Standard LiègeStandard Liège is a Belgian football club based in Liège, founded in 1898. One of the most successful teams in the country, Standard have won ten Belgian league titles and nine Belgian Cups. The club have played in red since their earliest days, which earned them the nickname Les Rouches (The Reds), and they host their home matches at Stade Maurice Dufrasne in the Sclessin district, a ground named after a former club president that has long been renowned for one of the finest atmospheres in Belgian football.
Standard's history, however, is not only about trophies — it also includes a story that changed football rules worldwide. In 1990, club midfielder Jean-Marc Bosman wanted to move to French side Dunkerque after his contract expired, but the rules at the time allowed clubs to demand a transfer fee even for out-of-contract players. Standard refused to sanction the move, and the case reached the European Court of Justice. The December 1995 ruling, known as the Bosman ruling, brought EU footballers into line with European labour law, abolishing transfer fees after the expiry of contracts. For the club, the affair has gone down in history as one of the most significant cases football has ever known.
Sportingly, the club's finest period came at the turn of the 1960s and 1970s. Three consecutive league titles (1969, 1970, 1971) and two further championships in 1982 and 1983, won under coach Raymond Goethals with players such as goalkeeper Michel Preud'homme and defender Eric Gerets, cemented Standard's standing in Belgium. In 1982 the club reached the final of the European Cup Winners' Cup, losing 1–2 to Barcelona at the Camp Nou, with Allan Simonsen scoring from the penalty spot for the Belgians.
After years in the wilderness, the club returned to the top in the 21st century, lifting the title in 2007–08 and 2008–09 and adding Belgian Cups in 2011, 2016, 2018 and 2021. Standard's fiercest rival remains Anderlecht, and their meetings — known as the Belgian "Klassieker" — regularly produce the most heated duels of the season. The supporters at Sclessin, faithful even in difficult times, remain one of the most recognisable features of Belgian football.