B. Bafdili

Bilal Bafdili's route to KV Mechelen's first team ran through the club's own reserve side. After youth spells at AFC Tubize and Waasland-Beveren, and two years in the Standard Liège academy, he joined Mechelen in 2022 and was assigned to Jong KV Mechelen in the Belgian Second Division A. There he made an immediate impression, scoring 15 goals in 28 appearances from midfield — numbers that pushed him towards the senior squad rather than a longer apprenticeship in the reserves.

He signed his first professional contract on 24 January 2023 and made his senior debut for KV Mechelen four days later. The step up came quickly by the standards of a player who had only just turned pro, and the club backed the decision in June 2024 by extending his contract to 2027, with the renewal reportedly valued at 330,000 euros.

Bafdili plays as an attacking midfielder, right-footed. Born in Charleroi to a family of Moroccan descent, he remains eligible for both Belgium and Morocco but has not yet been capped by either nation at senior or youth level. For now, his career has been built entirely within Belgian football, from the lower reaches of the Second Division A to a first-team role at KV Mechelen in the Pro League.