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| Full name | Koninklijke Atletiek Associatie Gent | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | De Buffalo's (The Buffalos) Gantoise | |||
| Founded | 1864 (as a gymnastics association) 1900 (as a football association) | |||
| Ground | Planet Group Arena | |||
| Capacity | 20,175[1] | |||
| Chairman | Sam Baro | |||
| Sporting Director | Arnar Viðarsson | |||
| Head coach | Wouter Vrancken | |||
| League | Belgian Pro League | |||
| 2023–24 | Belgian Pro League, 7th of 16 | |||
| Website | http://www.kaagent.be | |||
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Koninklijke Atletiek Associatie Gent (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈkoːnɪŋkləkə ʔɑtləˈtik ɑsoːˈɕaːsi ˈɣɛnt]; English: Royal Athletic Association Ghent), often simply known as Gent or by their nickname De Buffalo's (English: The Buffalos), is a Belgian professional sports club, based in the city of Ghent, East Flanders. Their football team is the best known section within the club and has been playing in the Belgian First Division A since the 1989–90 season. They won the national league once, in 2014–15, in addition to four Belgian Cup victories. Gent played their home matches in the Jules Ottenstadion in Gentbrugge from 1920 until 2013, when they moved to the Ghelamco Arena. Their team colours are blue and white. The principal sponsor is Baloise.
The field hockey and track and field divisions were founded in 1864, making it one of the oldest sports clubs in Belgium. The club was then known under its French name La Gantoise (and it is still referred to as such in the French-speaking part of Belgium). They changed their name to the current Dutch version in 1971. The football division opened in 1900. The nickname of the club is De Buffalo's, a term coined after a visit of the original Buffalo Bill and his Wild West circus to the city in the early 20th century.[2] Their logo features a Native American in profile. The origins of this logo are attributed to the feather headdresses worn by the Indian chiefs who performed with Buffalo Bill, though this logo has garnered some controversy in recent years.[3][4]
Gent enjoyed its first spell at the highest level in Belgian football between 1913–14 and 1928–29, and a second one from 1936–37 to 1966–67. In the 1970s and 1980s, the club had several promotions and relegations between the first and second divisions, before returning to the highest level in 1989. The club reached the quarter-finals of the 1991–92 UEFA Cup, which is their best achievement ever in European competitions.
Aside from football, Gent also have other sports sections in track and field and field hockey.
- ^ De Ghelamco Arena kaagent.be (last check 30 March 2018)
- ^ "KAA Gent and Their Unusual Nickname". 18 February 2016.
- ^ "Logo". KA Gent. Archived from the original on 28 August 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ Rhodin, Alexander (7 May 2018). "Native American Mascots Live On in Europe". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 7 May 2018. Retrieved 3 October 2024.