Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: vv Spirit

Sportpark Ouderkerk - Sportlaan, Ouderkerk aan den IJssel (vv Spirit)

Netherlands, province: South Holland = Zuid-Holland

7 VI 2025 / vv Spirit - vv De Meeuwen 5-1 / District South I, Saturday League 3 - promotion play-off R2 (= NL level 8)

Timeline

1945 / Foundation of a Saturday football club in Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, a village in South Holland. The three founding members, Jo de Hoop, Aart Mourik, and Aris Maat, choose to take on the name Door Volharding Verkregen, abbreviated as DVV.
1946 / When applying for membership of the Netherland’s Football Association (KNVB) in the fall of 1946, DVV is ordered to change its name to avoid confusion with the older DVV Delft and vv DVV from Duiven. Thereupon, the club takes on the name vv Spirit. A pitch is laid out at De Zijde, referred to locally as Terrein Van Haaften.
1947 / vv Spirit starts its competitive life in Saturday Division 3 of the Rotterdam KNVB sub-branch Afdeling Rotterdam (often referred to by its previous name RVB, Rotterdamse Voetbalbond), making its debut with a 5-1 away defeat at the hands of vv Grafabor. In one of the following years, vv Spirit makes the leap to the Saturday divisions of Afdeling Gouda (GVB, Goudse Voetbalbond).
1952 / Winning promotion from Afdeling Gouda Saturday Division 1, vv Spirit accedes to KNVB District West II’s Saturday League 4 for the first time.
1953 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West II’s Saturday League 4C, vv Spirit drops back into Afdeling Gouda Saturday Division 1 after just one season.
1955 / Clinching the title in Afdeling Gouda Saturday Division 1, vv Spirit manages a return to Saturday League 4. The decisive points are obtained in a 4-1 away win at vv De Rijnstreek.
1960 / Works get underway on the projected clubhouse of vv Spirit at Dekkerstraat, with the first pile being driven by the club’s chairman, I.C. de Rek.
1961 / Inauguration of the newly laid-out Sportpark Ouderkerk at Dekkerstraat by Ouderkerk’s mayor, Mr Neet. Originally, the park consisted of just one pitch (the northernmost pitch of modern-day Sportpark Ouderkerk).
1966 / vv Spirit narrowly avoids relegation from District West II’s Saturday League 4C by managing a 1-1 home draw against champions CS Unicum in front of a crowd of some 1,500.
1969 / Champions in District West II’s Saturday League 4D, 2 points ahead of closest rivals vv Haaften, vv Spirit wins promotion to Saturday League 3 for the first time. Also in 1969, Sportpark Ouderkerk is extended with a training pitch, situated to the west of pitch/veld 1.
1977 / Finishing in joint last place in District West II’s Saturday League 3A with vv Vlaardingen, vv Spirit goes on to defeat that club in a tie-break match at vv Capelle’s Sportpark 't Slot (3-1 A.E.T.), thus avoiding relegation. Also in 1977, I.C. de Rek, vv Spirit’s chairman in the past 25 years, passes away unexpectedly.
1978 / Runners-up in District West II’s Saturday League 3A, 1 point behind champions SV Bolnes (za), vv Spirit wins promotion to Saturday League 2 for the first time due to extra promotion places being available. The successful coach is Dick van der Burg. That same year, works get underway on laying out two extra pitches to the south of the main pitch – much needed extra space, given that the club had seen an enormous growth of its youth academy in the previous years.
1981 / Works get underway on the construction of a new clubhouse and dressing rooms, situated to the south of the original first pitch – halfway between this pitch and the two new pitches, works on which had commenced three years previously.
1982 / With works on the new clubhouse having been completed, the completely renovated Sportpark Ouderkerk is inaugurated by Ouderkerk’s mayor J.G. de Zeeuw. As the entrance of the park is moved to the south side, at Sportlaan, the southwesternmost pitch of the park now becomes the main pitch. The original clubhouse at Dekkerlaan, dating back to 1961, remains in use by the local shooting club.
1985 / Former Spirit youth striker Jeroen Boere, who had moved to SBV Excelsior’s youth academy at the age of ten in 1978, makes his professional league debut for the Rotterdam club, going on to have spells at BV De Graafschap, VVV, Roda JC, Go Ahead Eagles, West Ham United FC, Portsmouth FC, West Bromwich Albion FC, Crystal Palace FC, Southend United FC, and Omiya Ardija, ultimately hanging up his boots in 1999. Boere passed away at the age of 39 in 2007.
1986 / Finishing in second-last place in District West II’s Saturday League 2B, vv Spirit drops back into Saturday League 3 after eight years, along with bottom club CVV Be Fair.
1991 / Finishing in seventh place in District West II’s Saturday League 3B, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is eliminated by SSV HBSS.
1995 / Champions in District West II’s Saturday League 3A, 5 points ahead of closest followers SV Voorschoten, vv Spirit manages a return to Saturday League 2 after an absence of nine years. The successful coach is Harry Loerts.
1996 / Finishing in tenth place in District West II’s Saturday League 2B, which would have entailed relegation to Saturday League 3, vv Spirit stays up thanks to the introduction of a Zaterdag Hoofdklasse as the new top level of the Saturday pyramid, with extra places in Saturday League 2 being on offer as a result.
2000 / Finishing bottom of the table in Saturday League 2D, vv Spirit drops back into Saturday League 3 after five seasons, along with the club in second-last place, SV Bolnes (za). That same year, former Spirit youth midfielder Euzebiusz ‘Ebi’ Smolarek, the son of former Feyenoord Rotterdam striker Włodzimierz ‘Wlodi’ Smolarek, makes his debut in Feyenoord’s first team at the age of nineteen. Ebi Smolarek would go on to have spells at Borussia Dortmund, Real Racing Club Santander, Bolton Wanderers FC, Kavala FC, KS Polonia Warszawa, Al-Khor SC, ADO Den Haag, and Jagiellonia Bialystok SSA, ultimately hanging up his boots in 2013. Moreover, Ebi Smolarek also won 47 caps for Poland, representing his country at the 2006 World Cup as well as the 2008 European Championships.
2001 / Runners-up in District West II’s Saturday League 3D, 1 point behind champions CVV De Jodan Boys, vv Spirit manages to win promotion to Saturday League 2 in the ensuing round of play-offs. The successful coach is Harry Loerts.
2002 / Finishing in second-last place in Saturday League 2D with coach Harry Loerts, vv Spirit drops back into Saturday League 3 along with bottom club PVV Excelsior Pernis.
2003 / The main pitch of Sportpark Ouderkerk is laid out anew with a synthetic surface.
2005 / Runners-up in District West II’s Saturday League 3B, 13 points behind runaway champions ZSV Sportlust ’46, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club suffered elimination in the final at the hands of CVV De Jodan Boys. Also in 2005, the grandstand alongside the main pitch at Sportpark Ouderkerk is inaugurated.
2006 / Finishing in fourth place in District West II’s Saturday League 3C, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is knocked out in the semis.
2007 / Runaway champions in District West II’s Saturday League 3C, 15 points ahead of closest followers SV Lombardijen and VVOR, vv Spirit wins promotion to Saturday League 2. The successful coach is Cees van der Poel.
2008 / Champions in Saturday League 2C, 4 points ahead of MVV ’27, vv Spirit manages its second promotion in a row, acceding to Saturday League 1 for the first time in club history. The successful coach is Cees van der Poel.
2009 / Coached by Chris van der Weide, vv Spirit finishes in second-last place in Saturday League 1B, thus dropping back into Saturday League 2 after just one season, along with bottom club vv Strijen.
2010 / Coached by Michael van Noort, vv Spirit finishes in second-last place in Saturday League 2D, thus suffering its second relegation in a row, descending into Saturday League 3 along with bottom club SC Voorne. Also in 2010, former Spirit youth academy defender Stefan de Vrij, a native of Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, makes his debut in Feyenoord Rotterdam’s first team at the age of eighteen. De Vrij goes on to have spells at SS Lazio and FC Internazionale, while winning his first cap for the Netherlands in 2012, representing his country at the 2014 and 2022 World Cups as well as the 2020 and 2024 European Championships.
2011 / Champions in District West II’s Saturday League 3B, 6 points ahead of runners-up vv CION, vv Spirit manages an immediate return to Saturday League 2. The successful coach is Patrick van Loo.
2014 / Runners-up in Saturday League 2D, 5 points behind champions vv Brielle, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is knocked out in R1 by RCL (7-4 aggr.). That same year, defender Wessel Dammers, a former vv Spirit youth player, who had moved away to SBV Excelsior’s youth academy, makes his debut as a professional league player at Feyenoord Rotterdam at the age of nineteen. Following his spell at Feyenoord, Dammers would go on to defend the colours of SC Cambuur, Fortuna Sittard, FC Groningen, Willem II, and Randers FC.
2016 / vv Spirit signs former professional league midfielder Warry van Wattum (spells at SBV Excelsior, SVV, Sparta Rotterdam, SVV Dordrecht ’90, Dordrecht ’90, FC Groningen, BV Veendam, and KSC Eendracht Aalst between 1986 and 2000) as its new coach. Van Wattum joined the club from vv Oude Maas.
2017 / Finishing in second-last place in Saturday League 2D, vv Spirit drops back into Saturday League 3 along with FC Binnenmaas, vv NSVV, and bottom club vv Alblasserdam. Following the season, Warry van Wattum leaves the club, being replaced as head coach by Richard van Cappellen.
2018 / Runners-up in District West II’s Saturday League 3C, 10 points behind champions vv Kethel Spaland, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Eliminating FC Binnenmaas (2-2 A.E.T. & penalty shoot-out) and VDL-Maassluis (0-3) in the first two rounds, the club takes on vv Rijnmond Hoogvliet Sport in the final, crushing the club from Rotterdam (5-1) in a match at Sportpark Ouderkerk attended by some 1,500 spectators. As such, vv Spirit wins promotion to Saturday League 2. The successful coach is Richard van Cappellen.
2021 / Pitch/veld 4 of Sportpark Ouderkerk, the former main pitch of the park (1961-82), is laid out anew as a 3G.
2022 / Finishing in fourth place in Saturday League 2D, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club bows out in R1 against vv Heinenoord (4-1).
2023 / Runners-up in Saturday League 2F, 8 points behind champions RV&AV Sparta, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is knocked out by SV Den Hoorn (2-4).
2024 / Finishing in ninth place in Saturday League 2F, vv Spirit goes on to suffer defeat (1-2) at the hands of SV MOC 1917 in the promotion-relegation play-offs, thus dropping back into Saturday League 3 along with vv Rijsoord, ZVV Pelikaan, vv De Zwerver, and bottom club vv Streefkerk. Following the relegation, coach Richard van Cappellen leaves the club after a seven-year spell.
2025 / Runners-up in Saturday League 3J, 2 points behind champions vv De Zwerver, vv Spirit qualifies for the promotion play-offs with coach Wout Ooms. Drawing a bye for R1, the club knocks out vv De Meeuwen for R2 (5-1) to qualify for the final against wvv WSC, played at Sportpark De Lockhorst in Sliedrecht. Suffering a 2-1 defeat in this all-important match, vv Spirit misses out on promotion.