VRT Radio 1 streams Dutch-language news, sport, politics, culture, and science coverage live from Flanders, Belgium, built around the idea that whoever starts the morning with Radio 1 starts the day properly informed. You can stream it free anytime on Radio Shuffle.
Roots in Belgium's First Public Broadcaster
Radio 1's history reaches all the way back to the birth of Belgian public radio itself. On February 1, 1931, the Nationaal Instituut voor de Radio-Omroep, or NIR, went on air on medium wave with two parallel national programs, one in Dutch and one in French. In 1937, that single institute split into separate Dutch-speaking and French-speaking divisions, the direct ancestors of today's VRT and RTBF. Radio 1, as the Dutch-language news and current affairs channel, descends directly from that 1937 split.
That makes Radio 1 one of the oldest continuously evolving radio brands in Belgium, carrying nearly a century of institutional memory into its current rolling news format.
Belgium's Actuaradio
Today, VRT describes Radio 1 simply as "dé actuaradio," the current-affairs station, of the Flemish public broadcaster. The channel runs general news and sport throughout the day, with a particular emphasis on politics, culture, and science that sets it apart from VRT's more entertainment-focused channels. Its flagship morning program, De Ochtend, has long been fronted by Ruth Joos, with VRT NWS journalist Helen Goedgebeur recently added as an alternating presenter starting in September 2026, bringing her background as the network's legal affairs expert directly into the morning lineup.
That format, key figures brought in for first reactions, expert analysis layered over breaking developments, has made Radio 1 the station Flemish listeners turn to when something is actually happening, rather than a background music option.
What You'll Actually Hear
Expect rolling news bulletins, political interviews, sports coverage, and discussion-driven segments on culture and science, delivered in Dutch with the editorial weight of a public broadcaster that traces its lineage back to 1931. It is talk radio built for people who want to actually know what is going on in Flanders and Belgium, not just hear about it later.
VRT Radio 1 is free to stream on Radio Shuffle alongside thousands of other stations from around the world. Tune in for Flemish news and current affairs, live.