Parking at OHL Leuven: from Imec to Den Dreef in 10 minutes

Parking for an OH Leuven match at the King Power at Den Dreef Stadium works without stress, if you know which three official car parks the club recommends and when each option is the smartest choice. OHL itself states on its mobility page that you should avoid the immediate area around the stadium to keep traffic flowing and to spare the residential neighbourhood. The club offers two car parks within walking distance: Parking Imec/Kapeldreef with 750 free spaces at fifteen minutes' walk, and Parking Philipssite with 1,150 paid spaces at ten minutes' walk. The car park directly on Kardinaal Mercierlaan is reserved for business hospitality on match days, and since October 2025 also open to neighbourhood residents and Sunday market visitors outside match hours.

This article puts the three car parks side by side with exact tariffs, capacity and walking distance, plus the timing that works for an evening match on Saturday, an afternoon match on Sunday, and the visiting fan who has never been to Heverlee before.

The King Power at Den Dreef Stadium: address and surroundings

The home ground of Oud-Heverlee Leuven sits at Kardinaal Mercierlaan 46 in Heverlee, postal code 3001. It is not a 30,000-seat mega-stadium: capacity is around 10,000 with stands A, B, C and D around the pitch and the fanshop on the grounds. The full sponsor name is "King Power at Den Dreef Stadium" since Thai sponsor King Power took over the naming rights.

The surrounding area is residential. Heverlee is a green neighbourhood with narrow streets, few wide arteries, and residential zones with blue parking-disc regimes. Especially Kardinaal Mercierlaan itself, Tervuursevest and Naamsevest have limited capacity. That is why OHL actively redirects you to the two alternative car parks.

OH Leuven's three official car parks

On its mobility page OHL lists three car parks. Two are practical for the regular supporter, one is reserved for business hospitality.

Parking Imec/Kapeldreef: the free top pick

At the Arenberg III tower of imec there is an open-air car park with 750 spaces. On match days it is free to use, and it is the option OHL itself recommends first to its supporters. The walk to the stadium takes fifteen minutes via Kapeldreef and Tervuursevest, a straight route that visiting fans cannot miss.

For the visiting fan: this is your default. No price, ample capacity, and you never cross the matchday traffic around Den Dreef itself. For the Leuven regular: this is also the smartest choice because after the final whistle you walk straight to Kapeldreef rather than getting stuck in the Tervuursevest outflow.

A note: imec uses this car park for its own staff during office hours. According to the cooperation between OHL, the city of Leuven and imec, imec may also temporarily use the OHL car park on Kardinaal Mercierlaan at certain times. In practice: arriving on a weekend match day is no problem, and on a weeknight match after 18:30 the imec car park will largely have emptied out.

Parking Philipssite: the paid back-up

Philipssite is a large 24/7 parking garage with 1,150 spaces, operated by Virix. The car park sits ten minutes' walk from the stadium, closer than Imec, and is fully covered. That last bit matters in rain and winter.

For electric drivers: 28 charging points are available. Maximum height is 2.1 metres, so most cars and small SUVs fit. Vans with roof boxes or tall SUVs should choose Imec. Payment is by cash, debit card or credit card.

A frequently overlooked extra: with your Philipssite parking ticket you can get a free De Lijn bus ticket. That is useful if you want to head into the centre for a beer before the match, or grab a bite somewhere afterwards. The Hoppin mobility hubs Philipssite and Parkpoort are nearby.

Parking Kardinaal Mercierlaan: business and, since October 2025, also neighbourhood parking

The car park right next to the stadium was for a long time exclusively for OHL business customers. Following a cooperation agreement between the city of Leuven and the cooperative Oud-Heverlee Leuven, approved by the city council on 20 October 2025, this car park may now also be used outside match hours by neighbourhood residents and visitors of the Heverlee Sunday market. On Sundays where OHL plays only in the evening (kick-off after 17:00), the car park is accessible the entire morning for the market.

For the regular matchday visitor: this car park remains off-limits. Those spaces go to hospitality ticket holders. Anyone with business tickets receives separate instructions via commercieel@ohl.be.

The car park was rebuilt in July 2025. Since the reopening, new charging stations are available for electric cars, also usable by neighbourhood residents outside match days.

Philipssite tariffs in detail

For an evening match on Friday or Saturday you sit partly in day rate, partly in night rate. On Sunday it is always night rate. Below the full breakdown according to leuven.be (accessed May 2026, indicative only).

For a typical Sunday match (parking ~12-18:00) you sit in night rate on Sunday = €5.60 to €7. For a Friday evening match (parking ~19:30-23:00, around 3.5h) you sit fully in night rate = €4.20-€5.60. For a Saturday afternoon match (parking ~15-18:30) you sit partly in day rate until 19:00 and entirely in night rate during the weekend, so still lower. Realistically budget €5-€8 for a regular matchday parking on Philipssite. (Pro League kick-off times vary by matchday, always check ohleuven.com for the exact kick-off.)

Parking on a match day: timing and avoiding stress

OHL.be says it themselves: avoid the immediate stadium area. That sounds obvious, but in practice everyone who pins their GPS on "Kardinaal Mercierlaan 46" actually drives via Naamsevest or Tervuursevest, exactly where the bottleneck is.

For the visiting fan (first match in Leuven). Set your GPS to "Kapeldreef 60, Heverlee" if you want to park free, or "Philipssite 2, Leuven" if you want covered paid parking. Not to the stadium address. Leave 90 minutes before kick-off if you simply walk to the stadium and don't plan a stop in the centre. For away supporters: the visitor stand is usually Stand D with a separate entrance and bag check. Large bags are not allowed in and there are no lockers. So plan no backpack for the trip there.

For the Leuven regular. The trick is not only where you park, but when you leave. Whoever heads to Imec/Kapeldreef and leaves immediately after the final whistle joins the outflow on Tervuursevest. Whoever first visits the fanshop and only then walks to Kapeldreef avoids the busiest moment. According to OHL the fanshop is open from one and a half hours before kick-off until thirty minutes after the final whistle. That thirty-minute window after the match is exactly the buffer you can use: pick out souvenirs and let the Leuven outflow pass.

For the Sunday market visitor who also watches OHL. Since October 2025 this combination is possible. On Sundays where OHL plays only after 17:00, you can park on the Kardinaal Mercierlaan car park in the morning, walk to the Sunday market, and stay until the match. During the match itself that regime falls away (the car park then reverts to business). Concretely: park elsewhere during the match, or leave before 17:00. Outside that specific combination the car park stays match-day-only for business.

By train or bus: the stress-free option

For visitors from outside Leuven the train is often smarter than the car. Heverlee station sits six minutes' walk from the stadium. That is closer than both Imec and Philipssite. SNCB trains from Leuven Station, Brussels or Tienen stop there several times per hour. From Brussels-Central the trip takes about 30 minutes with a transfer, or 25 minutes direct.

From Leuven Station you can be in Heverlee within ten minutes by De Lijn bus. The closest stops are Leuven Naamsepoort and Leuven Redingenhof, both a few minutes' walk from Den Dreef. For those who parked at Philipssite: the free De Lijn bus ticket included with your parking ticket also covers this trip.

Common mistakes around OHL parking

Mistake 1: GPS on the stadium address. Anyone who types "Kardinaal Mercierlaan 46" lands directly in the matchday bottleneck. Always set your GPS on your actual parking address (Kapeldreef 60 for Imec, Philipssite 2 for the paid garage).

Mistake 2: Arriving 30 minutes before kick-off. For a normal Pro League match the bulk of fans arrive between kick-off minus 60 and kick-off minus 30. If you arrive in that window, you join the inflow at peak. Arriving kick-off minus 75 to minus 60 is usually quieter.

Mistake 3: Bringing a large backpack. The stadium does not allow large bags and has no lockers. Anyone who brings non-essential items has to walk back to the car, which between Imec and the stadium is two times fifteen minutes extra.

Mistake 4: Bringing your own drinks. Officially forbidden. Stewards at the stadium entrances check for this. The stadium catering bars serve beer and soft drinks.

Mistake 5: Forgetting that the Kardinaal Mercierlaan car park is business-only on match days. Even since the cooperation agreement of October 2025, that car park remains reserved for hospitality during matches. Anyone without a business ticket who sets the GPS to Kardinaal Mercierlaan will not get in.

Last updated: May 2026