Tweede Divisie (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈtʋeːdə diˈvizi]; English: Second Division) is the highest amateur (and historically the lowest professional) football league in the Netherlands. It was established in 1956, together with the Eredivisie and the Eerste Divisie. Between 1956 and 1960 and between 1962 and 1966, the league consisted of two divisions, Tweede Divisie A and Tweede Divisie B. The league was disbanded in 1971. Six clubs were promoted to the Eerste Divisie (De Volewijckers, FC Eindhoven, FC VVV, Fortuna Vlaardingen, PEC and Roda JC), while the other eleven teams became amateur clubs.
 | |
| Founded | 1956; refounded in 2016 |
|---|---|
| Country | Netherlands |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Number of teams | 18 |
| Level on pyramid | 3 |
| Promotion to | Eerste Divisie (for reserve teams) |
| Relegation to | Derde Divisie U21 Division 1 (for reserve teams) |
| Domestic cup(s) | KNVB Cup |
| Current champions | Katwijk (3rd title) (2022–23) |
| Current: 2024–25 Tweede Divisie | |
Plans for a new, amateur Tweede Divisie, to be made up of 4 reserve teams and 14 Topklasse clubs, were approved in a KNVB assembly in December 2014. Thus, the Topklasse, renamed the Derde Divisie (English: Third Division), and leagues below decremented by one level, and furthermore, promotion and relegation among the second to fourth divisions were implemented starting in 2016–17.[1][2] Despite its amateurism, the league obliges its clubs to have a minimum number of players under contract.[3] No first team will be promoted to the Eerste Divisie until after 2022–23, but from the end of 2020–21 at first, the highest-ranked second (i.e., reserve) team gains promotion, while the lowest-ranked reserves are relegated to a new under-21 division. An under-23 competition has been established for the Tweede Divisie's amateur clubs that are not directly eligible for its under-21 equivalent.[4] Because of the 2020–21 season's cancellation,[5] promotion or relegation was suspended for five to 10 years in June 2022.[6]
Champions
edit- 1956–57: Leeuwarden & RBC
- 1957–58: ZFC & Heracles
- 1958–59: 't Gooi & Go Ahead
- 1959–60: EDO & Be Quick
- 1960–61: HFC Haarlem
- 1961–62: Velox
- 1962–63: VSV (beat HFC Haarlem in a play-off)
- 1963–64: NEC (beat Alkmaar '54 in a play-off)
- 1964–65: SC Cambuur (beat DFC in a play-off)
- 1965–66: Vitesse Arnhem & FC Den Bosch
- 1966–67: HFC Haarlem
- 1967–68: FC Wageningen
- 1968–69: De Graafschap
- 1969–70: SC Heerenveen
- 1970–71: Volewijckers
- 2016–17: Jong AZ
- 2017–18: Katwijk
- 2018–19: AFC
- 2019–20: No champions[7]
- 2020–21: No champions[5]
- 2021–22: Katwijk
- 2022–23: Katwijk
All-time topscorers
edit| # | Name | Clubs | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tonny Roosken | VV Zwartemeer, SC Drente | 202 |
| 2 | Leo Koopman | PEC Zwolle | 128 |
| 3 | Cees van Kooten | Hermes DVS | 114 |
| 4 | Evert Pluim | FC Hilversum, HVC | 113 |
| 5 | Kees Groeneveld | VV Baronie | 93 |
2023–24 teams
edit| Club | City | 2022–23 season | Home ground | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AFC | Amsterdam | 3rd | Sportpark Goed Genoeg | 3,000 |
| Excelsior Maassluis | Maassluis | 14th | Sportpark Dijkpolder | 5,000 |
| HHC | Hardenberg | 4th | Sportpark De Boshoek | 4,500 |
| Koninklijke HFC | Haarlem | 7th | Sportpark Spanjaardslaan | 1,500 |
| IJsselmeervogels | Spakenburg | 16th | Sportpark De Westmaat | 6,000 |
| Jong Sparta | Rotterdam | 10th | Het Kasteel | 11,000 |
| Jong Volendam | Volendam | 17th | Kras Stadion | 7,384 |
| Katwijk | Katwijk | 1st | Sportpark De Krom | 6,000 |
| Kozakken Boys | Werkendam | 13th | Sportpark De Zwaaier | 3,000 |
| Lisse | Lisse | 12th | Sportpark Ter Specke | 7,000 |
| Noordwijk | Noordwijk | 9th | Sportpark Duin Wetering | 3,500 |
| OFC | Oostzaan | 18th | Sportpark OFC | 1,500 |
| Quick Boys | Katwijk aan Zee | 6th | Sportpark Nieuw Zuid | 8,100 |
| Rijnsburgse Boys | Rijnsburg | 2nd | Sportpark Middelmors | 6,100 |
| Scheveningen | Scheveningen | 8th | Sportpark Houtrust | 3,500 |
| Spakenburg | Spakenburg | 11th | Sportpark De Westmaat | 8,500 |
| TEC | Tiel | 15th | Sportpark De Lok | 2,500 |
| De Treffers | Groesbeek | 5th | Sportpark Zuid | 4,000 |
References
edit- ^ "Plans for a new Tweede Divisie starting 2016–17". NOS.nl (in Dutch). 2 December 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
- ^ "Vanaf seizoen 2016/17: promotie/degradatie tussen amateurvoetbal en betaald voetbal". KNVB.nl (in Dutch). 2 December 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2015.[dead link]
- ^ "Richtlijn Licentiesysteem tweede en derde divisie seizoen 2019/'20" [Licensing system guidelines - Second and Third Division Season 2019–20] (in Dutch). KNVB. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
- ^ "Bondsvergadering kiest voor nieuwe competitiestructuur in jeugdvoetbal" [Association assembly opts for a new league structure in youth football] (in Dutch). KNVB. 16 December 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
- ^ a b "Competities senioren categorie A niet hervat" [Seniors category A competitions not resumed] (in Dutch). KNVB. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ^ "6. Agenda bondsvergadering". Agenda (in Dutch). KNVB. 24 June 2023. p. 24.
- ^ "Competities amateurvoetbal niet hervat" [Amateur competitions not resumed] (in Dutch). KNVB. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 6 April 2020.