Bruges (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Hans Vanaken, midfielder for Club Brugge, celebrated winning his 3rd Belgian Golden Shoe award with a special light display in Bruges. The event highlighted his achievements and attracted many fans.
Hans Vanaken received the Golden Shoe Award. To celebrate, Club Brugge and its management team, SportPlus, organized a special event in Bruges. They worked with city officials to create a large light display on the city hall. This display was 424 square meters.
According to Kirsten Willem from Club Brugge, the club came up with the idea, and the city helped. Many fans and visitors gathered to see the bright projection, making the city centre lively and full of pride.
“The projection was our idea, but of course, we got the cooperation of the city of Bruges”,
Says Kirsten Willem, Head of Communications at Club Brugge.
How did Hans Vanaken celebrate his Golden Shoe win?
According to officials, Along with the light show, there was a film that made the tribute special. The film showed Hans Vanaken dreaming about his time at Club Brugge. They mentioned that it featured a younger version of him to show how he grew from a child with dreams to a successful player.
The projection and film played for 3 hours, so many people could see it. Kirsten Willem mentioned that this event celebrated Vanaken’s Golden Shoe win and honoured the bond between him, the club, and the city of Bruges.
Kirsten Willem said:
“A film was also launched together with the projection in which Hans dreams about his long career at Club with his child version.”
On January 15, 2020, Hans Vanaken received his second Belgian Golden Shoe award. This made him one of the top football players in Belgium. With this award, he joined great players like Wilfried Van Moer and Jan Ceulemans, who have each won it three times.
Vanaken said,
“That is a huge honour. I think it’s a shame that I never saw them play myself.”
Officials mentioned that the celebrations for Hans Vanaken were short because Club Brugge had an important game. Tonight, February 5, 2025, the team went to Genk for the second leg of the Croky Cup semi-final. In the first leg on January 15, 2025, Club Brugge won 2-1 at home against KRC Genk, with goals from Ordóñez and Tzolis.
