Willem II (football club)

Willem II
Full name	Willem II Tilburg
Nickname(s)	Tricolores, Superkruiken
Founded	12 August 1896 (as Tilburgia)
Ground	Koning Willem II Stadion, ; Tilburg, Netherlands.
Capacity	14,700
Chairman	Jack Buckens
Manager	Adrie Koster
League	Eredivisie
2019–20	Eredivisie, 5th
Website	Club website

Willem II (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈʋɪləm ˈtʋeː]), also known as Willem II Tilburg, is a Dutch football club based in Tilburg, Netherlands, that plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. The team was founded on 12 August 1896 as Tilburgia. On 12 January 1898, the club was renamed Willem II, after Dutch king William II of the Netherlands, who, as Prince of Orange and commander of the Dutch army, had his military headquarters in Tilburg during the Belgian uprising of 1830 and also spent much time in the city after becoming king and would die while there.[1]

Notable former players for the club include Dutch internationals Jan van Roessel, Joris Mathijsen, Jaap Stam, Frenkie de Jong and Marc Overmars and Finland's Sami Hyypiä. The club's shirt consists of red-white-blue vertical stripes, inspired by the colours of the flag of the Netherlands. Willem II plays its home matches in the Koning Willem II Stadion, also named after the King. The stadium, opened on 31 May 1995, has a capacity of 14,700 spectators. The average attendance in 2004–05 was 12,500 people.[1]

The club has won the Eredivisie and the Eerste divisie a total of three times in both respects all in all.[1]

History

Established on 12 August 1896 in Tilburg as Tilburgia, the club first played at the Gemeentelijk Sportpark Tilburg and in 1995 relocated to the Koning Willem II Stadion, the ground where they have played ever since. Willem were champions of the Eredivisie in 1916, 1952 and 1955. The Tricolores also won two KNVB Cups in 1944 and 1963 and were also crowned champs of the Eerste Divisie in 1958, 1965 and 2014.[1]

Willem II - Manchester United,
25 September 1963: 1–1

With regard to European competition, Willem II first appeared in UEFA Cup Winners' Cup of 1963 where they lost to Manchester United in the first round by an aggregate score of 7–2. In 1998–99, Willem once again competed in the Cup Winners' Cup and after beating Dinamo Tbilisi of Georgia 6–0 in both legs, Willem then lost to Spanish side Real Betis in the second round, 4–1 on aggregate. A second place in the Eredivisie of 1999 guaranteed the club a UEFA Champions League berth for the first time. At the tournament's group stage, Willem only attained 2 points in their six group G matches and were thus eliminated. After reaching the KNVB Cup final in 2005 where they lost 4–0 against PSV Eindhoven, Willem II again qualified again for the UEFA Cup, in which they lost to French side AS Monaco in the first round by 5–1 on aggregate.[1]

At the end of the 2010–11 season, Willem II were relegated from the Eredivisie for the first time in 24 years. In the 2011–12 season under new manager Jurgen Streppel Willem II was promoted back to the Eredivisie, but they went right back down the next season after finishing bottom of the table. The club became champions of the Eerste Divisie in the subsequent season and were thus promoted back to the Eredivisie.[1]

In early 2015, Volkskrant journalists revealed that Willem II had its matches fixed by an "Asian gambling syndicate", who had paid Willem's players a total sum of €100,000 to lose matches against Ajax and Feyenoord (in October and December 2009). According to the journalists, midfielder Ibrahim Kargbo was the Asians' main contact within the club; Kargbo denies having accepted their money.[1] [2] The Royal Dutch Football Association called the affair "the most concrete case of match fixing in the Netherlands" and took legal action as well as asked UEFA and FIFA to reevaluate previous matches.[3]

In 2019, Willem II reached the KNVB Cup Final for the fourth time in their history. They beat AZ Alkmaar in the semi-finals after a penalty shoot-out, but were defeated by in the final by AFC Ajax.

The fans of Willem II have close relations with the fans of English championship club Bristol City. For Bristol City's game on 31 October 2009 against Sheffield Wednesday, some Willem II fans were seen in the 'Eastend' of the Ashton Gate Stadium, Bristol's most popular stand, and there were also songs sung about Willem II by City fans. Willem supporters have as well been known to travel to Bristol, with Bristol City fans heading the other way to Tilburg.[4][5]

Players

Current squad

As of 1 February 2020

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Position	Player
1	GK	Timon Wellenreuther
2	DF	Fernando Lewis
3	DF	Freek Heerkens (2nd captain)
4	DF	Jordens Peters (captain)
7	FW	Ché Nunnely
8	MF	Pol Llonch
9	FW	Paul Gladon
10	FW	Vangelis Pavlidis
11	FW	Mats Köhlert
12	GK	Michael Woud
13	GK	Giorgos Strezos
14	FW	Elton Kabangu

No.	Position	Player
15	DF	Damil Dankerlui
16	FW	Marios Vrousai (on loan from Olympiacos)
17	MF	Dries Saddiki
18	DF	Miquel Nelom
21	FW	Mike Trésor Ndayishimiye (on loan from NEC)
22	DF	João Queirós (on loan from FC Köln)
23	MF	Görkem Sağlam
24	DF	James McGarry
25	DF	Sebastian Holmén
26	DF	Bart Nieuwkoop (on loan from Feyenoord)
32	DF	Dylan Ryan
33	MF	Rick Zuijderwijk

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.		Position	Player
		DF	Victor van den Bogert (at De Graafschap until 30 June 2020)
		DF	Justin Ogenia (at FC Eindhoven until 30 June 2020)

No.		Position	Player
		MF	Atakan Akkaynak (at Caykur Rizespor until 30 June 2020)

Notable players

The players below had senior international cap(s) for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed represented their countries while playing for Willem II.

Domestic results

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Eredivisie*

Eerste divisie

↓ relegation
↑ promotion

Below is a table with Willem II's domestic results since the introduction of the Eredivisie in 1956.

Domestic Results since 1956
Domestic league	League result	Qualification to	KNVB Cup season	Cup result
1956–57 Eredivisie	18th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1956–57	?
1957–58 Eerste Divisie	1st (group A)	Eredivisie (promotion)	1957–58	?
1958–59 Eredivisie	16th	–	1958–59	?
1959–60 Eredivisie	8th	–	not held	not held
1960–61 Eredivisie	10th	–	1960–61	?
1961–62 Eredivisie	8th	–	1961–62	?
1962–63 Eredivisie	15th	Cup Winners' Cup Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1962–63	winners
1963–64 Eerste Divisie	10th	–	1963–64	second round
1964–65 Eerste Divisie	1st	Eredivisie (promotion)	1964–65	first round
1965–66 Eredivisie	10th	–	1965–66	group stage
1966–67 Eredivisie	18th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1966–67	first round
1967–68 Eerste Divisie	4th	–	1967–68	round of 16
1968–69 Eerste Divisie	14th	–	1968–69	first round
1969–70 Eerste Divisie	6th	–	1969–70	second round
1970–71 Eerste Divisie	14th	–	1970–71	second round
1971–72 Eerste Divisie	15th	–	1971–72	first round
1972–73 Eerste Divisie	14th	–	1972–73	second round
1973–74 Eerste Divisie	18th	–	1973–74	round of 16
1974–75 Eerste Divisie	14th	–	1974–75	first round
1975–76 Eerste Divisie	9th	–	1975–76	first round
1976–77 Eerste Divisie	11th	–	1976–77	round of 16
1977–78 Eerste Divisie	7th	–	1977–78	first round
1978–79 Eerste Divisie	3rd	Eredivisie (winning promotion/releg. play-offs)	1978–79	second round
1979–80 Eredivisie	8th	–	1979–80	second round
1980–81 Eredivisie	10th	–	1980–81	quarter-final
1981–82 Eredivisie	14th	–	1981–82	second round
1982–83 Eredivisie	14th	–	1982–83	second round
1983–84 Eredivisie	17th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1983–84	first round
1984–85 Eerste Divisie	8th	–	1984–85	first round
1985–86 Eerste Divisie	5th	promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion	1985–86	first round
1986–87 Eerste Divisie	2nd	Eredivisie (promotion)	1986–87	first round
1987–88 Eredivisie	4th	– (losing UC play-offs)	1987–88	quarter-final
1988–89 Eredivisie	15th	–	1988–89	semi-final
1989–90 Eredivisie	13th	–	1989–90	semi-final
1990–91 Eredivisie	11th	–	1990–91	quarter-final
1991–92 Eredivisie	12th	–	1991–92	third round
1992–93 Eredivisie	10th	–	1992–93	third round
1993–94 Eredivisie	8th	–	1993–94	round of 16
1994–95 Eredivisie	7th	–	1994–95	round of 16
1995–96 Eredivisie	12th	–	1995–96	second round
1996–97 Eredivisie	15th	–	1996–97	semi-final
1997–98 Eredivisie	5th	UEFA Cup	1997–98	round of 16
1998–99 Eredivisie	2nd	Champions League	1998–99	second round
1999–2000 Eredivisie	9th	–	1999–2000	quarter-final
2000–01 Eredivisie	8th	–	2000–01	second round
2001–02 Eredivisie	11th	Intertoto Cup (R2)	2001–02	second round
2002–03 Eredivisie	11th	Intertoto Cup (R2)	2002–03	third round
2003–04 Eredivisie	7th	–	2003–04	round of 16
2004–05 Eredivisie	10th	UEFA Cup	2004–05	final
2005–06 Eredivisie	17th	– (surviving promotion/relegation play-offs)	2005–06	round of 16
2006–07 Eredivisie	15th	–	2006–07	quarter-final
2007–08 Eredivisie	15th	–	2007–08	second round
2008–09 Eredivisie	12th	–	2008–09	third round
2009–10 Eredivisie	17th	– (surviving promotion/relegation play-offs)	2009–10	second round
2010–11 Eredivisie	18th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	2010–11	third round
2011–12 Eerste Divisie	5th	Eredivisie (winning promotion/relegation play-offs)	2011–12	second round
2012–13 Eredivisie	18th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	2012–13	second round
2013–14 Eerste Divisie	1st	Eredivisie	2013–14	second round
2014–15 Eredivisie	9th	–	2014–15	second round
2015–16 Eredivisie	16th	– (surviving promotion/relegation play-offs)	2015–16	round of 16
2016–17 Eredivisie	13th	– (surviving promotion/relegation play-offs)	2016–17	first round
2017–18 Eredivisie	13th	–	2017–18	semi-final
2018–19 Eredivisie	10th	–	2018–19	final
2019–20 Eredivisie	5th	Europa League (Q2)	2019–20	round of 16

Managers

Year	Manager
1949–1956	František Fadrhonc
1956–1962	Heinrich "Wudi" Müller
1963–1966, 1967–1971	Jaap van der Leck
1971–1972	Henk Wullems
July 1980–June 1982	Bert Jacobs
1982	George Knobel
1982–1984	Jan Brouwer
1984–1985	Jan Notermans
July 1985–June 1990	Piet de Visser
1990–91	Adrie Koster
July 1991–Oct 1991	Piet de Visser
Oct 1991–March 1995	Jan Reker
March 1995–June 1996	Theo de Jong
July 1996–June 1997	Jimmy Calderwood
July 1997–May 2000	Co Adriaanse

Year	Manager
May 2000–June 2000	Hans Verèl (interim)
July 2000–June 2002	Hans Westerhof
July 2002–Jan 2004	Mark Wotte
Feb 2004–June 2004	André Wetzel
July 2004–Nov 2005	Robert Maaskant
Nov 2005–June 2006	Kees Zwamborn
July 2006–Nov 2007	Dennis van Wijk
Nov 2007–Feb 2009	Andries Jonker
Feb 2009–Feb 2010	Alfons Groenendijk
Feb 2010	Mark Schenning (interim)
Feb 2010–April 2010	Arno Pijpers
April 2010–May 2010	Theo de Jong (interim)
July 2010–April 2011	Gert Heerkes
April 2011–June 2011	John Feskens (interim)
July 2011–May 2016	Jurgen Streppel
July 2016–March 2018	Erwin van de Looi
March 2018–May 2018	Reinier Robbemond (interim)
July 2018–present	Adrie Koster

Honours

National Football League Championship/Eredivisie[1][6]
- Winners (3): 1915–16, 1951–52, 1954–55
- Runners-up (1): 1998–99
Eerste Divisie[1][6]
- Winners (3): 1956–57, 1964–65, 2013–14
- Runners-up (1): 1986–87
KNVB Cup[1][6]
- Winners (2): 1943–44, 1962–63
- Runners-up (2): 2004–05, 2018–19

References

"Historisch Overzicht". Willem-ii.nl.
"Goksyndicaat fixte duels Willem II" [Gambling syndicate fixed Willem II matches]. de Volkskrant. 17 January 2015.
"KNVB: meest concrete zaak tot nu toe" [Royal Dutch Football Association: most concrete case so far]. NOS. 17 January 2015.
"The club named after a king!". CCFC.co.uk.
"Video: Dutch fans pay emotional tribute to Bristol City supporter Mark Saunders". Bristol Post.co.uk.
"Feiten En Trivia". Willem-ii.nl (in Dutch).

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[Willem-1] "Historisch Overzicht". Willem-ii.nl.

[2] "Goksyndicaat fixte duels Willem II" [Gambling syndicate fixed Willem II matches]. de Volkskrant. 17 January 2015.

[3] "KNVB: meest concrete zaak tot nu toe" [Royal Dutch Football Association: most concrete case so far]. NOS. 17 January 2015.

[4] "The club named after a king!". CCFC.co.uk.

[5] "Video: Dutch fans pay emotional tribute to Bristol City supporter Mark Saunders". Bristol Post.co.uk.

[Willem2-6] "Feiten En Trivia". Willem-ii.nl (in Dutch).

Willem II
Players Managers Reserves & Academy Records & statistics Honours Current season
History	History Seasons Cup Matches
Grounds	Gemeentelijk Sportpark Tilburg (1919–1992) Koning Willem II Stadion (1995–present)
Football teams	First team Women's
Rivalries	League record by opponent West-Brabantse derby (with NAC Breda) Midden-Brabantse Derby (with RKC Waalwijk) Tilburg derby (with LONGA or NOAD) Other (with PSV or FC Den Bosch)
Matches	2005 KNVB Cup Final 2019 KNVB Cup Final
Seasons	2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20
Category:Willem II

Eredivisie
2020-21 clubs	ADO Den Haag Ajax AZ Emmen Feyenoord Fortuna Sittard Groningen Heerenveen Heracles PEC Zwolle PSV Twente RKC Waalwijk Sparta Rotterdam Utrecht Vitesse VVV Willem II
Stadiums	Abe Lenstra Stadion AFAS Stadion Euroborg Fortuna Sittard Stadion Galgenwaard GelreDome IJsseldeltastadion JenS Vesting Johan Cruyff Arena De Koel Koning Willem II Stadion De Kuip Kyocera Stadion Philips Stadion Polman Stadion Rat Verlegh Stadion De Vijverberg Woudestein
Former clubs	Alkmaar '54 FC Amsterdam Blauw-Wit Amsterdam Cambuur FC Den Bosch FC Dordrecht DOS DS '79 DWS FC Eindhoven Elinkwijk SC Enschede Fortuna '54 Fortuna Sittard Go Ahead Eagles GVAV Haarlem Helmond Sport MVV NEC NOAD RBC RKC Roda JC SHS Sittardia Sparta SVV Telstar FC Twente SC Veendam FC Volendam De Volewijckers FC Wageningen XerxesDZB
Competition	Champions Players (foreign) Managers Derbies Eredivisie Live
Awards	Footballer of the Year Rinus Michels Award
Associated competitions	League system Eerste Divisie Tweede Divisie Derde Divisie Hoofdklasse KNVB Cup Johan Cruijff Shield Eredivisie for women UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League
Netherlands Football League seasons	1888–89 1889–90 1890–91 1891–92 1892–93 1893–94 1894–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–00 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56
Eredivisie seasons	1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21

Willem II (football club)

History

Players

Current squad

Out on loan

Notable players

Domestic results

Managers

Honours

See also

References

External links