Brugges - The Jan Breydel Stadium - Capacity: 29,042 All Seater
About The Jan Breydel Stadium The Jan Breydel is named after one of the regions most famous martyrs – and a hero of the Battle of the Golden Spurs. It was opened in 1975 as the Olympic Stadium, despite the fact that the city has never hosted the Olympics. The stadium was redeveloped in the late 1990’s after the stadium was chosen for one of the Euro 2000 venues.
The stadium hosted a number of key games in the tournament, including the dramatic group decider between Yugoslavia and Spain, France versus Denmark and the quarter final between Spain and France. The stadium today consists of four separate stands that have a small lower tier/paddock, and fences around the pitch. The view from the upper tiers is quite good, and is certainly favourable for the neutral fans.
Who plays there? The stadium is home to the two professional clubs in the city – Club and Cercle Brugge. Whilst the former are certainly the more successful of the two teams, Cercle actually won the Belgian First Division before their rivals in 1911.
Cercle Brugge - http://www.cerclebrugge.be have certainly had a more turbulent recent history, bouncing between the top two divisions in the last decade before returning to the Jupiter League in 2003. However, their achievements have been modest to say the least. After their first Belgian title in 1911, they have won two subsequent titles in 1927, when they actually won the domestic double, and 1930. They also won the 1985 Belgian Cup Final, which actually gave them their one and only chance to play in European competition. In the subsequent European Cup Winners Cup campaign the team went out in the first round, losing on away goals to Dynamo Dresden. The club have never been known for attracting the best players in Belgium, although they did have the services of Danish legend Morten Olsen for a number of seasons in the 1970’s.
Club Brugge - http://www.clubbrugge.be on the other hand are second only to Anderlecht in terms of domestic success in Belgium. They have won the Jupiter League on thirteen occasions, although they only recorded one victory before 1973. The club were originally formed in 1891 and played for many years in the amateur leagues, before turning professional at the start of the 20th Century. They won their first title in 1920, but had to wait nearly fifty years for a second honour. In the 1970’s, under the leadership of Ernst Happel the club won four successive league titles, one Belgian Cup and made appearances in the UEFA Cup final of 1976, and the European Cup final of 1978, losing to Liverpool on both occasions.
The club continued to enjoy success in the late 1980’s and 1990’s, providing competition to Anderlecht and their quest to be the best team in Belgium. They won the title in 2003 and 2005 but have had to play second fiddle in the past two years to the likes of Genk, Anderlecht and Gent. They did enjoy some success in the Belgian Cup in 2007 when they beat Standard Liege to take the trophy.
Their European pedigree is second to none in Belgium football, although since the change of format to the Champions League they have struggled to break out of the group stages, finishing 3rd in a weak group in 2003/04, and 3rd again in 2005/06 behind Juventus and Bayern Munich. Some famous players who have worn the famous black and blue shirts include Jan Ceulemans, Jean Pierre Papin, and ex- West Ham midfielder Franky Van der Elst. How to get there The stadium is located to the west of the small city centre, close to the E403 motorway. It is walk able from the city centre – simply follow Gistelse Steenweg westbound out of the city gates. To get to the relevant gate from the Markt, follow Sint-Jakobsstraat northwards, and then turn left into Noordzandstraat. Allow yourself 25 minutes to walk from the city centre. If you want to use public transport then catch bus line 5 or 15 which runs from the railway station to the road to the north of the stadium.
For more details, go to Footiemap.com to see their Brugge map page.
Getting a ticket If you are in town and want to watch a game you’d certainly have more luck in getting a ticket for a Cercle match where the average attendance is just under 6,000. Last season Club Brugge were the best supported club in Belgium, piping Anderlecht and Standard Liege with an average attendance of 25,329.
Tickets for both clubs start from €13 for a place in the Noord or Sud paddock areas behind the goals, to €30 for a seat in the main stand upper tier. Tickets can be purchased via email at kaartenverkoop@clubbrugge.be or by phone at +32 50 40 21 35 for Club Brugge, and +32 50 34 32 45 for Cercle Brugge.
Getting around Brugge is a very small city, and apart from a short bus ride from the central station into the city, you can cover most of the main attractions, bars and restaurants on foot. If you do need to catch a bus anywhere then a €1 ticket is valid for an hour.
Bruges does not have its own airport, although a few years ago Ostend airport some 10 miles away had daily flights from London Stansted with Ryanair. Therefore, the easiest way to reach the city is to fly into Brussels Zaventeem airport, which is located around an hour away. The airport is located north west of the capital city and Brugge is a simple train ride away – with a change required at Brussels Nord. Total journey time is around 90 minutes. The airport is served on a daily basis by BMI from East Midlands and London Heathrow, BA from London Heathrow, Brussels Airlines from London Gatwick, Manchester and Newcastle, Eastern Airways from Cardiff, Durham Valley and Southampton, Flybe from Manchester and VLM Airlines from London City. Brussels Nord is also accessible by the frequent Eurostar services from London Waterloo.
The other option from the UK is by ferry into Zeebrugge or Ostend and then a short bus or train ride into Brugge. Both ports are within 20 miles of the city.
About The Jan Breydel Stadium
Cercle Brugge - 
