From Latvia to Ecuador: The Wild Recruitment Blueprint Behind Europe’s Surprise Package

From Latvia to Ecuador: The Wild Recruitment Blueprint Behind Europe’s Surprise Package

Union Saint-Gilloise may have suffered a heavy defeat to Newcastle United tonight, but when you factor in that almost no one knew of the club's existence outside of Belgium a decade ago, to see USG in this position in the first place is an extraordinary achievement. Or is it?

💛💙 This is beautiful. Union Saint-Gilloise played their first ever match in the UEFA Champions League... look at the reactions from the players when they hear the anthem. 🥹 pic.twitter.com/vL9xMA0BuR

— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) September 21, 2025

A Squad of All-Sorts

USG have scoured every corner of the world using data-driven techniques to build a calculated squad full of underdogs, who have arrived in Belgium from leagues often overlooked by a lot of their Champions League peers. To paint the full picture, you have to look no further than the starting eleven from their UCL debut, a 3-1 away victory at PSV Eindhoven. The lineup included:

• Christian Burgess (signed from the English League One in 2020)
• Kevin Mac Allister (signed from the Argentinian Liga Profesional in 2023)
• Anan Khalaili (signed from the Israeli Premier League in 2024)
• Mathias Rasmussen (signed from the Norwegian Eliteserien in 2023)
• Ousseynou Niang (signed from the Latvian Virsliga in 2024)
• Kevin Rodriguez (signed from the Ecuadorian Serie A in 2024)
• Promise David (signed from the Estonian Premium Liiga in 2024)
• Adem Zorgane (originally moved to Belgium from the Algerian Ligue 1 in 2021 before joining USG in 2025)

The group that walked out to that classic Champions League anthem for the first time contained imports from eight different nations outside of Belgium and Europe’s top seven leagues. Looking deeper into their squad, you will also find signings from the Swiss second tier, the Danish Superligaen, the Slovenian Prva Liga, more players from the English League One and Estonian Premium Liiga, and a certain 32-year-old Sofiane Boufal (yes, he’s still going).

At 21, Promise David was playing in Estonian third division.

His mom was on the phone telling him that all his friends in Canada have graduated college, making him think he’s wasting his time.

Today, at 24, he’s a #CanMNT striker and a champion in Belgium. This is his story. pic.twitter.com/emzjPyBPeN

— Anthony (@AnthonyKyaw) August 8, 2025

Thought we’d dug deep enough? Think again. Since the club were taken over by Brighton & Hove Albion owner, Tony Bloom, in 2018, USG have signed:

• Koki Mashida (signed from the Japanese J-League in 2023, now playing for Hoffenheim)
• Cameron Puertas (signed from the Swiss Super League in 2022, now playing for Werder Bremen)
• Victor Boniface (signed from the Norwegian Eliteserien in 2022, now playing for Werder Bremen)
• Deniz Undav (signed from the German Liga 3 in 2020, now playing for VfB Stuttgart)

The point that is being made here is not that USG are a top export for the Bundesliga, but that, despite being a Belgian club, they represent a plethora of nations stretching across every continent.

Recent former players like Madagascan international Loïc Lapoussin, Luxembourgien international, Anthony Moris, and Maltese international Teddy Teuma represent countries that lie between 96th and 166th in the current FIFA world rankings.

This means that the club's sporting director, Chris O’Loughlin, chief executive Philippe Bormans, chairman, Alex Muzio, and co-owner, Tony Bloom, have established contacts in at least 20 countries, including Belgium and Europe’s top seven leagues.

The trio were all signed under Bloom’s regime, which might lead one to assume this ‘thinking outside of the box’ scouting regime is a recent tactic implemented. It’s not.

🇧🇪 Union Saint-Gilloise from the Belgian capital of Brussels are national champions for the first time in 90 years and the 12th time in total!!!

USG were promoted only four years ago and have come agonisingly close to the title every season since but have now finally done it! pic.twitter.com/dOccO4s30o

— The Sweeper (@SweeperPod) May 25, 2025

Postcolonial Pioneers

Julien Kialunda made a name for himself playing football in his home nation of the Democratic Republic of Congo back when it was still under Belgian colonial rule in the 1950s. The Central African state gained independence in 1960, the same year that Kialunda would move to Belgium to play for Union Saint-Gilloise.

By doing so, Kialunda became one of the first Congolese players to play in Europe, and Union one of the first clubs to create a relationship with the Central African country in a post-colonial world. In turn, many highly talented Belgian footballers of Congolese heritage have gone on to play on the greatest of stages, partially down to the path Kialunda paved over 60 years ago. The list includes the likes of Vincent Kompany, Romelu Lukaku, Youri Tielemans, Christian Benteke, and Michy Batshuayi.

Kialunda’s story only reinforces USG’s ethos further, as a pioneering team in a postcolonial world, leaving a lasting message: Union are a global club.

Sussex Connections & Ace Analytics

Brighton & Hove Albion owner, Tony Bloom, is often the man cited when Union-SG are raised in conversation. The Belgian outfit has a renowned connection with the Premier League club since the poker professional began his investment journey with USG in 2018. Eight players have switched between the two clubs as a result of Bloom’s involvement. As a result of their seven-year journey together, Union returned to the Belgian first division after a 48-year absence in 2021, and won their first top-flight title in 90 years this summer.

Whilst Bloom might be the face of the brand, it is Alex Muzio who has put in the hard work behind the scenes in the Belgian capital, and he has proven to be a key individual in the club’s success. Muzio became USG’s majority shareholder and owner in 2023 to allow Brighton & Hove Albion and Union Saint-Gilloise to both compete in the Europa League. However, he has been a part-owner of the club since 2018.

From suiting up for his birthday party to lifting the Belgian Cup. 🤩

Congratulations to our president Alex Muzio for his 41th birthday! pic.twitter.com/q3NovWLJ1G

— Royale Union Saint-Gilloise (@UnionStGilloise) April 17, 2025

Muzio, like Bloom, is a figure who emerged from the gambling world. The pair met through the company Starlizard, a sporting prediction and data specialist company set up by Bloom in 2006 that Muzio worked for. Here’s where it gets interesting – Union has a deal with Jamestown Analytics, a football data company that licenses Starlizard to use its data to produce betting figures relevant for football.

Jamestown Analytics have been quoted as the most effective and influential data company operating in football right now. The Camden-based company are careful not to reveal their methods, as a way of protecting their success. They work closely with the clubs they partner with, like USG, to conduct squad appraisals, before giving the club their desires by searching through their global database to create a shortlist of hidden gems that are seething with potential.

Jamestown have access to all the information from every league in the world; therefore, it comes as no surprise that Muzio has overseen dozens of transfers at USG from every nook and cranny of the earth. Other football clubs like Hearts (currently top of the Scottish Premiership) and Como (who have risen from Serie C to become an established Serie A side in five years) have benefited from Jamestown’s tailored process. Due to their selectiveness, only a few benefit from their mysterious research revolution that can transform a team with a shoestring budget.

The perfect advert for Jamestown analytics data based recruitment

Signing players from the most obscure pockets of the world totally disregarding reputation of the club and league they play for just finding a good player and pulling the trigger and it’s certainly working https://t.co/illXpRlJwm

— JF 🇬🇧🏁🇩🇪 (@RFCNUFC23) September 27, 2025

Speaking to the Independent earlier this week, Muzio said:

“We make a really conscious effort at Union to not change. Our slogan is ‘it’s just Union’… but in the Champions League.”

The club have swiftly become a dominant force in Belgium; the six-point gap between USG and the rest of the Belgian Pro League nine games into the season suggests that they are well on track to secure back-to-back titles for the first time in 90 years. Yet, Muzio and Union stay humble and grounded, whilst subtly implying on and off the pitch that they are here for a good time, and a long time.