This season, two teams will be automatically promoted to
Belgian Pro League and promotion play-off winner will be matched against last placed top tier team with no direct relegation due to top tier's expansion to 18 teams from 2026–27 onwards.
Incoming •
Olympic Charleroi and
Jong KAA Gent were promoted from the
2024–25 Belgian Division 1, respectively as ACFF (Francophone) and VV (Flemish) champions. Olympic Charleroi return to the second tier after 17 years absence, while Jong KAA Gent make their debut at this level. •
Beerschot and
Kortrijk were relegated from the
2024–25 Belgian Pro League. Beerschot immediately returned after just one season at the top level, while Kortrijk had been continuously at this level since 2008, ending their streak after 17 seasons.
Outgoing •
Zulte Waregem and
La Louvière were promoted to the
2025–26 Belgian Pro League, respectively as champions and runners-up. •
Deinze dissolved mid-way through the last season.
Name change •
RWDM announced on 6 June 2025 that it would change name to Daring Brussels, a reference to the former now defunct club
Daring Club de Bruxelles. However, following large protests by the fans, the club reinstated the letters RWDM and renamed itself again just one month later, to RWDM Brussels. •
Lokeren-Temse announced on 1 July 2025 that it would change its name to KSC Lokeren, reverting to the original name by which the former club
K.S.C. Lokeren Oost-Vlaanderen was initially known. While maintaining close cooperation with neighbors Temse, the two municipalities diverged in their football club support, with the supporters of Temse predominantly choosing to support SV Blauw Wit Temse, a club founded in 2020 when KSV Temse and K.S.C. Lokeren Oost-Vlaanderen merged to form the current team.
Controversy about U23 partecipation and status By the end of February 2025, the Pro League voted in favor of a new competition format for the coming seasons, with part of the haggling between club presidents resulting in a new rule for the then ongoing season (
2024–25 Challenger Pro League) which entered with immediate effect, stating that a minimum of four U23 would always need to be present in the Challenger Pro League. At the time of the decision, there were still seven matchdays to play and Jong Genk was in a relegation spot, but due to this rule the club was anyhow spared of relegation. In the end, Jong Genk did finish in a relegation spot and was officially reported as being relegated, due to the fact that the new proposal had not yet passed all instances for approval. By the end of June approval was given and the club was officially spared. On 1 July 2025 however,
Francs Borains,
Lokeren and
Seraing together launched a formal appeal against the reform citing it unfair that U23 cannot be relegated whilst non-U23 teams can. Meanwhile the new calendar, including Jong Genk, was already released on 3 July 2025. The Belgian Competition Authority ruled that they have a fair point, but somehow still ruled against them. Another similar appeal by Belgian champions Union SG is still open. On 9 October 2025, Francs Borains, Lokeren, and Seraing launched a new appeal, now with the Belgian Authority for Sports Arbitration. In March 2026, the
Belgian Competition Authority rules that this was an illegal and unfair measure compared to the non-U23 teams and that the Pro League was forced to pay a yearly fine of 12 million Euros until the rule was abolished. On 31 March 2026, the
Pro League voted to abolish the rule from the
2026–27 season, but replaced it with a rule that, in case one or two U23 teams are relegated, replacement U23 team(s) should be promoted from the respective wing(s), to always keep the number of U23 teams in the division at a minimum of four. This would mean that newly promoted U23 teams, as a result of this rule, could be promoted instead of the (non-U23) amateur champions in their wing, despite ending much lower in the standings. The amateur organisations from both the Flemish and Francophone wings will now need to vote on this decision, and in case it is rejected, the Pro League will need to reconvene. Furthermore, the Pro League is investigating provisional measures so that non-U23 teams that would be relegated in the 2025–26 Challenger Pro League despite ending above a U23 team, do not have to be relegated this season. As a result of this, since the end of March 2026, it is unclear which (if any) team(s) will be relegated this season. ==Team information==