Eredivisie

Eredivisie

Organising body	KNVB
Founded	1956; 68 years ago (1956)
Country	Netherlands
Confederation	UEFA
Number of clubs	18 (since 1966–67)
Level on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Eerste Divisie
Domestic cup(s)	KNVB Cup Johan Cruyff Shield
International cup(s)	UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League UEFA Conference League
Current champions	PSV (25th title) (2023–24)
Most championships	Ajax (36 titles)
Most appearances	Pim Doesburg (687)
Top goalscorer	Willy van der Kuijlen (311)
TV partners	ESPN & NOS
Website	eredivisie.eu
Current: 2024–25 Eredivisie

The Eredivisie (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈeːrədiˌvizi]; "Honour Division" or "Premier Division") is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. As of the 2024–25 season, it is ranked the sixth-best league in Europe by UEFA.^[1]

The Eredivisie consists of 18 clubs. Each club meets every other club twice during the season, once at home and once away. At the end of each season, the two clubs at the bottom are relegated to the second level of the Dutch league system, the Eerste Divisie (First Division), while the champion and runner-up of the Eerste Divisie are automatically promoted to the Eredivisie. The club finishing third from the bottom of the Eredivisie goes to separate promotion/relegation play-offs with six high-placed clubs from the Eerste Divisie.^[2]

The winner of the Eredivisie claims the Dutch national championship. Ajax have won the most titles with 36. PSV Eindhoven are next with 25, and Feyenoord follow with 16. Since 1965, these three clubs have won all but three Eredivisie titles (the 1981 and 2009 titles went to AZ and Twente won in 2010). Ajax, PSV, and Feyenoord are known as the "Big Three" or "Traditional Top Three" of Dutch football. They are the only clubs in their current form to have never been relegated out of the Eredivisie. A fourth club, Utrecht, is the product of a 1970 merger between three of that city's clubs, one of which, VV DOS, had also never been relegated out of the Eredivisie.

From 1990 to 1999, the official name of the league was PTT Telecompetitie (after the sponsor, PTT Telecom), which was changed to KPN Telecompetitie (because PTT Telecom changed its name to KPN Telecom) in 1999 and to KPN Eredivisie in 2000. From 2002 to 2005, the league was called the Holland Casino Eredivisie. Since the 2005–06 season, the league has been sponsored by the Vriendenloterij (lottery), but for legal reasons its name could not be attached to the league (the Dutch government was against the name, because the Eredivisie would, after Holland Casino's sponsorship, yet again be sponsored by a company providing games of chance).

In August 2012, it was made public that tycoon Rupert Murdoch had secured the rights to the Eredivisie for 12 years at the expense of one billion euros, beginning in the 2013–14 season.^[3] Within this deal, the five largest Eredivisie clubs were to receive five million euros per year.^[4] In 2020, the Eredivisie was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

From the foundation of the Dutch national football championship in 1898 until 1954, the title was decided through play-offs by a handful of clubs who had previously won their regional league.^[5] The competition was purely an amateur one; the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) rejected any form of payment and suspended players who were caught receiving salary or transfer fees.^[6] The call for professional football grew in the early fifties after many national team members left to play abroad in search for financial benefits.^[7] The KNVB would usually suspend these players, preventing them from appearing for the Dutch national team. After the North Sea flood of 1953, the Dutch players abroad (mainly playing in the French league) organised a charity match against the France national team in Paris. The match was boycotted by the KNVB, but after the assembled Dutch players defeated the French (2–1), the Dutch public witnessed the heights that could be achieved through professional football.^[8] To serve the growing interest, a dissident professional football association (the NBVB) and league were founded for the 1954–55 season.^[9] On 3 July 1954, the KNVB met with a group of concerned amateur club chairmen, who feared the best players would join the professional teams. The meeting, dubbed the slaapkamerconferentie ('bedroom conference'), led to the Association reluctantly accepting semi-professionalism.^[6]

Meanwhile, both the KNVB and the NBVB started their separate competition. The first professional football match was contested between Alkmaar and Venlo.^[6] The leagues went on for eleven rounds, before a merger was negotiated between the two federations in November. Both leagues were cancelled and a new, combined competition emerged immediately. De Graafschap, Amsterdam, Alkmaar and Fortuna '54 from the NBVB were accepted to the new league. Other clubs merged, which led to new names like Rapid J.C., Holland Sport and Roda Sport. The first (semi-)professional league was won by Willem II.^[10] For the 1956–57 season, the KNVB abandoned the regional league system. The Eredivisie was founded, in which the eighteen best clubs nationwide directly played for the league title without play-offs. The inaugural members of the Eredivisie in 1956 were Ajax, BVC, BVV, DOS, EVV, Elinkwijk, SC Enschede, Feijenoord, Fortuna '54, GVAV, MVV, NAC, NOAD, PSV, Rapid J.C., Sparta, VVV '03 and Willem II.^[11] Ajax was the first team to claim the title that season.^[11] Below is a complete record of how many teams played in each season throughout the league's history;

• 18 clubs: 1956–1962
• 16 clubs: 1962–1966
• 18 clubs: 1966–present

^* Willem II finished first and FC Groningen finished second in the 2023–24 Eerste Divisie. NAC finished 8th and defeated Excelsior in the playoff final.

^a Founding member of the Eredivisie
^b Never been relegated from the Eredivisie
^c Founding member of the Eredivisie (as Sportclub Enschede)
^d Founding member of the Eredivisie (as VV DOS and USV Elinkwijk)

Ajax

Almere C

AZ

Feyenoord
Sparta

Fortuna

Groningen

GA Eagles

Heerenveen

Heracles

NAC

NEC

PEC

PSV

RKC

Twente

Utrecht

Willem II

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Locations of the 2024–25 Eredivisie teams

Please note that the table below totals all winners of the Dutch top division, which included the Netherlands Football League Championship that preceded the Eredivisie. The Eredivisie was only founded in 1956 so many of these teams did not win the Eredivisie title.

Club	Winner	Runner-up	Winning years
Ajax	36	23	1917–18, 1918–19, 1930–31, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1946–47, 1956–57, 1959–60, 1965–66, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1976–77, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1984–85, 1989–90, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1997–98, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22
PSV	25	16	1928–29, 1934–35, 1950–51, 1962–63, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1996–97, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2023–24
Feyenoord	16	22	1923–24, 1927–28, 1935–36, 1937–38, 1939–40, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1964–65, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1973–74, 1983–84, 1992–93, 1998–99, 2016–17, 2022–23
HVV Den Haag	10	1	1890–91, 1895–96, 1899–1900, 1900–01, 1901–02, 1902–03, 1904–05, 1906–07, 1909–10, 1913–14
Sparta Rotterdam	6	–	1908–09, 1910–11, 1911–12, 1912–13, 1914–15, 1958–59
RAP	5	3	1891–92, 1893–94, 1896–97, 1897–98, 1898–99
Go Ahead Eagles	4	5	1916–17, 1921–22, 1929–30, 1932–33
Koninklijke HFC	3	3	1889–90, 1892–93, 1894–95
Willem II	3	1	1915–16, 1951–52, 1954–55
HBS Craeyenhout	3	–	1903–04, 1905–06, 1924–25
AZ	2	3	1980–81, 2008–09
Heracles	2	1	1926–27, 1940–41
ADO Den Haag	2	–	1941–42, 1942–43
RCH	2	–	1922–23, 1952–53
NAC Breda	1	4	1920–21
Twente	1	3	2009–10
DWS	1	3	1963–64
Roda JC Kerkrade*	1	2	1955–56
Be Quick	1	2	1919–20
FC Eindhoven	1	2	1953–54
SC Enschede	1	1	1925–26
DOS	1	1	1957–58
Den Bosch	1	1	1947–48
De Volewijckers	1	–	1943–44
Haarlem	1	–	1945–46
Limburgia	1	–	1949–50
SVV	1	–	1948–49
Quick Den Haag	1	–	1907–08
VV Concordia	1	–	1888–89

^* As Rapid JC.

Since the beginning of the league, there have been three clubs with an attendance much higher than the others: Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. Clubs like Heerenveen, Utrecht and Groningen also have fairly large fanbases. The regular season average league attendance was just over 7,000 in 1990, but this figure has risen sharply over the years thanks to the opening of new stadiums and the expansion of existing ones nationwide. Average attendance for the 2018–19 season was 18,010, with Ajax having the largest (52,987) and Excelsior having the smallest (4,223). Ajax's figures however differ from those provided by the Johan Cruyff Arena, since the club counts all tickets sold instead of the number of people going through the turnstiles.

Last updated following the 2018–19 season

Rank	Name	Games	Playing position	First match	Last match
1	Pim Doesburg	687	Goalkeeper	1962–63	1986–87
2	Jan Jongbloed	684	Goalkeeper	1959–60	1985–86
3	Piet Schrijvers	576	Goalkeeper	1963–64	1984–85

Rank	Name	Goals	Games	Goals per game	Playing position	First goal	Last goal
1	Willy van der Kuijlen	311	545	0.57	Forward	1964–65	1981–82
2	Ruud Geels	266	392	0.68	Forward	1964–65	1983–84
3	Johan Cruijff	216	309	0.70	Forward	1964–65	1983–84
4	Kees Kist	212	372	0.57	Forward	1972–73	1983–84
5	Tonny van der Linden	208	456	0.46	Forward	1956–57	1966–67

The top goalscorer of the league season is awarded the Willy van der Kuijlen Trophy.

Last updated following the 2023–24 season.^[12]

Season	Top Scorer(s)	Goals	Club(s)
1956–57	Coen Dillen	43	PSV
1957–58	Leo Canjels	32	NAC
1958–59	Leo Canjels (2)	34	NAC
1959–60	Henk Groot[13]	37	Ajax
1960–61	Henk Groot (2)	41	Ajax
1961–62	Dick Tol	27	Volendam
1962–63	Pierre Kerkhoffs	22	PSV
1963–64	Frans Geurtsen	28	DWS
1964–65	Frans Geurtsen (2)	23	DWS
1965–66	Willy van der Kuijlen Piet Kruiver	23	PSV Feyenoord
1966–67	Johan Cruyff	33	Ajax
1967–68	Ove Kindvall	28	Feyenoord
1968–69	Dick van Dijk Ove Kindvall (2)	30	Twente Feyenoord
1969–70	Willy van der Kuijlen (2)	26	PSV
1970–71	Ove Kindvall (3)	24	Feyenoord
1971–72	Johan Cruyff (2)	25	Ajax
1972–73	Cas Janssens Willy Brokamp	18	NEC MVV
1973–74	Willy van der Kuijlen (3)	27	PSV
1974–75	Ruud Geels	30	Ajax
1975–76	Ruud Geels (2)	29	Ajax
1976–77	Ruud Geels (3)	34	Ajax
1977–78	Ruud Geels (4)	30	Ajax
1978–79	Kees Kist	34	AZ
1979–80	Kees Kist (2)	27	AZ
1980–81	Ruud Geels (5)	22	Sparta
1981–82	Wim Kieft	32	Ajax
1982–83	Peter Houtman	30	Feyenoord
1983–84	Marco van Basten	28	Ajax
1984–85	Marco van Basten (2)	22	Ajax
1985–86	Marco van Basten (3)	37	Ajax
1986–87	Marco van Basten (4)	31	Ajax
1987–88	Wim Kieft (2)	29	PSV
1988–89	Romário	19	PSV
1989–90	Romário (2)	23	PSV
1990–91	Romário (3)[14] Dennis Bergkamp[14]	25	PSV Ajax
1991–92	Dennis Bergkamp (2)[15]	24	Ajax
1992–93	Dennis Bergkamp (3)[16]	26	Ajax
1993–94	Jari Litmanen	26	Ajax
1994–95	Ronaldo	30	PSV
1995–96	Luc Nilis	21	PSV
1996–97	Luc Nilis (2)	21	PSV
1997–98	Nikos Machlas	34	Vitesse
1998–99	Ruud van Nistelrooy	31	PSV
1999–2000	Ruud van Nistelrooy (2)	29	PSV
2000–01	Mateja Kežman	24	PSV
2001–02	Pierre van Hooijdonk	24	Feyenoord
2002–03	Mateja Kežman (2)	35	PSV
2003–04	Mateja Kežman (3)	31	PSV
2004–05	Dirk Kuyt	29	Feyenoord
2005–06	Klaas-Jan Huntelaar	33	Heerenveen/Ajax
2006–07	Afonso Alves	34	Heerenveen
2007–08	Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (2)	33	Ajax
2008–09	Mounir El Hamdaoui	23	AZ
2009–10	Luis Suárez	35	Ajax
2010–11	Björn Vleminckx	23	NEC
2011–12	Bas Dost	32	Heerenveen
2012–13	Wilfried Bony	31	Vitesse
2013–14	Alfreð Finnbogason	29	Heerenveen
2014–15	Memphis Depay	22	PSV
2015–16	Vincent Janssen	27	AZ
2016–17	Nicolai Jørgensen	21	Feyenoord
2017–18	Alireza Jahanbakhsh	21	AZ
2018–19	Luuk de Jong Dušan Tadić	28	PSV Ajax
2019–20	Steven Berghuis Cyriel Dessers	15	Feyenoord Heracles Almelo
2020–21	Giorgos Giakoumakis	26	VVV-Venlo
2021–22	Sébastien Haller	21	Ajax
2022–23	Anastasios Douvikas Xavi Simons	19	Utrecht PSV
2023–24	Luuk de Jong (2) Vangelis Pavlidis	29	PSV AZ

The following sixteen international tournaments were won by Eredivisie teams:

• 1970 European Cup Final – Feyenoord
• 1970 Intercontinental Cup – Feyenoord
• 1971 European Cup Final – Ajax
• 1972 European Cup Final – Ajax
• 1972 Intercontinental Cup – Ajax
• 1973 European Cup Final – Ajax
• 1973 European Super Cup – Ajax
• 1974 UEFA Cup Final – Feyenoord
• 1978 UEFA Cup Final – PSV
• 1987 European Cup Winners' Cup Final – Ajax
• 1988 European Cup Final – PSV
• 1992 UEFA Cup Final – Ajax
• 1995 UEFA Champions League Final – Ajax
• 1995 UEFA Super Cup – Ajax
• 1995 Intercontinental Cup – Ajax
• 2002 UEFA Cup Final – Feyenoord

The UEFA Super Cup was founded by a Dutch reporter named Anton Witkamp and Ajax's 1973 win was the first time the tournament was contested officially.^[17]

• Eredivisie (1956–1990)
• PTT-Telecompetitie (1990–1999)
• KPN-Telecompetitie (1999–2000)
• KPN Eredivisie (2000–2002)
• Holland Casino Eredivisie (2002–2005)
• Eredivisie (2005–present)

• Eerste Divisie
• KNVB Cup
• Johan Cruyff Shield
• List of Dutch football champions
• List of foreign players in the Eredivisie
• List of sports attendance figures – Eredivisie in a global context

• Eredivisie Football Score – Alles over Eredivisie resultaten,uitslagen en standen

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Eredivisie.

• Official website (in Dutch)