Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: RKVV HBV

Sportpark Calbroek, Beers (RKVV HBV)

Netherlands, province: North Brabant = Noord-Brabant

16 III 2025 / RKVV HBV - vv Heijen 2-2 / District South II, Sunday League 4H (= NL level 9)

Timeline

1913 / Foundation of a first football club in the village of Beers, situated in the northeastern corner of the Province of North Brabant. The club is given the name BVV, an acronym for Beersche Voetbalvereeniging. The club’s first pitch is a pasture owned by the Wagemans family at Gildeweg, and known locally as Terrein De Schutsboom, although this is by no means the only meadow in Beers used for improvised football matches in those years. Refraining from joining any football association, BVV sticks to playing friendly matches against teams from surrounding villages.
1914 / As World War I breaks out, many young men from Beers are called up for army service, for, although the Netherlands remains neutral throughout the war, the armed forces remain mobilised for its entire duration. As a result, the activities of BVV come to an end in the early stages of the war.
1919 / After four or five years of inactivity, BVV is re-established in the Easter days of 1919, but under a new name: VIOS, the meaning of which is unclear – with possibilities being Vooruitgang Is Ons Streven (Progress Is Our Goal) or Voetbal Is Onze Sport (Football Is Our Sport). Most matches are played on a plot of farmland owned by the Claassen family.
1920 / VIOS joins the so-called Roomsch-Katholieke Voetbalbond Den Bosch (RKVB), the ‘s-Hertogenbosch branch of Roman-Catholic football association RKF (Roomsch-Katholieke Federatie).
1921 / For 1921-22, the first competitive season for VIOS, the club is placed in the Grave regional division of Afdeling Maasbuurt. Also in 1921, VIOS abandons Terrein Claassen, moving to Terrein Piet Heurkens, a plot of farmland on the exit road to Linden. As the pitch is no more than a makeshift affair, and not available the entire season long due to its continued use for farming purposes, VIOS regularly has to play its home matches elsewhere, with two recorded locations being meadows behind the respective living houses of Mr Terburg and Mr Schraven.
± 1925 / Moving away from Terrein Piet Heurkens, VIOS settles on a plot of farmland at Lindeweg (modern-day Jan van Daalstraat), mostly referred to as Terrein Op ‘t Loo.
1934 / Clinching the title in RKVB Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1, VIOS gets to play in a championship competition to achieve promotion to RKF’s Overgangsklasse, but this attempt ends in failure.
1939 / As many VIOS members are called up to perform their army service, as the Netherlands’ armed forces mobilise in the summer of 1939 in the face of a looming German attack, the club does not have enough players left to form a team. As a result, VIOS withdraws from competitive football.
1940 / The RKF as well as all other football associations in the Netherlands apart from the official Netherlands’ Football Association (KNVB, renamed NVB following the German oppression of the Netherlands) are abolished. However, due to VIOS having become inactive, the club does not make the leap to NVB membership. In the early stages of the occupation years, VIOS plays some friendly matches against teams from surrounding villages.
1941 / VIOS ceases all activities without officially folding. The last pitch where the club had played was Terrein Achter het Pakhuis at Gildeweg.
1943 / After two years of inactivity, VIOS makes a restart, with Karel van den Berg taking over the chairmanship.
1944 / In the summer of 1944, mere months before the liberation of North Brabant, a tournament is held by VIOS at Terrein Achter het Pakhuis – and, shortly after the arrival of the UK army, a gala match is organised, with VIOS taking on a team of British soldiers, ending in a comprehensive 5-1 defeat. Thereupon, the club applies for membership of KNVB Afdeling Den Bosch, which is granted on the condition that the club change its name due to the acronym VIOS already having been taken by several other clubs. At that point, the idea is brought up to call the club HBV, acronym for HerBoren VIOS (Reborn VIOS) – officially Rooms-Katholieke Voetbalvereniging (RKVV) HBV.
1945 / Due to Terrein Achter het Pakhuis at Gildeweg having been ravished in the latter stages of the war, RKVV HBV moves to a newly laid-out pitch on the farmland of the Van den Boogaard family, not far from the old location (modern-day Ganzenbroek). For the 1945-46 season, HBV is placed in KNVB Afdeling Den Bosch (Sunday) Division 1 – universally called ‘Afdeling Maasbuurt’, as the bulk of the clubs in this newly created division were playing RKVB Afdeling Maasbuurt in the pre-war Roman-Catholic Football Association (RKF).
1946 / In its first season in the ranks of the KNVB, RKVV HBV clinches the title in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1, but the club fails to achieve promotion in the subsequent round of championship play-offs.
1947 / Moving away from Terrein Van den Boogaard, RKVV HBV settles on a newly laid-out pitch at Molenstraat – a location taken by the N321 secondary road nowadays.
1948 / For the second time in three seasons, RKVV HBV obtains the title in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1, with the decisive points being clinched in a 2-1 away win at ‘t Leker in the second-last match of the season. Yet again, HBV fails to achieve promotion in the championship play-offs.
1951 / Moving away from Terrein Molenstraat, RKVV HBV settles at a newly laid-out ground at Millseweg, not far from the crossroads with Graafsedijk.
1953 / Moving away from Terrein Millseweg after two years, RKVV HBV settles on a newly laid-out pitch at Hapseweg, which is referred to locally as Terrein De Heuf. This pitch is still in use today as the southernmost of the three pitches at modern-day Sportpark Calbroek.
1960 / Coached by Mr Roos from Nijmegen, RKVV HBV clinches the title in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1B, 1 point ahead of closest rivals SV Milsbeek, RKVV Holthees-Smakt, and vv De Zwaluw. The decisive point is clinched in a 3-3 away draw against derby rivals RKVV Vianen Vooruit. This time, HBV manages to win the championship play-offs, thus acceding to District South I’s Sunday League 4 for the first time.
1962 / Finishing bottom of the table in District South I’s Sunday League 4A, RKVV HBV drops back into KNVB Afdeling Den Bosch (Sunday) Division 1, i.e. “Afdeling Maasbuurt”.
1966 / Finishing in second-last place in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1, RKVV HBV descends into Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 2 for the first time, along with bottom club RKSV Ulysses.
1970 / Works get underway on the laying out of two new pitches as well as the construction of a new clubhouse to the north of the pitch at Hapseweg inaugurated in 1953.
1972 / Champions in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 2, 1 point ahead of closest rivals SDDL, RKVV HBV manages a return to Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1. The decisive point is clinched in a 2-2 home draw against vv Prinses Maria in the second-last match of the season. HBV’s goals on the day are scored by Henk van de Lockant and Noud Goossens. The successful coach is Tiny Branje. The title match against vv Prinses Maria happens to be the first to be played on the new main pitch of Sportpark De Heuf, works on which had started two years previously. The official inauguration of the new clubhouse takes place in October 1972, with former mayor of Beers, Mr Van Raay, performing the inaugural ceremony. From now on, the park consists of three pitches, of which the middle one is the new main pitch. The southernmost, the old main pitch, has remained in use as training pitch until the present day.
1977 / A youth match between a North Brabant XI and a North-Rhine Westphalia XI is held at HBV’s Sportpark De Heuf.
1979 / Sportpark De Heuf is renamed Sportpark Calbroek – Calbroek being an old name of the area to the south of Beers where the park is situated.
1982 / Finishing in joint ninth place in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1, RKVV HBV only saves its skin after winning a tie-break match against vv Hapse Boys, which, as a result, is retrograded into Division 2 along with vv SES and bottom club RKSV Festilent.
1983 / Coached by Jan Kusters, RKVV HBV finishes bottom of the table in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1, thus dropping back into Division 2 after eleven seasons. In the letterhead used by the club in 1983, the official name is still given as RKVV HBV – although the prefix RKVV is never used anymore nowadays, it was probably never officially dropped.
1984 / Coached by Karel de Man, RKVV HBV now finishes bottom of the table in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 2, thus descending into Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 3, the bottom division of the local league system, for the first time – also amounting to the club’s second relegation in a row.
1988 / Clinching the title in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 3 without suffering a single defeat all season, finishing 1 point ahead of closest rivals OKSV, RKVV HBV manages a return to Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 2 after four years. The decisive points are obtained in a 4-1 away win at RKVV Menos (goals by Peter Toonen, Richard ten Haaf, Niek Heurkens, and Frans Driessen). The successful coach is Martien van Elsbergen. Following the 1987-88 season, as HBV celebrates its 75th anniversary, a gala match is organised at Sportpark Calbroek between a Maasbuurt XI and Eerste Divisie champions RKC (result 4-6; att. 350). Also in 1988, the new clubhouse at Sportpark Calbroek, which replaces the original construction constructed in 1970-72, is inaugurated.
1991 / RKVV HBV finishes as runners-up in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 2, 2 points behind champions SV DSV.
1993 / Champions in Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 2, 1 point ahead of runners-up RKVV DESO, RKVV HBV wins promotion to Afdeling Maasbuurt Division 1. The decisive points are clinched in a 2-0 home win over SV Estria (goals by Marco van Benthum & Roger Smits). The successful coach is Henk Driessen.
1996 / As Afdeling Noord-Brabant and all other KNVB sub-branches are abolished in a reorganisation of the lower reaches of the non-league pyramid, RKVV HBV is placed in District South I’s Sunday League 5G.
1997 / Coached by Gerry Visser, RKVV HBV finishes in tenth place in District South I’s Sunday League 5G, thus descending into Sunday League 65 along with GVV ’57 and bottom club FC Schadewijk.
2000 / Champions in District South I’s Sunday League 6H, 3 points ahead of closest followers vv Hapse Boys, RKVV HBV manages a return to Sunday League 5 after three years. The decisive points are obtained in a 7-1 away win at SC Sint-Hubert (four goals by Martijn van den Boogaard, one each by Dave Selten, Niels van Benthum, and Pieter van den Bosch. The successful coach is former FC Wageningen professional league player Perry Maselaman.
2001 / Champions in District South I’s Sunday League 5H with coach Perry Maselaman, 4 points ahead of runners-up RKSV Odiliapeel, RKVV HBV manages its second promotion in a row, acceding to Sunday League 4 after an absence of 39 years at that level. The decisive point is clinched in a goalless away draw at VCA.
2005 / In the best season in club history, RKVV HBV finishes as runners-up in District South II’s Sunday League 4G, 1 point behind champions RKOSV Achates.
2008 / Coached by John van Geenen, RKVV HBV finishes in second-last place in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, thus being retrograded into Sunday League 5 along with bottom club vv De Zwaluw.
2009 / Champions in District South II’s Sunday League 5G, 4 points ahead of closest rivals RKSV Odiliapeel, RKVV HBV manages an immediate return to Sunday League 4. The decisive points are clinched in a 5-1 away win at vv De Zwaluw – with striker Martijn van den Boogaard scoring three of HBV’s goals. The successful coach is John van Geenen.
2010 / Still coached by John van Geenen, RKVV HBV proves unable to hold its own at League 4 level, finishing bottom of the table in District South II’s Sunday League 4G and thus dropping back into Sunday League 5.
2011 / Runners-up in District South II’s Sunday League 5G, 11 points behind runaway champions vv SES, RKVV HBV qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club finishes top of a group of three following wins over VCA (2-4) and SV DSV (2-1). As a result, the club manages an immediate return to Sunday League 4. The successful coach is Jan van Oijen.
2013 / Coached by Jan van Oijen, RKVV HBV finishes bottom of the table in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, thus suffering relegation to Sunday League 5 along with the club finishing in second-last place, RKVV Montagnards. Also in 2013, HBV celebrates its centenary with a gala match against a team of former NEC players as well as the publication of a book detailing the history of the club.
2015 / Finishing in third place in District South II’s Sunday League 5G, RKVV HBV is admitted to Sunday League 4 directly due to extra promotion places being available, along with vv Excellent and SV Estria. The successful coach is Eric van Dreumel.
2016 / Runners-up in District South II’s Sunday League 4G, 7 points behind champions SV Milsbeek, RKVV HBV qualifies for the promotion-relegation play-offs, in which the club knocks out vv SES in R1 (4-1 aggr.) before suffering a 3-1 (aggr.) defeat against derby rivals RKVV Vianen Vooruit in the final.
2017 / HBV concludes an agreement with neighbour club RKVV Vianen Vooruit, involving the merger of the two clubs’ youth academies. Henceforth, youth teams take part in KNVB competitions under the name SJO (Samenwerkende Jeugdopleidingen) Vianen Vooruit-HBV.
2018 / Finishing in twelfth place in District South II’s Sunday League 4G, RKVV HBV avoids relegation by the skin of its teeth, winning the promotion-relegation play-off against FC De Rakt (6-4 aggr.).
2019 / Coached by Robert van Mierlo, RKVV HBV finishes in second-last place in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, going on to fail to save its skin in the promotion-relegation play-offs, in which the club suffers a 2-1 defeat against RKSV VIOS ’38. As such, the club drops back into Sunday League 5 along with bottom side FC Uden.
2022 / Champions in District South II’s Sunday League 5E, 3 points ahead of closest followers vv MVC, RKVV HBV manages a return to Sunday League 4. The successful coach is Luciën Roeffen.
2024 / Finishing in fourth place in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, RKVV HBV qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club knocks out FC Uden (5-2) and SV Milsbeek (0-2) in the first two rounds, only to suffer defeat in the final against RKVV ELI (3-1).
2025 (projected) / In a further integration of the two clubs, RKVV HBV and RKVV Vianen Vooruit conclude a new agreement, in which non only the youth academies, but the senior sides, including the flagship teams, are merged into one in a so-called Samenwerking Seniorenafdelingen (SSA).

Note – Important parts of the information provided above have been derived from a book published on the occasion of RKVV HBV’s 100th anniversary: “Witte broek en gele trui. Het Beerse voetbal vereeuwigd”, by Thijs Derks, Guus Kennis, Giel Theunissen, and Raymond Veulings, ed. Weemen Drukwerk & Communicatie / HBV: Beers 2013. Thanks to Piet Theunissen for giving me the opportunity to use this source.