In 1895, Ernest Grisar acquired a racecourse with its buildings and annexes near the "Beerschothof" park in Kiel, in the south of Antwerp, which consisted of a 19-hectare plot of land with stables, changing rooms, chalet, and a grandstand.

[1] Four years later, his son Alfred, seeing the place and its facilities, suggested the idea of creating a multi-sports club where they could practice field hockey, polo, cricket, rugby, tennis, athletics and, of course, football.

Following Ernest's approval, Alfred founded the Beerschot Athletic Club in the colors of purple and white on 3 September 1899,[2] doing so with the help of his friends Max Elsen, Edouard Lysen, Charles Hunter, and Paul Müller.

Ernest died a few weeks later in November, so his son then became the owner of the facilities and the club that he had named Beerschot, in reference to a nearby wooded park called "Beerschotshof".

[4] Following this defeat, the majority of the Antwerp players left the club and joined the newly founded Beerschot AC under the chairmanship of Max Elsen and later in the season Paul Havenith.

[5] There were so many that Antwerp was unable to continue in the highest division and withdrew temporarily from the league; this episode was the catalyst for the rivalry between the two sides.

[5] Herbert Potts and Jan Robyns were named captain and vice-captain of the football team, who played their first match on 6 May 1900, in a friendly game against the Antwerp Reserves.

[5] The club's Secretary General was Frédéric Vanden Abeele and the treasurer was Albert Grisar's brother Louis, while the captain of the cricket team was Charles Maggee, who also worked as a football referee.

[7] In early 1901, Beerschot AC was the driving force behind what is now considered the first-ever (unofficial) match between the national teams of Belgium and the Netherlands, which was held in the club's field on 28 April.