Mark van Bommel reacts after the presentation: “We will give everything we’ve got.”

The bullet is through the church: Mark van Bommel has officially been appointed as the new head coach of Belgium. The PSV icon succeeds Rudi Garcia and signs a contract through the 2028 European Championship.

In conversation with the KBVB, the Belgian football association, Van Bommel gives his first reaction to the fact that the former midfielder has been appointed as head coach of the Red Devils. '''It is a great honor to become head coach of Belgium. Belgium has outstanding players and enormous potential. Together with my technical staff, we want to build a team that is disciplined, ambitious and brave enough to compete with the very best'', as the newly appointed head coach says.

Under Rudi Garcia, Van Bommel's predecessor, the Belgians at the World Cup in North America still reached the quarterfinal in which the eventual world champion Spain was too strong with 2-1. Now it is up to the former PSV players to guide the Belgian team to the European Championship 2028.

Van Bommel is certainly looking forward to having the Red Devils under his care for the next two years. ''Success is never guaranteed, but hard work, honesty and commitment are. We will give everything to help this team improve every day and make the Belgian public proud. I look forward to meeting the players, the staff and the supporters and starting this new chapter together'', says the former footballer.

The Belgian football federation’s sports director, Vincent Mannaert, is also looking forward to working with the native of Limburg. ''I’m very pleased that Mark van Bommel and his assistants have taken on our challenge. They are hungry and ambitious. Thanks to their international experience as a coach and a player, I’m convinced they can help our Red Devils to grow further, achieve results, and make full use of their potential on an individual and collective level,'' said Mannaert.