Royal Excel Mouscron
Full nameRoyal Excel Mouscron
Nickname(s)Les Hurlus
Short nameREM
Founded2010 (2010)
Dissolved2022 (2022)
GroundStade Le Canonnier
Capacity10,800[1]
OwnerGérard López[2]
ChairmanPatrick Declerck
ManagerJosé Jeunechamps
LeagueBelgian First Division B
2021–22Belgian First Division B, 7th (folded)
WebsiteClub website

Royal Excel Mouscron (French pronunciation: [mukʁɔ̃], Dutch pronunciation: [muˈskrun]), commonly known as Mouscron or familiarly as REM, was a Belgian professional football club based in Mouscron.

The team was formed as Royal Mouscron-Péruwelz in the spring of 2010 as a result of the merging between bankrupt R.E. Mouscron and R.R.C. Peruwelz. It won promotion to the Belgian Pro League in 2014 and changed its name in the summer of 2016, being relegated in 2021 and filing for bankruptcy a year later.

The club was owned by nearby French club Lille OSC from 2012 to 2015, and by a Maltese consortium linked to Israeli agent Pini Zahavi from 2015 to 2018, Pairoj Piempongsant of Carabao Energy Drink from 2018 to 2020, and Spanish-Luxembourgish businessman Gérard López from 2020 to 2022. The club was investigated by the Belgian federal judiciary over alleged financial offences relating to Zahavi.[2]

History

Foundation and promotions

Following the liquidation and break-up of R.E. Mouscron, whose registration number was removed by the Royal Belgian Football Association, the city of Mouscron began negotiations with leaders of R.R.C. Peruwelz about a possible merge. After weeks of hesitation and uncertainty, an agreement was reached. The agreement was officially signed and announced on 11 March 2010. Debts of about €100,000 in R.R.C. Peruwelz's name were cleared while the city agreed to maintain the training center known as "Futurosport". The newly merged club, Royal Mouscron-Péruwelz, took on the history of R.R.C. Peruwelz, receiving matricule number 216 and keeping red and blue as its main colors.[3]

In its first season, it participated in Belgian Promotion A, the 4th level of Belgian football. They were promoted to the Belgian Third Division for the 2011–12 season, playing in Division A, while reaching Round 6 of the 2011–12 Belgian Cup before losing to Belgian Pro League club Beerschot on penalties 4–3.[4] They finished first in their division in league play, and thus were promoted to the Belgian Second Division. The next season Mouscron-Péruwelz finished 2nd and qualified for the promotion play-offs but lost; in the cup, they reached Round 6 again, losing 3–2 after extra time to Standard Liège.[5]

In 2013–14, Royal Mouscron-Péruwelz came fourth and made the playoffs, where they won promotion on the final day with a 4–2 win at Sint-Truidense V.V. while K.A.S. Eupen lost 2–1 at Oud-Heverlee Leuven. The result restored top-flight football to the city of Mouscron four years after the decline of Royal Excelsior Mouscron.[6]

Top-flight years and dissolution

In 2015, after their first season in the top flight, the club saw the termination of its partnership with neighbouring French Ligue 1 club Lille OSC, which had been the majority shareholder for the past three years. This was because Belgian businessman Marc Coucke had invested in Lille while being owner of Belgian top-flight team K.V. Oostende, and could not own interests in two teams in the same league.[7]

After the separation from Lille in 2015, the club was bought by a Maltese company involving Israeli agent Pini Zahavi, then transferred to another Maltese consortium controlled by his nephew Adar, to avoid FIFA's rules on agents owning clubs.[8]

The club had its best finish in the Belgian Cup in 2015–16, making the quarter-finals before a 2–1 loss at K.R.C. Genk.[9] In June 2016, the club changed its name to Royal Excel Mouscron, which it would remain until its bankruptcy.[10]

In March 2018, Thai businessman Pairoj Piempongsant of the Carabao Energy Drink bought 90% of the club's shares, with 10% remaining in local hands.[11] Eleven months later, the club was put in administration by the Belgian federal judiciary, due to alleged money laundering by Pini Zahavi.[12] In June 2019, a court in Mons ordered the club to restore the name Péruwelz due to an agreement between the two united clubs and the possession of that club's matricule number; the two clubs agreed not to restore the name.[13]

Spanish-Luxembourgish businessman Gérard López took over the club in May 2020, restoring its partnership with Lille, another one of his properties. He was ousted from Lille in December 2020.[2] The club's seven-year stay in the top flight ended with relegation in 2020–21.[14] In June 2021, former Belgium international Enzo Scifo was bought in as manager with Mbo Mpenza as director of football and his brother Émile Mpenza as Scifo's assistant, but all three were dismissed in October.[15]

In May 2022, the club were relegated two tiers to the fourth, after being refused a professional licence due to financial irregularities and a debt of around €10 million.[16] On 31 May, the club filed for bankruptcy.[17]

References

  1. ↑ Het stadion 'Le Canonnier', excel-foot.be (last check 30/03/2018)
  2. 1 2 3 Aarons, Ed (9 February 2021). "Ownership questions leave Belgian club Mouscron facing uncertain future". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  3. ↑ History of Royal Mouscron-Péruwelz
  4. ↑ "Le RMP avait fait trembler le Beerschot en 2011" [RMP made Beerschot tremble in 2011] (in French). Sud Info. 25 February 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  5. ↑ "Mouscron-Péruwelz – Standard 2–3: les Rouches en ont vu de toutes les couleurs" [Mouscron-Péruwelz – Standard 2–3: Les Rouches saw a bit of everything]. L'Avenir (in French). 25 September 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  6. ↑ "Tour final de D2: Mouscron-Péruwelz revient en Division 1, cinq ans après la faillite! (vidéos et photos)" [Final day of D2: Mouscron-Péruwels return to Division 1, five years after bankruptcy! (videos and photos)] (in French). Sud Info. 23 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  7. ↑ "Le LOSC et Mouscron, c'est fini" [LOSC and Mouscron, it's over] (in French). France 3. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  8. ↑ "Pini Zahavi, l'homme de l'ombre qui a rendu possible le transfert de Neymar au PSG" [Pini Zahavi, the man in the shadows who made Neymar's transfer to PSG possible]. La Dernière Heure (in French). 4 August 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  9. ↑ Makanga, Edgar (16 December 2015). "Croky Cup : deux coups d'éclat de Neeskens Kebano envoient le Racing Genk en demi-finale" [Croky Cup: two lightning bolts from Neeskens Kebano send Racing Genk into the semi-final] (in French). WalFoot. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  10. ↑ "Excel Mouscron : enfin une saison plus calme ?" [Excel Mouscron: finally a calmer season?] (in French). WalFoot. 19 July 2016. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  11. ↑ Huzler, Sébastien (27 March 2018). "Rachat de l'Excel: contrat de 5 ans pour le nouveau patron" [Redemption at Excel: 5-year contract for the new owner]. Le Soir (in French). Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  12. ↑ "Blanchiment dans le football : la justice belge place Mouscron "sous administration provisoire"" [Money laundering in football: Belgian judiciary puts Mouscron "under provisional administration"]. Sud Ouest (in French). 27 February 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  13. ↑ "Mouscron trouve un accord avec Péruwelz et ne doit pas changer de nom" [Mouscron find an agreement with Péruwelz and don't have to change their name] (in French). RTBF. 19 June 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  14. ↑ Maréchal, Edouard (14 May 2021). "Après Mouscron, Jorge Simao retrouve déjà un poste d'entraîneur" [After Mouscron, Jorge Simão already finds a new managerial job] (in French). WalFoot. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  15. ↑ "Mouscron : José Jeunechamps succède à Enzo Scifo sur le banc de l'Excel" [Mouscron: José Jeunechamps succeeds Enzo Scifo on Excel's bench] (in French). RTBF. 19 October 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  16. ↑ Bja, Rayan (10 May 2022). "L'Excel Mouscron de Gérard Lopez (ex-LOSC) rétrogradé au niveau amateur" [Gérard López's (ex-LOSC) Excel Mouscron relegated to amateur level]. Le Petit Lillois (in French). Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  17. ↑ "Belgique : le Royal Excel Mouscron fait faillite" [Belgium: Royal Excel Mouscron files for bankruptcy]. So Foot (in French). 1 June 2022. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
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