Ajax (Holland)

AFC Ajax is one of the most prominent names in Dutch football since their formation in 1900 in the capital of Amsterdam. Their official title is Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax, although they are also known as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam or just plain Ajax.

The club was named after the legendary mythical Greek hero Ajax and was formed by Floris Stempel, Carel Reeser and Johan Dade. Their first official coach was the Irishman Jack Kirwan who had enjoyed a fine career with Tottenham Hotspur.

He led the side to the highest level of Dutch football and at the same time they took up their distinctive shirts of white with a broad red stripe in 1911. The club also moved into a wooden arena called The Stadium. Ajax were relegated in 1913-14.

Kirwan's successor was Mancunian Jack Reynolds. He led the club to promotion in 1916-17 as well as lifting the KNVB Beker, the Dutch Cup, for the first time when VSV of Velsen were defeated 5-0.

The club was placed in Eerste Klasse West A, one of several geographical top flight divisions from where the winners of each played off in a final group to decide the Dutch champions. Ajax became national champions in 1917-18 and 1918-19, with the later success seeing the team go unbeaten throughout the campaign.

Further Eerste Klasse West titles would follow in the 20's, with the club moving to the Olympic Stadium once it had been erected for the 1928 games.

De Meer

Further national titles arrived in 1926-27 and 1927-28 before the commencement of the 1930’s which became known as the 'golden age' as players such as Wim Andereisen and Piet van Reenen helped the team to eight regional titles.

Ajax were crowned Dutch champions in 1930-31, 1931-32, 1933-34, 1936-37 and 1938-39 as a huge rivalry with Feyenoord sprung up as both clubs battled for the major honours. Reynolds had returned to oversee the success after a spell away while the side was coached by Harold Rose and then Sidney Castle.

The club also saw a move to their own new 'het Ajax-Stadion', which was known as De Meer after the district it was located in. Ajax's association with the Jewish community also came from the move as many resided nearby and went to games.

The 1940's saw a period of rebuilding following Reynold's retirement, although the KNVB Beker was lifted in 1942-43 with a 3-2 victory against Dordrecht under coach Dolf van Kol. Reynolds returned for a short third spell to oversee another league title win in 1946-47.

The most remarkable game of the decade came when Ajax were 6-0 down in a game away to VUC in The Hague, but they came back to draw 6-6! Further Eerste Klasse West titles were won in 1949-50 and 1951-52 prior to the introduction of professional football in 1955, with the Eredivisie being introduced the following year.

Marco Van Basten's exhibition in the museum

Ajax became the first ever Eredivisie champions in 1956-57 with Karl Humenberger in charge of the team. The team of Vic Buckingham regained the title in 1959-60, prior to adding another KNVB Beker in 1960-61 when a Henk Groot hattrick saw off NAC Breda 3-0.

Star players of the day Groot, Sjaak Swart and a young Piet Keiser. The team could not establish itself in European competition and several disappointing defeats were suffered as Buckingham was replaced by fellow Englishmen Keith Spurgeon and Jack Rowley before he returned for a second spell.

Former Ajax player Rinus Michels took over after the 1964-65 season nearly ended in relegation. The club was about to transform into a major European powerhouse. A young Johan Cruyff had made his debut before Buckingham's departure.

Michels utilised him to the full as he built his team to play 'Total Football' in which every player could swap positions easily and the emphasis was on skill and fitness, which took Ajax to a treble of consecutive Eredivise titles between 1965-66 and 1967-68.

Too see the genius of Cruyff, both at Ajax and elsewhere, click here.

The twenty year old Cruyff netting thirty goals in the latter, in which they completed the double with the 2-1 extra time KNVB Beker triumph over NAC Breda with Klaas Nuninga also getting on the scoresheet.

Ajax went on a run all the way to the European Cup Final in 1968-69. 'de Godenzonen' lost 4-1 to AC Milan at Estadio Santiago Bernabéu with skipper Velibor Vasovic netting a consolation goal.

The defeat led to the rebuilding of the squad as reserve player Ruud Krol came in with new signings Dick van Dijk, Gerrie Mühren and Nico Rijnders. The Eredivisie title was claimed once more in 1969-70 with a 2-0 victory over PSV in the KNVB Beker completing another double as Keizer and Cruyff netted.

Cruyff suffered an injury, wearing the number fourteen shirt as a substitute when he made his comeback. He continued to wear the same number for the rest of his career. The team reached the semi-final of the Inter Cities Fairs Cup where Arsenal ended their run.

However, the following season of 1970-71 was to see Ajax finally arrive as a major European name, as they reached the final of the European Cup Final at Wembley against the Greek side Panathinaikos, going on to win 2-0 with a deflected Krol shot and a goal from van Dijk sealing the win.

The team rounded off a great season by retaining the KNVB Beker with 2-1 replay victory over Sparta Rotterdam with goals from Mühren and young starlet Johan Neeskens. Goals from Neiskens, Cruyff and Mühren a year later made it a hattrick of Beker’s as Den Haag were beaten 3-0.

Romanian coach Stefan Kovacs replaced Michels after the final, but the success kept on coming. Players like Johnny Rep, Wim Suurbier and Barry Hulshoff played prominent roles as the team also lifted the 1971-72 Eredivisie title.

The European Cup was also kept at De Meer after Internazionale were defeated 2-0 thanks to two Cruyff goals at the De Kuip home of rivals Feyenoord to add further satisfaction to the win before the side added the Intercontinental Cup.

Ajax went on to win the Eredivisie once more in 1972-73 as well as becoming the champions of Europe for a third consecutive season. A Johnny Rep goal was enough to defeat Juventus in the Belgrade showpiece at Stadion Crvena Zvezda.

To see highlights of the three triumphs, click here, here and here.

The concept of Total Football was taken on by Michels as he managed Holland to the World Cup Final in 1974. Cruyff and Neeskens departed to be with him in Barcelona after the tournament while Ajax could only managing a trio of third place finishes. 

Another Eredivisie championship arrived in 1976-77 under Tomislav Ivic as Ruud Geels put away the goals. It wouldn’t be long before another period of sustained success arrived at the club after a 1-0 defeat to AZ in the KNVB Beker final of 1977-78.

Ajax were 1978-79 Eredivisie champions with Cor Brom as coach, which was backed up by Beker triumph when goals from Roy Clarke, Simon Tahamata and Dick Schoenaker saw off Twente 3-0 after a replay. The team went on to retain their Dutch title the following season under Leo Beenhakker. 

However, the team suffered disappointment going down 3-1 to Feyenoord in the Beker, with the scoreline being replicated in the 1980-81 final against AZ. The 1979-80 campaign also saw Ajax reach the semi-final of the European Cup, where eventual winners Nottingham Forest put pay to any dreams.

Gerald Vanenburg and Frank Arnesen were star players of the day who helped their side to the 1981-82 league title when coached by Kurt Linder. Ajax appointed Aad de Mos as he led his side to Eredivisie titles in 1982-83 and 1984-85.

The former of those was made into another double winning season when NEC were beaten 3-1 after a replay in the KNVB Beker final. A returning Cruyff scored along with two goals from Vanenburg as youngsters Marco van Basten, Jesper Olsen, Frank Rijkaard and Wim Kieft made their way into the squad.

Cruyff returned as the new coach in 1985, after a spell away to finish his playing career to install an attacking philosophy. Click here to see a vintage display in the Olympic Stadium.

Cruyff’s side would go on to become Eredivisie runners-up in three consecutive seasons. However, it was a different story in cup competition, starting with a 3-0 KNVB-Beker win in 1985-86 against RBC thanks to a brace from John Bosman and another goal from Sonny Silooy.

In 1986-87 the Beker was retained as Den Haag were beaten 4-2 after extra time with Bosman and van Basten both netting twice. Ajax also lifted the European Cup Winners Cup Final after a van Basten goal defeated Lokomotive Leipzig in Athens.

Several star players began to leave as did Cruyff who returned to Barcelona, but even so the club reached the final of the Cup Winners Cup for a second successive season with Barry Hulshoff in charge of the team. This time it ended in a 1-0 defeat in Strasbourg to Belgian side Mechelen.

Beenhakker returned to lead the club to the 1989-90 Eredivisie title as a young Denis Bergkamp began to make his mark. Louis van Gaal took over as head coach and brought a new set of tactics with him, which paid dividends immediately.

Ajax won the 1992 UEFA Cup Final against Torino 2-2 on aggregate on away goals after Wim Jonk and Stefan Pettersson scored in the away leg at Stadio delle Alpi. The team also included the talent of Danny Blind, Bryan Roy and Frank de Boer.

Ajax went on to lift the 1992-93 KNVB Beker with a 6-2 hammering of Heerenveen as a Marc Overmars double was added to by Bergkamp, Pettersson, Edgar Davids and Dan Peterson prior to Bergkamp and Jonk being been sold to Internazionale.

The 1994-95 season saw Ajax win their fourth European Cup, by then known as the Champions League when a late Patrick Kluivert goal defeated AC Milan at Ernst-Happel-Stadion in Vienna.

Brazilian side Gremio were beaten to lift the Intercontinental Cup before Ajax failed narrowly to defend the Champions League when Juventus avenged the 1973 encounter by winning the 1995-96 Stadio Olimpico final in Rome after a penalty shoot out.

van Gaal departed soon afterwards as many star players also followed him out of the door, with some on free transfers owing to the Bosman ruling and some on large fees to help subsidise the move to the new home Amsterdam ArenA for its opening in August 1996.

Players of the calibre of Davids, Michael Reiziger, Nwankwo Kanu, Kluivert, Overmars, Ronald de Boer, Frank de Boer, Edwin van der Sar and Rijkaard all departed around that time.

New boss Morten Olsen attracted Michael Laudrup to the club as Ajax won the league and cup double in 1997-98 with a 5-0 win against PSV as Jari Litmanen’s hattrick was added to by goals from Tijani Babangida and Shota Arveladze.

The trophy was retained the following season with a 2-0 win over Fortuna Sittard through a Jesper Grønkjær double with Jan Wouters at the helm. Ronald Koeman had arrived as boss to take Ajax to another league and cup double in 2001-02 as FC Utrecht were beaten 3-2 after extra time in the Beker final as Mido, Wamberto and Zlatan Ibrahimović scoring.

Ibrahimović was the star of the show during his time at the club as the team added a further Eredivisie title in 2003-04 before Koeman was replaced by former skipper Blind. He upset fans by abandoning the teams traditional style in favour of a 4-4-2 formation. He lasted just over a year before he was replaced by Henk ten Cate.

In 2006-07 ten Cate's side won the KNVB Beker after defeating AZ Alkmaar on penalties. However once more they had to sell their most promising talent at the end of the following season as Ryan Babel and Wesley Sneijder left the ArenA.

Luis Suarez was brought in as a replacement from Groningen. In October 2007 ten Cate departed as the fans became more and more dissatisfied with Adrie Koster coming in as his replacement.

Following Euro 2008 the legendary Marco van Basten returned to take over as manager as new players came in. Unfortunately, the club decided to sell Klaas-Jan Huntelaar at the same time to much criticism.

van Basten left after just one season with Martin Jol appointed in his place. Goals rattled in at an amazing rate as the team rattle up a goal difference of +86, but still finished the 2009-10 campaign runners up to PSV. Solace was found in an eighteenth KNVB Beker triumph when Saurez and Siem de Jong ran amok in the aggregate win over Feyenoord.

During the 2010-11 campaign Frank de Boer took over from Jol and led the side to the Eredivisie title after a last day win over close rivals Twente, to make up for the disappointment of a poor Champions League campaign as well as the departure of Suarez in the January transfer window.

They regained their title to collect the Eredivisie for the thirty second time after winning their final fourteen games of the 2011-12 campaign as Christian Eriksen weaved his magic in midfield and Kenneth Vermeer had a fine season in goal.

Ajax went on to make it three in a row when a win in May 2013 against Willem II kept the championship banner flying at the ArenA, to compliment a decent Champions League effort in which Manchester City were defeated at the group stage, while the clubs outstanding youth system continued to churn out quality footballers.

De Boer's side were crowned champions once again in 2013-14 to win four consecutive league titles for the first time in the club history. However, they were denied the double by an astonishing 5-1 PEC Zwolle win at De Kuip in the final of the Beker. The team ended as runners-up in the league in 2014-15.

Another second place followed before Peter Bosz replaced De Boer and led the side to the runners-up berth in 2016-17 as Kasper Dolberg and Davy Klaassen scored the goals.  Marcel Keizer was appointed as coach in the summer of 2017 but only lasted until the winter break when he was succeeded by Erik ten Hag.

Ajax won the 2018-19 Eredivisie title as the goals of Dušan Tadić, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Hakim Ziyech along with the skills of Daley Blind and Donny van de Beek brought joy to the fans at the Johan Cruijff ArenA.

The team looked in total control at half time in the second leg of the home semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur when they somehow conceded three goals in the last twenty minutes to go out on away goals to be denied a Champions League final place.

Ajax were leading Eredivisie when the 2019-20 was abandoned owing to the COVID-19 pandemic with Quincy Promes starring.

AFC Ajax will play in the Eredivisie in the 2020-21 season.

My visits

Tuesday 24th October 2000

My Eurorail adventure was nearing its end and I found myself in Amsterdam. It had been a tremendous three weeks, but I was tired and ready for home. I decided that this was to be my last day before heading to Belgium the following morning to catch a ferry home and I wanted to make the most of it.

I had found a budget bed in a dormitory full of other backpackers following the overnight train ride from Berlin. After dumping my bag in the lockers I enjoyed a couple of beers before having a brief look in the city and then heading out on the train to Amsterdam Bijlmer Arena station in hope of a stadium tour. In later years I lamented the lack of PC skills as I could have visited other football venues of interest including the site of the old De Meer.

Anyway, I found the arrows pointing to the tours and museum. I was too early for the 3pm tour but I was welcome to spend the next hour in the superb club museum, which I did with gusto. It had a fine collection of memorabilia as many videos showed some of the highlights on the pitch. I was never going to get sick of seeing Cruyff or van Basten at their prime. Both had sections dedicated to them.

I headed off to join around twenty others for the tour which was conducted by youngish bloke who spoke good English. After he explained each area to the others he took the time to explain it briefly to me, which was a lovely touch. We visited the changing rooms, press room and VIP areas as well as seeing plenty of the ArenA from the stands.

The actual ArenA was a quality construction. It was a two tiered bowl with corporate boxes down one side between the levels. The upper seating deck was extremely steep to offer the best possible views, with its fully retractable roof pulled back on my visit. 

The seats at the front were raised above the pitch with a moat in between so that there was no need for any high fencing. In the gaps between the ends there were areas for pre match entertainment and a small five a side pitch. The ultras banners and graffiti lit up the bare walls behind the goals.

I must have been impressed as I paid for a souvenir photograph to be taken! I took the train back into town and had another walk around, even going out of my way to see Ann Frank's house. After that I thought it was a good idea to get to know the other residents of the hostel. I got very drunk and played some excellent pool, while taking in the aromas.

I seem to recall waking all the room up when trying to find my bed and clambering to the top bunk. While it was hilarious at the time, I certainly paid for it the next morning! The really rough ferry from Oostend to Dover was not a huge help to me, but I couldn't complain. I'd been a very lucky man and the visit to Ajax rounded off my trip perfectly.

Ajax 0 Heracles Almelo 0 (Tuesday 26^th January 2016) Eredivisie (att: 44,517)

When looking at potential fixtures around the last of my 2015 annual leave, I was delighted to see a full block of fixtures spread across a full midweek in Holland that would fit the bill perfectly. My Aussie cricketing friend Dave Kenwery had kept in touch to try and meet up and get to some football.

Dave is an AFC Wimbledon fan, but keen on getting to football wherever. His job took him to many coastal locations and at the time he found himself in Amsterdam. After a few chats on Facebook, all was arranged for me to head out.

Because of flight times, I only had a couple of hours sleep after completing my night shift, but that was a sacrifice well worth making. My KLM flight from Heathrow deposited me at Schipol a little earlier than expected, meaning I was through customs and waiting for my host in good time.

It was great to catch up. It had been far too long since we had a good chat. We headed back to Dave’s super apartment on the island of KNSM-Laan, which is reclaimed land in the middle of the water opposite the city. After a quick Jupiler beer it was time to head into town.

It just so happened that my timing was impeccable. The previous day had been DK’s birthday, and it was now Australia Day. My Yarrambat shirt got an airing for the occasion. Dave gave me a tour of the tourist hot spots as we meandered through the narrow streets to our first port of call.

After our livener it was on to Belushi’s who were geared up to offer the right ambience for any Aussies looking to party. The Tooheys New went down well, as we were snapped by the pub photographer. We got through plenty of football and cricket touring chat. It was good to hear the opinions of a fresh voice on cricket tournaments.

Cafe de Dam, Louis Bar was our final destination before the match. The tiny bar just off Dam Square had football scarves of clubs from all over Europe pinned to the ceiling. As a regular Dave knew the friendly lady behind the bar. The place just had a great vibe. My host was able to offer advice to visiting tourists looking for somewhere a bit livelier.

We grabbed some slabs of pizza to go from over the road as we headed to Nieuwmarkt station for the fifteen minute train ride to the Amsterdam ArenA, disembarking at Strandvliet station which was slightly nearer to the ticket office.

Fans who aren’t Ajax members were forced to buy tourist packs for over €50 for a match, although DK had since discovered another way around it. You get a club scarf with a tourist ticket and all seats are in one block. We still had time for a Heineken at one of the bars outside the stadium. We didn’t see any match programmes.

Fortunately a token and pin system was in operation inside, meaning it was a task to get beers. I was about full and could feel the lack of sleep coming to hinder my progress. Our decent seats were at the rear of the lower tier behind the north goal, about half way between the goal and corner flag.

As the teams came out the Ajax ultras in the top tier in the far corner unfurled a massive banner. The ArenA was by no means full, with the visitors from Almelo being located in a couple of boxes down the main side. The visitors section remained empty.

I must confess to struggling to stay awake in the first half. I felt myself go a few times, but I need not have worried. I missed very little. Not only had Heracles turned up to park the bus, they put a few rows of cars in there for good measure. This was the first time I'd been to a game with a closed roof, but I could have probably done with some cold air to relieve my drowsiness! 

They showed literally no ambition in inflicting any damage to the Ajax goal. The home side were lacking in invention and ideas on how to break them down. There were attempts on goal from  Daley Sinkgraven, Mike van der Hoorn and Riechedly Bazoer but generally Bram Castro in the visitors net had very little to do.

The interval gave me a rest bite from the tedium as I took the opportunity for a stretch to take some photos and use the facilities and have a wash in cold water to bring myself round. I have to say that some of the home fans were a bit aggressive in general. I just got an impression that the tourist block wasn’t their favourite, although my judgement was not at its best.

The two blokes next to us turned out to a Hull City and a Barnsley fan who seemed to be enjoying their evening. Dave and I both came to the conclusion that Heracles would be a danger on a rare break as the game went on.

Straight after the break Anwar El Ghazi had a shot saved for Ajax. Arkadiusz Milik had a header blocked from a set piece as the defensive wall of Heracles stood firm. Milik came close again before the visitors actually had an effort on goal after sixty four minutes as Brahim Darri came dangerously close to opening the scoring.

Home substitute Viktor Fischer had another attempt blocked as the clocked ticked round and the home fans became even more frustrated. Even the singing of ‘Three Little Birds’ had been sang half heartedly before the start of the second period. It seemed to be that type of night.

Fischer had a shot saved before Joey Pelupessy nearly carried out a classic smash and grab raid for Heracles, but he fluffed his lines when about to shoot on goal. The game petered out shortly after, as the away team went over to thank their few supporters who had made the trip. It had been an awful ninety minutes of football.

We followed the crowds and headed back to Strandvliet station. Despite a slight detour, we found our way back to Waterlooplein station for a walk to CoCo’s Outback bar. The place was jumping with people from all over joining Australians in seeing in their big day. We bumped into the youngsters Dave had assisted earlier.

We had a cracking time as I enjoyed a good gargle on the VB’s on offer. It was certainly more interesting than the football! The bar kicked out and we grabbed some food before taking a cab back to my hosts flat.

Generally it had been a great day out in fantastic company, spoiled by a poor game. Nevertheless, I was glad I’d experienced a game in the ArenA, even if the atmosphere was a bit flat. The next morning was certainly interesting!