Why is Flanders lining up extra bars and big screens for Spain versus Belgium?
Flemish towns are extending café terraces, booking additional big screens and closing off streets so supporters can watch Belgium's Red Devils take on Spain together, according to a live round-up by the Flemish daily Het Laatste Nieuws.
In 30 seconds
- Het Laatste Nieuws is running a live, rolling round-up of how Flemish towns are preparing for Belgium versus Spain, citing extra bars, additional big screens and closed-off streets.
- In Belgium, closing streets and licensing outdoor screens and drink sales for fan zones falls to the municipal mayor (burgemeester) under local public-order powers, coordinated with local police.
- Spain are the reigning European champions, having won UEFA Euro 2024, making them a marquee opponent for the Red Devils.
- Public viewing of Red Devils matches is a long-running Belgian tradition, reappearing for significant national-team fixtures.
The story concerns preparations across Flemish towns — extra bars, additional big screens and street closures — for supporters to watch Belgium's national football team, the Rode Duivels (Red Devils), play Spain. Key named entities: Het Laatste Nieuws (HLN), the Flemish daily reporting the live build-up; the Rode Duivels / Red Devils, Belgium's men's national side; Spain (La Roja), reigning UEFA Euro 2024 champions; the burgemeester (municipal mayor), who holds the local public-order and public-space powers that permit fan zones; and Horeca Vlaanderen, the Flemish hospitality federation whose members benefit from public viewing.
Background
Public viewing of Red Devils matches has been a recurring feature of Belgian life through the national team's tournament runs of the past decade, drawing crowds to squares and fan zones whenever the opponent is significant enough to pull people out of their homes. The current occasion sits in the post-"golden generation" phase, as Belgium seeks a renewed identity, and pits them against Spain, the reigning European champions after Euro 2024.
What to do
Residents and drivers in affected Flemish centres should expect road closures and crowds around the match; supporters can plan to watch at organised fan zones and bars; and match-day specifics should be checked against official municipal, club and federation communications.
The Belgian angle
The build-up is concentrated in Flanders, where individual municipalities are setting up fan zones, booking screens and closing streets on a town-by-town basis. Residents of affected centres face altered traffic and busier, louder evenings, while the Flemish hospitality sector stands to gain one of its stronger trading nights around the fixture.
EvidenceDeveloping · 1 primary source · some details remain unconfirmedExplore evidence →Hide evidence ↑
- Publication date unavailable
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 25 Jul 2026
- Publication date unavailable
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 25 Jul 2026
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