Between 1968 and 1971, Belgium procured 334 Leopard 1 tanks from West Germany to serve as the country's main battle tanks. In the early 1980s, a decision was made to upgrade the Leopards to bring them up to the Leopard 1A5 standard using domestically produced components manufactured by Cockerill. This resulted in the Leopard 1A5BE, and 132 tanks were upgraded to this variant. At the end of the Cold War, the Belgian Army began phasing out the Leopards in favour of more mobile wheeled AFVs, and only 40 Leopard 1A5BEs were kept in service. These were later deployed for peacekeeping duties in Kosovo in 2014. In July 2023, the remaining Leopard 1A5BEs were sold back to Rheinmetall to be sent to Ukraine.

The Belgian Leopard 1A5BE was introduced in Update 2.57 "Heavy Cavalry" as part of the French tech tree. It is nearly identical to the Leopard 1A5 variant, save for slightly worse gunner optics and the lack of a dozer blade. Much like its German counterpart, the Leopard 1A5BE's key strength is its firepower, as its 105 mm L7A3 gun is capable of dealing with most targets it usually faces, in addition to having access to a laser rangefinder and thermal imaging to help land precise shots. However, the Leopard 1A5BE still suffers from a lack of protection and will often have to stay out of firefights to avoid being damaged.