Christian Benteke is being linked with a return to Belgian football, with D.C. United’s centre-forward rumoured to be on RSC Anderlecht’s radar as his contract situation in Major League Soccer moves towards a possible free-agent scenario.
Data from Transfermarkt lists an upcoming move that would see the 35-year-old leave D.C. United for “Without Club” in early 2026, indicating he could be available without a transfer fee, a factor likely to encourage interest from clubs such as Anderlecht. The speculation currently carries no stated probability and remains at the rumour stage.
Benteke, valued at €1.50m in the latest market assessment on 11 December 2025, has seen his worth decline steadily from the peak years that brought big-money moves to Aston Villa, Liverpool and Crystal Palace. Even so, his physical profile – a 1.90m right-footed centre-forward – and vast experience in the Premier League and MLS make him an attractive short-term option for sides seeking a traditional target man.
The Kinshasa-born forward, who holds both Belgian and DR Congo nationality, left Crystal Palace for D.C. United in August 2022 and has since become one of the MLS club’s leading attacking figures. While the current dataset does not provide recent individual match details, his role as a focal point in Washington has sustained his value and visibility late in his career.
Benteke’s club journey has taken him from youth football at Standard Liège and Genk through loan stints at KV Kortrijk and KV Mechelen, then on to Genk’s first team before his breakthrough at Aston Villa and subsequent spells with Liverpool and Crystal Palace.
A move to Anderlecht would mark his first appearance in the Belgian top flight since leaving Genk in 2012 and could offer a final high-profile chapter in a career that has already spanned several major leagues. Should the transfer materialise, it would not only bring him full circle geographically, but also present a chance to reinforce his legacy in Belgian football.
