Teams To Watch At Euro 2016: Belgium, United

Belgium is an aberration.

That’s how Charles de Gaulle once described the country–”an aberration of history.” It consists entirely of territory that has changed hands dozens of times over the course of thousands of years. Even though mostly everyone spoke French, the country was a part of the Netherlands when it seceded in 1830. And in 1925, it was joined by a bit of Prussia that had been annexed as reparation for the atrocities of World War I.

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Out of these disparate pieces, a new country was forged. A small nation, without a strong national identity or much patriotic pride. To this day, the three factions of Dutch-speaking Flemings, French-speaking Walloons, and Germans keep mostly to themselves, with their own regions, TV channels, publications, culture and governments. They have a tacit understanding that they’ll stay in a national marriage of convenience. For the children.

Belgium’s soccer scene is an aberration too, further proof that there’s no correlation whatsoever between population size and national team prowess. Thanks to a centralized and enormously efficient talent recognition and development system, a country of just 11 million has produced one of the strongest teams around, ranked No. 1 in the world by FIFA from November through March. Nurturing soccer talent is one of the few things Belgium does very well on a federal level, collectively and ungrudgingly.

Fittingly, the Red Devils are managed by former politician Marc Wilmots–who is also a former standout attacking midfielder for Belgium, Schalke and some other clubs. After his playing career, he won a Senate seat for a conservative Walloon party but quit after just two years to return to soccer full-time, a highly unusual and frowned-upon move.

Wilmots has been in place for more than four years, meaning he might well be the longest-serving Belgian in a public position in the entire country, as governments continue to dissolve amid endless political upheaval. He has built an astonishingly diverse team, reflecting the grab bag of ancient cities, former colonies and immigration flows Belgium was patched together from.

His squad is awash with Premier League stars, like goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois; defenders Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen and Vincent Kompany (the injured captain); midfielders Moussa Dembele and Marouane Fellaini; and forwards Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne, Christian Benteke and Romelu Lukaku. Midfielders Axel Witsel, Dries Mertens and Radja Nainggolan are some of the most underrated players in Europe. And defender Jason Denayer and forwards Michy Batshuayi, Divock Origi and Yannick Carrasco–who scored the equalizer for Atletico Madrid in the Champions League final–will soon be stars as well. (They also have Liverpool’s starting goalkeeper Simon Mignolet, for whatever that’s worth).

Loaded with talent, Belgium previously qualified for its first World Cup since 2002–when a disallowed Wilmots goal should have seen the Belgians through to the quarterfinals against Brazil–and for its first Euro since 1984. (Belgium was automatically admitted to Euro 2000 because it was the co-host.) Between the two qualifying campaigns, the Belgians lost just once in 20 games–to Wales, in a game they dominated.

But what they have accomplished off the field is more impressive still. Towards the end of Belgium’s 12-year major tournament drought, when it failed to qualify for five straight Euros and World Cups, the country itself began to fray as well. The Walloon elite had traditionally dominated the Flemish working class. But over the decades, the roles had been reversed. The Flemish, now the net sponsors of the Walloons economically, demanded more power. A hardline Flemish separatist minority threatened to break away and the country wasn’t terribly far from falling apart in the midst of a years-long constitutional standoff.

The national team and its success helped to smooth over all the angst and hurt. Previously, when the Red Devils actually managed to overcome widespread apathy and attract a respectable crowd, they would cheer on their country in English with chants of “Belgium” as a compromise to the stubborn language divide. But ahead of the 2014 World Cup the “All together” rallying cry–tous ensemble, in French/allen samen in Dutch–did indeed unite a nation in their run to the quarterfinals. When Belgium beat the United States in the round of 16, even on-duty policemen were moved to join in from their squad cars.

Now it’s up to Wilmots and his men to help heal another national wound–the March bombings in Brussels by ISIS that killed 32. Tous ensemble. Allen samen.