Historical Crests KAA Gent

Name: ​ ​KAA Gent

Nickname(s): De Buffalo's (The Buffalos)

Founded: 1864

Stadium: Planet Group Arena 

​ ​ ​ ​ (formerly Ghelamco Arena)

Capacity: ​ 20,175

KAA Gent Crest History

The first official KAA Gent crest appeared in 1914, shortly after the club received the Royal designation and became Association Royale Athlétique La Gantoise. The badge featured a traditional heraldic shield displaying the club's initials in blue and white, reflecting the elegant style of early twentieth-century football emblems while emphasising the club's new royal status.

In 1959, the club introduced a refined version of its traditional crest. Retaining the heraldic shield and blue-and-white colour scheme, the badge featured updated lettering and cleaner proportions, giving the emblem a more modern appearance while preserving the visual identity that had represented La Gantoise for more than four decades.

Following the club's official name change to Koninklijke Atletiek Associatie Gent in 1971, KAA Gent unveiled a completely redesigned crest featuring the profile of a Native American for the first time. Inspired by the club's long-standing nickname, "De Buffalo's", the new emblem replaced the traditional initials while retaining the club's blue-and-white colours, establishing one of the most distinctive visual identities in Belgian football.

In 1980, the crest underwent a subtle refinement. The Native American profile was redrawn with cleaner lines and improved proportions, while the shield and typography were modernised to create a more balanced and contemporary appearance without altering the club's established identity.

A further redesign arrived in 2009, introducing sharper detailing, updated typography and simplified graphics to improve the badge's clarity across print and digital media. Although modernised, the crest remained instantly recognisable through its famous Native American profile.

In 2013, coinciding with the club's move to the Ghelamco Arena, KAA Gent introduced a new circular crest following a supporters' referendum. The redesigned badge featured a forward-facing Native American profile together with the inscriptions "KAA Gent" and "Stamnummer 7", successfully combining the club's rich heritage with a modern visual identity. The emblem remains in use today.

KAA Gent Club History

Founded in 1864 as a gymnastics association, KAA Gent is one of Belgium's oldest sporting institutions. The club's football section was established in 1900 as Association Athlétique La Gantoise, adopting the blue-and-white colours that remain synonymous with the club today. In 1914, the club received the Royal designation, becoming Association Royale Athlétique La Gantoise, before adopting its current Dutch name, Koninklijke Atletiek Associatie Gent, in 1971.

KAA Gent established itself in the Belgian First Division during the early twentieth century, becoming a regular top-flight club after promotion in 1913. Although league success proved elusive, the club consistently competed at the highest level and enjoyed one of its strongest early seasons by finishing runners-up in the 1954–55 Belgian First Division. Gent claimed its first major trophy in 1963–64, defeating Diest to win the Belgian Cup, earning qualification for the European Cup Winners' Cup.

Following periods of promotion and relegation during the 1970s and 1980s, KAA Gent secured a permanent return to the Belgian top flight in 1989. The club gradually re-established itself as one of Belgium's leading sides, winning a second Belgian Cup in 1983–84 before adding another in 2009–10, a season in which Gent also finished as runners-up in the Belgian Pro League and qualified for European competition.

The most successful period in the club's history began during the 2010s. Under coach Hein Vanhaezebrouck, KAA Gent won its first-ever Belgian league championship in 2014–15, securing automatic qualification for the UEFA Champions League. The following season, the Buffalos reached the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, becoming only the second Belgian club to progress beyond the group stage in the modern Champions League era. The club also lifted the Belgian Super Cup in 2015, further cementing its place among Belgium's elite.

Another successful chapter followed in the 2020s. KAA Gent won its fourth Belgian Cup in 2021–22 and enjoyed consistent runs in European competition, reaching the quarter-finals of the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League and remaining a regular participant in UEFA tournaments. Since 2013, the club has played its home matches at the Planet Group Arena (formerly the Ghelamco Arena), Belgium's first purpose-built football stadium of the twenty-first century.

KAA Gent's fiercest rivalry is with Club Brugge in the Battle of Flanders (Slag om Vlaanderen), one of the most important derbies in Belgian football. The fixture reflects the historic sporting and cultural rivalry between the cities of Ghent and Bruges and regularly attracts some of the largest crowds in the Belgian Pro League. Local matches against KRC Gent, the city's oldest football club, also carry historical significance, although they have become increasingly rare due to the clubs competing at different levels. 

Go to KAA Gent Ground & Tickets

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