Courtois (34) has spoken about his future, both at club and national team level. In the Play talk show "Gert's Table," topics included his possible return to Genk and the competition for Belgium's goalkeeper position. "Do I want to be the number one goalkeeper at the Euros? Yes."
With Courtois absent, Belgium is fighting for a spot in the Nations League quarterfinals, while Courtois is already looking to the future. Content creators Niel and Senne visited the Belgian in Madrid.
Courtois also discussed his professional future. In June, the Real Madrid goalkeeper made a minority equity investment in Genk through his company NXTPLAY. Genk is the club where he was developed and took his first steps in professional football. "Since I own shares in Genk, perhaps I will return in a different capacity," he said.
That is to say, in a "different capacity." Limburg fans had better abandon the dream of seeing Courtois play in a Genk shirt again someday. Courtois said: "We've already done a lot of good things there, and I prefer to keep it that way." He also stated: "I hope to end my career at Real Madrid."
Now, about the Belgium national team. This is a sensitive topic. "My idea was to perhaps retire after the World Cup," Courtois had previously stated on DAZN. "But during the World Cup, I changed my mind." However, Courtois also said that he wanted to give his body some rest, and it would be best to skip this Nations League campaign.
The goalkeeper and head coach Mark van Bommel eventually agreed that Courtois would miss the entire Nations League. He was now asked if he still wanted to be the number one goalkeeper for the 2028 European Championship. "Yes," his answer was clear.
This means Courtois will still play for the national team. He said: "This was also agreed upon beforehand and communicated externally. Of course, I still have to compete for my position as agreed with the coach. Lammens has performed well, and competition is important. Belgium has very good goalkeepers."