Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: RKVV SBV (1957-1974, 1977-2022) / SSA-SJO VITA (A&B) (2022-2024)

Sportpark Elzenbos, Haren N-Br. (SSA-SJO VITA, formerly RKVV SBV)

Netherlands, province: North Brabant = Noord-Brabant

2 VI 2024 / SSA-SJO VITA - RK BVV '27 4-2 / District South II, Sunday League 5 - promotion play-off R1 (= NL level 10)

Timeline

± 1934 / Foundation of ADO (‘Alles Door Oefening’), a first football club in the village of Haren, North Brabant. ADO probably joined the Roman-Catholic league association RKVB.
1939 / Due to the mobilisation of the Netherlands’ army, with several ADO players being called up for service, the club is constrained to fold, ceasing all activities.
1945 / In the wake of the liberation of the Netherlands’ from the German yoke, a new football club sees the daylight in Haren: RKVV SBV (Rooms-Katholieke Voetbalvereniging ‘Sport Brengt Vreugde’), which joins the official Netherlands’ Football Association (KNVB).
1947 / Without losing a single match, RKVV SBV wins the title in its division - probably Division 3 of KNVB Afdeling Maasbuurt.
± 1951 / RKVV SBV folds, ceasing all activities.
1957 / Refoundation of RKVV SBV, with Jan Janssen being chosen as the new club’s first chairman. A pitch is laid out for the club on a plot of land at Lietingstraat, owned by Harry Elemans – whose pub, Café D’n Hanenberg, is situated next to the new ground (white brick house behind dressing rooms in picture 14, below). With circumstances being somewhat primitive in those early years, the café’s horse stable serves as a makeshift dressing room for the players.
1960 / RKVV SBV wins its first title in KNVB Afdeling Maasbuurt (probably Division 3).
1961 / A first set of dressing rooms are put in place at Terrein Lietingstraat.
1974 / With renovation works being undertaken at Terrein Lietingstraat, RKVV SBV has to groundshare with RKVV DESO at Sportpark Rusheuvel Noord in Oss.
1977 / After three years of groundsharing at Sportpark Rusheuvel Noord, RKVV SBV returns to a completely renovated Terrein Lietingstraat, inaugurated by Megen’s mayor, Mr Bus. The main pitch has been laid out in the exact same position as in the pre-1974 set-up.
1979 / Under the leadership of player-coach Leo Ouwens, RKVV SBV wins its second title in KNVB Afdeling Maasbuurt.
1988 / Dug-outs are placed alongside the southern side of the main pitch at Terrein Lietingstraat.
1991 / At the request of the club’s main sponsor, consumer electronics company De Harense Smid, RKVV SBV changes its club colours from yellow/black to blue/white to be in conformity with the sponsorship logo.
1996 / As the local KNVB branches organising football below League 4 are abolished, RKVV SBV is placed in District South I’s Sunday League 6.
1997 / At SBV’s fortieth anniversary, Terrein Lietingstraat is officially renamed Sportpark Elzenbos. Whereas club meetings had hitherto taken place in Café D’n Hanenberg, the club is now given the luxury of a board room, paid for by De Harense Smid.
2006 / A clubhouse is inaugurated at Sportpark Elzenbos, replacing Café D’n Hanenberg, which had served as such until that time, with the official ceremony being performed by club men Hans Boerboom and Marinus Hoefnagels.
2009 / Runners-up in District South II’s Sunday League 6G, 10 points behind champions vv Ollandia, RKVV SBV qualifies for the play-offs, in which the club manages successive defeats of vv OKSV and SV OVC ’63, resulting in promotion to Sunday League 5. The coach attaining this success is Harm van Uden.
2012 / Finishing second-from-bottom in District South II’s Sunday League 5H, RKVV SBV drops back into League 6 after three seasons, along with bottom club vv Maaskantse Boys.
2015 / As District South II’s Sunday League 6 is abolished, RKVV SBV is placed in Sunday League 5 for the 2015-16 season. Also in 2015, RKVV SBV concludes a cooperation agreement with RKSV Ulysses from the nearby village of Megen – a club founded in 1946 with a slightly more successful history, given that it had several spells in Sunday League 4, a level never attained by SBV; the two clubs merge their youth academies under the provisional name SJO (Samenwerkende Jeugdopleidingen, i.e. ‘Cooperating Youth Academies’) VITA – with VITA being an acronym for Vitesse and ADO, the names of the first football clubs from Megen and Haren respectively. For the time being, the senior teams of both clubs remain independent.
2019 / Runners-up in District South II’s Sunday League 5D, 18 points behind champions SV MEC ’07, RKVV SBV qualifies for the play-offs, but the club fails to win a historic promotion to Sunday League 4.
2022 / In its last season as an independent club, RKVV SBV finishes in eleventh place in District South I’s Sunday League 5B. Building on the merger of both clubs’ youth academies in 2015, RKSV Ulysses and RKVV SBV now bring together their senior teams as well, with a view of concluding a full merger within two years. From now on, the two clubs field teams under the name SSA-SJO VITA (SSA standing for Samenwerkende Seniorenafdelingen, i.e. ‘Cooperating Senior Branches’). Due to RKSV Ulysses suffering relegation from Sunday League 4 in its last season, SSA-SJO VITA’s first team has to start its life in District South I’s Sunday League 5. First team matches are alternately played at Ulysses' Sportpark D'n Heuvel and SBV’s Sportpark Elzenbos.
2024 / Finishing in third place in District South II's Sunday League 5E, SSA-SJO VITA qualifies for the play-offs, successively defeating RK BVV '27 (4-2) and vv Linne (5-3 aggr.), resulting in the club winning promotion to League 4. After the 2023-24 season, following a two-year partnership, RKVV SBV and RKSV Ulysses conclude a fully fledged merger, resulting in the foundation of SV VITA. All activities move to Sportpark D'n Heuvel in Megen, with Sportpark Elzenbos being abandoned.