 | +16 | 50 | Qualification to Promotion play-offs |
| 2 | OH Leuven | 28 | 12 | 11 | 5 | 43 | 27 | +16 | 47 | Qualification to Europa League play-offs |
| 3 | Beerschot Wilrijk | 28 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 42 | 27 | +15 | 46 | Qualification to Promotion play-offs |
| 4 | Lierse | 28 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 35 | 47 | −12 | 39 | Qualification to Europa League play-offs |
| 5 | Roeselare | 28 | 9 | 8 | 11 | 26 | 43 | −17 | 35 | Qualification to Relegation play-offs |
| 6 | Union SG | 28 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 32 | 33 | −1 | 32 | Qualification to Relegation play-offs |
| 7 | Westerlo | 28 | 5 | 12 | 11 | 31 | 35 | −4 | 27 | Qualification to Relegation play-offs |
| 8 | Tubize | 28 | 4 | 11 | 13 | 21 | 34 | −13 | 23 | Qualification to Relegation play-offs |

#### Notes

* ^ The team that promotes to the 2018–19 Belgian First Division A, either by winning the promotion playoff or by winning both the opening and the closing tournament, will not take part in the Europa League play-offs. The next team in the league will take its spot instead.
* ^ In case the team that wins the promotion playoff finishes in the bottom four, the 4th placed team will play the relegation playoff instead.

### Promotion play-offs

The winners of the opening tournament and the closing tournament met in a two-legged match to determine the division champion, who promoted to the 2018–19 Belgian First Division A. The team finishing highest in the aggregate table was allowed to play the second leg at home. In case one team had won both the opening and the closing tournament, these matches would not have been played and that team would have been promoted automatically.
On 5 November 2017, Beerschot Wilrijk won the opening tournament and was therefore assured of playing at least the promotion play-offs. The closing tournament was won by Cercle Brugge on 17 February 2018, who played Beerschot Wilrijk for the title and promotion.
The first leg was a closed match with few chances, until Cercle Brugge goalkeeper Paul Nardi made an error in controlling the ball, allowing Euloge Placca Fessou one of the easiest goals of his career. Shortly after, Beerschot Wilrijk saw midfielder Alexander Maes sent off following a harsh tackle, resulting them in controlling the game without creating more chances. In the return match, Cercle Brugge scored twice early and looked on its way to promotion, only for Beerschot Wilrijk to come back to 2–1 just minutes before the end and gaining the advantage on away goals. In a dramatic finish, Cercle Brugge was awarded a last minute penalty kick, converted by Irvin Cardona to bring them back to the highest division where they last played during the 2014–15 season.
Cercle Brugge won 3–2 on aggregate.

### Relegation play-offs

The four bottom teams in the aggregate table will take part in the relegation play-offs in which they keep half of the points they collected during the overall regular season (rounded up). As a result, the teams started with the following points before the playoff: Roeselare 18 points, Union SG 16, Westerlo 14 and Tubize 12 points. The points of Roeselare, Westerlo and Tubize were rounded up, therefore in case of any ties on points at the end of the playoffs, their half point would be deducted. The team finishing in last position will relegate to the 2018–19 Belgian First Amateur Division.
Following a 0-1 loss at home to Union SG on 14 April 2018, Tubize was mathematically relegated as the deficit to Union SG became six points with only two matches to go, while Union SG would always be ranked above Tubize in case of ties as the points of Tubize were rounded up prior to the relegation play-offs. Tubize was however spared of relegation from the Belgian First Division B as Lierse did not obtain a Belgian professional football license after going bankrupt.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | ROE | WES | USG | TUB |
| 1 | Roeselare (O) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 30 | Relegation play off winner | — | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 |
| 2 | Westerlo | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 26 | | 0–0 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| 3 | Union SG | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 20 | | 0–1 | 0–2 | — | 1–1 |
| 4 | Tubize | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 15 | Relegation to the 2018–19 Belgian First Amateur Division cancelled | 1–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | — |
* ↑ Tubize would have been relegated after finishing last, however following the bankruptcy of Lierse, they remained in the First Division B.

## Season statistics
### Top scorers

    As of 16 February 2018.
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Yannick Aguemon | OH Leuven | 10 |
| 1 | Esteban Casagolda | OH Leuven | 10 |
| 1 | Florent Stevance | Tubize | 10 |
| 4 | Xavier Mercier | Cercle Brugge | 9 |
| 4 | Hernán Losada | Beerschot Wilrijk | 9 |
| 4 | Ivan Yagan | Lierse | 9 |
| 7 | Euloge Placca Fessou | Beerschot Wilrijk | 8 |
| 8 | Jens Naessens | Westerlo | 7 |
| 8 | Dylan De Belder | Cercle Brugge | 7 |
| 10 | Irvin Cardona | Cercle Brugge | 6 |
| 10 | Mohamed Messoudi | Beerschot Wilrijk | 6 |
| 10 | Nikola Storm | OH Leuven | 6 |
| 10 | Guévin Tormin | Cercle Brugge | 6 |
| 10 | Julien Vercauteren | Union SG | 6 |

#### 5 goals (5 players)

* Erwin Hoffer (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Crysan (Cercle Brugge)
* Pierre Bourdin (Lierse)
* Mathieu Cornet (Roeselare)
* Christian Osaguona (Westerlo)

#### 4 goals (5 players)

* Guillaume François (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Nico Binst (Lierse)
* Mohamed El Gabbas (Lierse)
* Augusto Da Silva (Union SG)
* Maxime Annys (Westerlo)

#### 3 goals (14 players)

* Gianni Bruno (Cercle Brugge)
* Stephen Buyl (Cercle Brugge)
* Jérémy Taravel (Cercle Brugge)
* Andrei Camargo (Lierse)
* Aurélien Joachim (Lierse)
* Mathieu Maertens (OH Leuven)
* Davy Brouwers (Roeselare)
* Raphaël Lecomte (Roeselare)
* Thibaut Van Acker (Roeselare)
* Salomon Nirisarike (Tubize)
* Roman Ferber (Union SG)
* Mathias Fixelles (Union SG)
* Benjamin De Ceulaer (Westerlo)
* Daan Heymans (Westerlo)

#### 2 goals (19 players)

* Alexander Maes (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Kule Mbombo (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Lloyd Palun (Cercle Brugge)
* Héctor Rodas (Cercle Brugge)
* Frédéric Frans (Lierse)
* Mégan Laurent (Lierse)
* Elliott Moore (OH Leuven)
* Kenneth Schuermans (OH Leuven)
* Alessandro Cerigioni (Roeselare)
* Emile Samyn (Roeselare)
* Nermin Zolotić (Roeselare)
* Marco Weymans (Tubize)
* Christophe Bertjens (Union SG)
* Kenneth Houdret (Union SG)
* Gertjan Martens (Union SG)
* Pietro Perdichizzi (Union SG)
* Serge Tabekou (Union SG)
* Wouter Corstjens (Westerlo)
* Lukas Van Eenoo (Westerlo)

#### 1 goal (40 players)

* Jimmy De Jonghe (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Joren Dom (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Denis Prychynenko (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Arjan Swinkels (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Tom Van Hyfte (Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Benjamin Delacourt (Cercle Brugge)
* Jordy Gaspar (Cercle Brugge)
* Benjamin Lambot (Cercle Brugge)
* Wesley Vanbelle (Cercle Brugge)
* Christophe Vincent (Cercle Brugge)
* Sabir Bougrine (Lierse)
* Pierre Bourdin (Lierse)
* Othman Boussaid (Lierse)
* Brice Ntambwe (Lierse)
* Thomas Azevedo (OH Leuven)
* Simon Diedhiou (OH Leuven)
* Julien Gorius (OH Leuven)
* Samy Kehli (OH Leuven)
* Jovan Kostovski (OH Leuven)
* Jarno Libert (OH Leuven)
* Koen Persoons (OH Leuven)
* Derrick Tshimanga (OH Leuven)
* Tony Watt (OH Leuven)
* Saviour Godwin (Roeselare)
* Grégory Grisez (Roeselare)
* Maël Lépicier (Roeselare)
* Marko Maletić (Roeselare)
* Sandro Wieser (Roeselare)
* Ki-wook Hwang (Tubize)
* Emeric Dudouit (Tubize)
* Mohamed Kané (Tubize)
* Hugo Vidémont (Tubize)
* Simon Zenke (Tubize)
* Kevin Kis (Union SG)
* Héritier Luvumbu (Union SG)
* Thibault Peyre (Union SG)
* Maxime Biset (Westerlo)
* Daniel Christensen (Westerlo)
* Noël Soumah (Westerlo)
* Cédric Vangeel (Westerlo)

#### 1 own goal (7 players)

* Jan Van den Bergh (Beerschot Wilrijk, scored for Cercle Brugge)
* Isaac Koné (Cercle Brugge, scored for Beerschot Wilrijk)
* Dimitri Daeseleire (OH Leuven, scored for Westerlo)
* Nick Gillekens (OH Leuven, scored for Roeselare)
* Laurent Lemoine (Roeselare, scored for Union SG)
* Ibrahima Ba (Tubize, scored for OH Leuven)
* Gertjan Martens (Union SG, scored for Tubize)

## Number of teams by provinces

| Number of teams | Province or region | Team(s) |
| 3 | Antwerp | Beerschot Wilrijk, Lierse and Westerlo |
| 2 | West Flanders | Cercle Brugge and Roeselare |
| 1 | Brussels | Union SG |
| 1 | Flemish Brabant | OH Leuven |
| 1 | Walloon Brabant | Tubize |