Butler was an Englishman and former Arsenal player who became a manager in Belgium 1932. He first worked at Daring Brussel and won two titles. In 1935, he added the job of national team manager. He steered the Red Devils to the 1938 World Cup in France, where Belgium was eliminated in the first round. He was in charge for 30 matches before World War II broke out.

Period : 12/05/1935 – 21/04/1940   

Official matches: 30

Big tournaments: 1 (1938 World Cup)

Goethals, loved by the general public for his lovely Brussels accent and the way he mispronounced some names, was a football addict known for his tactical approach. After serving as assistant to Tuur Ceuleers and later Constant Vanden Stock, he became head coach in 1968 and led the Red Devils to the 1970 World Cup and the European Championship in 1972, where Belgium won bronze. On the way to the final four at the European Championships in Belgium, the ‘White Devils’, thanks to several clever moves by Goethals, managed to eliminate Portugal and Italy.

Period: 17/04/1966 – 25/04/1976

Official matches: 44

Big tournaments: 2 (1970 World Cup and European Championship in 1972)

Goetinck was the first Belgian national team manager in history. Before him, a Scot, an Englishman and an Austrian held that title. He was manager at Club Brugge and national team manager at the first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930, and four years later in Italy. In Uruguay, he had the ungrateful task to get the team fit for the first match after two weeks of traveling by boat. Practice on the deck at 6 o’clock in the moring and on the beach after arrival, on the Pocitos beach, across from where the Belgians were staying. In Uruguay, as well as Italy, Belgium were eliminated in the first round. He had some revolutionary ideas for that era. He added separate fitness practices and let the young players at Club Brugge run in the dunes to increase their strength and explosiveness.

Period: 13/07/1930 – 27/05/1934

Official matches: 31

Big tournaments: 2 (1930 and 1934 World Cup)

He was national team manager in two separate stints. In his first time with the national team he led the team that qualified, by way of a play-off against Ireland, for the 1998 World Cup in France. After three draws, the Belgians were eliminiated. Leekens, known for his ability to organise a team, returned to the RBFA in 2010 and just missed out on the European Championship in Poland and Ukraine in 2012. He left his second stint when, as Leekens said, “90 percent of the work was done”.

Period: 11/02/1997 – 18/08/1999 and 03/05/2010 – 13/05/2012

Official matches: 44

Big tournaments: 1 (1998 World Cup)

Doug Livingstone was a Scot who was national team manager of Ireland from 1951 to 1953 and then took over from Englishman Bill Gormlie at the Red Devils. He qualified with the Red Devils for the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland where, despite a fantastic match against England (4-4), Belgium did not survive the first round. He left the Belgian team after the World Cup.

Period: 23/09/1953 – 11/11/1954   

Official matches: 13

Big tournaments: 1 (1954 World Cup)

Thys is so far the most successful national team manager in history. He led the Red Devils to and at five big tournaments. He was known for his ‘rabbit’s foot”, his kind approach and his inseparable cigar. A real father figure who aimed to resolve the rare conflict in a diplomatic manner. Thys let everyone have their say and regularly asked the media for their opinion. In the end, he did it his way, which did not turn out too bad.

Period:  22/05/1976 – 09/06/1989  en 26/05/1990 – 01/05/1991

Official matches : 114

Big tournaments: 5 (European Championships in 1980 and 1984, and 1982,1986 and 1990 World Cup)

He led the Red Devils to and at the 1994 World Cup in the United States, where they played two strong matches, and only missed out on a place in the quarterfinal against Germany due to Swiss referee Kurt Rothlisberger not giving a penalty after a foul on Josip Weber. Van Himst took a soft approach and formed a strong team with his assistant Michel Sablon, still a fixture at the RBFA.

Period:  11/09/1991 and 27/03/1996

Official matches: 36

Big tournaments: 1 (1994 World Cup)

Waseige was the first Walloon national team manager in the history of Belgian football. He was close to 60 when he succeeded Georges Leekens in 1999. The European Championship in 2000 was not successful, but the Red Devils almost managed a major upset in the round of 16 against Brazil at the 2002 World Cup in Japan, until one Peter Pendergast from Jamaica was the only one to see a foul by Marc Wilmots.

Period: 04/09/1999 – 01/07/2002

Official matches: 34

Number of big tournaments: 2 (European Championships in 2000 and 2002 World Cup)

Marc Wilmots was the extension of national team manager Robert Waseige on the field at the 2002 World Cup. He developed as assistant to national team managers Dick Advocaat and George Leekens. Wimots was a man of clarity with a direct approach. After the termination of Georges Leekens, Wilmots led the Devils to the World Cup in Brazil where Belgium reached the quarterfinals. At the European Championship in France two years later, they also reached the quarterfinals.

Period:  06/06/2012 – 15/07/2016

Official matches: 51

Big tournaments: 2 (2014 World Cup and European Championship in 2016)