Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: SV Houten

Sportpark Oud Wulven, Houten (SV Houten)

Netherlands, province: Utrecht

15 XI 2025 / SV Houten - vv Gilze 6-2 / Combined Sunday & Saturday League 1D (= NL level 6)

Timeline

1933 / Foundation of a Roman Catholic football club in Houten, a village in the Province of Utrecht. The new club, which is given the name RKHVV or Roomsch-Katholieke Houtensche Voetbalvereeniging, settles on a pitch laid out on a plot of land at Vlierweg – halfway between the railway line and the non-confessional cemetery – put at the disposal of the club by a local smallholder, Arie Sturkenboom.
1934 / Joining the so-called Roomsch-Katholieke Utrechtsche Voetbalbond (RKUVB), a sub-branch of the Netherlands’ Roman-Catholic Football Federation (RKF), RKHVV is placed in RKUVB Division 3 for the 1934-35 season.
1935 / Clinching the title in RKUVB Division 3, RKHVV accedes to Division 2 of the said league system. Also in or around 1935, the club settles on a newly laid-out pitch, also situated at Vlierweg (near the crossroads with Kerksteeg), a stone’s throw away from the old location.
1940 / As the Netherlands is overrun by the German army in May 1940, all other football associations save the official Netherlands’ FA (KNVB, renamed NVB for the duration of the war) cease their activities, including the RKF and all its sub-branches. Given the choice between folding and making the leap to the NVB competitions, RKHVV chooses the latter option, being placed in (Sunday) Division 2 of the FA’s Utrecht’s sub-branch, officially called Afdeling Utrecht, but usually referred to with its pre-1940 name, Utrechtse Provinciale Voetbalbond (UPVB). Also in or around 1940, RKHVV moves away from Vlierweg, settling on a newly laid-out pitch on a plot of land owned by W. Sturkenboom at Veerwagenweg (at the crossroads with Schalkwijkseweg).
1941 / Clinching the title in UPVB Sunday Division 3, RKHVV wins promotion to D2 of the said league system. That same year, the club changes its name to become RKVV Houten at the behest of NVB authorities, who are keen to avoid confusion with an older club from Huissen using the same abbreviation.
1942 / Champions in UPVB Sunday Division 2, RKVV Houten wins back-to-back promotions, acceding to D1 of the said league system.
± 1943 / Moving away from Terrein Veerwagenweg, RKVV Houten moves back to Vlierweg – but on a new location, a pasture hemmed in between Vlierweg and Lobbendijk, only a stone’s throw away from the pitch used by the club in the second half of the 1930s.
1947 / RKVV Houten suffers relegation from UPVB Sunday Division 1 to Division 2.
1949 / Moving away from Terrein Vlierweg, RKVV Houten settles on a pitch laid out at Loerikseweg – a sheep meadow with makeshift wooden dressing rooms.
1952 / Suffering relegation from UPVB Sunday Division 2, RKVV Houten descends into D3 of the said league system for the first time.
1960 / After eight years, RKVV Houten wins promotion from UPVB Sunday Division 3 to D2 of the said league system.
1962 / RKVV Houten changes its name to become Sportvereniging (SV) Houten, giving up its exclusively Roman Catholic identity and enabling non-Catholics to join.
1965 / Suffering relegation from UPVB Sunday Division 2, SV Houten descends into D3 of the said league system.
1966 / Champions in UPVB Sunday Division 3, SV Houten manages an immediate return to D2 of the said league system.
1968 / Moving away from Terrein Loerikseweg, SV Houten settles on a newly laid-out park, Terrein Flierplan – later renamed Sportpark De Flier – in the Heemlanden area, to the north of the village centre.
1973 / Suffering relegation from UPVB Sunday Division 2, SV Houten drops back into D3 of the said league system after seven years.
1975 / Champions in UPVB Sunday Division 3, SV Houten manages a return to D2 of the said league system after two years.
1979 / Champions in UPVB Sunday Division 2, SV Houten manages a return to D1 of the said league system after an absence of 32 years at that level.
1980 / Champions in UPVB Sunday Division 1, SV Houten wins back-to-back promotions, acceding to UPVB Zondag Hoofdklasse – the recently introduced top division of the UPVB Sunday pyramid – for the first time.
1982 / Gaining promotion from UPVB Zondag Hoofdklasse, SV Houten accedes to District West I’s Sunday League for the first time in club history. That same year, the club abandons Sportpark De Flier after fourteen years, settling at the newly laid-out Sportpark Oud Wulven, at the far northern edge of the ever expanding agglomeration of what can by now with justice be referred to as the town of Houten.
1983 / In its first-ever season at the regular non-league level, SV Houten manages a more than respectable second place in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 5 points behind champions vv CDN.
1985 / Champions in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 4 points ahead of closest rivals CVV Vriendenschaar, SV Houten wins promotion to Sunday League 3 for the first time.
1988 / Finishing in second-last place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, SV Houten drops back into Sunday League 4 along with bottom club vv Maarssen.
± 1990 / A covered stand is added to the set-up of the main pitch at Sportpark Oud Wulven.
1992 / Finishing in third place in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, SV Houten goes on to clinch promotion to Sunday League 3 in the ensuing play-off rounds.
1994 / Finishing in third-last place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, SV Houten goes on to suffer defeat in a relegation play-off, thus dropping back into Sunday League 4 along with vv SEC and bottom club SV Rivierwijkers.
1995 / Runners-up in District West I’s Sunday League 4G, 1 point behind champions SV Zeist, SV Houten goes on to win promotion to Sunday League 3 in the play-off. That same year, part of the membership of SV Houten, disgruntled with the alleged lack of interest in recreational football within the club, breaks away, founding a new rival club, FC Delta Sports ’95.
1998 / Finishing in sixth place in District West IV’s Sunday League 3D, SV Houten goes on to win the promotion play-offs, thus acceding to Sunday League 2 for the first time in club history. That same year, two eighteen-year-old former SV Houten youth academy midfielders make their professional league debut at FC Utrecht; Ruud Berger – son of professional league coach Han Berger – and Jordi Zuidam. Berger goes on to have spells at Cambuur Leeuwarden, BVO Emmen, FC Zwolle, and RKC Waalwijk, hanging up his boots in 2010. Zuidam, on the other hand, leaves FC Utrecht for Go Ahead Eagles, going on to defend the colours of FC Zwolle and RBC Roosendaal, ultimately bowing out into non-league in 2011 at vv Katwijk and later vv De Meern.
2000 / Finishing in third-last place in Sunday League 2B with coach Peter Dussenbroek, who had replaced Bert Trappel in the course of the season, SV Houten goes on to suffer defeat in a relegation play-off, thus dropping back into Sunday League 3 after two years, along with SC Neerlandia-SLTO and bottom club vv Osdorp/SPORT.
2001 / Coached by Peter Dussenbroek, SV Houten suffers back-to-back relegations, finishing bottom of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 3D and dropping back into Sunday League 4 along with the team in second-last place, SC Muiderberg.
2002 / Champions in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 4 points ahead of closest followers VSV Vreeswijk, SV Houten manages an immediate return to Sunday League 3. The successful coach is Peter Dussenbroek.
2004 / SV Houten finishes as runners-up in District West IV’s Sunday League 3D, 13 points behind runaway champions VSV Vreeswijk.
2008 / SV Houten finishes as runners-up in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, 6 points behind champions vv De Meern.
2009 / Finishing in fourth place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, SV Houten gains promotion to Sunday League 2 via the play-offs. In the final, played at Sportpark Zonnegloren, the ground of VVZ '49 in Soest, the club has the better of AFC Quick 1890 (3-2; Houten's goals by Pascal Hoogland, Kris Daalhuizen, and Ludo Veldhuizen). The successful coach is René Versteeg.
2010 / Former SV Houten youth academy striker Leon de Kogel makes his professional league debut at the age of 18 with FC Utrecht, going on to have spells at VVV-Venlo, Almere City FC, Go Ahead Eagles, and UE Cornellà, ultimately hanging up his boots in 2018 and returning to SV Houten as a youth academy coach.
2013 / Finishing in eleventh place in Sunday League 2B with coach Pascal Hoogland, SV Houten goes on to suffer defeat in R1 of the promotion-relegation play-offs against BVC Bloemendaal (5-4 aggr.); as such, the club drops back into Sunday League 3 along with vv OSM ’75, RKDES, and bottom club LVV Roda ’46. Also in 2013, 21-year-old former SV Houten youth academy goalkeeper Benjamin van Leer, who had moved from his childhood club to USV Elinkwijk, and later PSV and FC Eindhoven, makes his professional league debut at Jong PSV. In subsequent years, Van Leer would go on to defend the colours of Roda JC Kerkrade, AFC Ajax, Jong AFC Ajax, NAC Breda, and Sparta Rotterdam, ultimately hanging up his boots in 2022.
2014 / Finishing in third place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, SV Houten qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club knocks out AGB in R1 (4-2 aggr.), going on to comfortably sail past SV Hillegom in the final (5-1 aggr.). As a result, the club finds its way back to Sunday League 2 immediately. The successful coach is Herman Wallenburg. That same year, former SV Houten youth academy defender Jordi Balk, who had left the club to join FC Utrecht's academy as an apprentice some years previously, makes his professional league debut at Ross County FC, going on to have spells at FC Oss and St Patrick’s Athletic FC, bowing out into Dutch non-league in 2018 at FC Lienden – and later at vv DUNO, vv DOVO, and ZSV Sportlust ’46.
2015 / Finishing in fourth place in Sunday League 2B, SV Houten qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club knocks out LSVV in R1 (3-2 aggr.), only to suffer elimination in R2 at the hands of SV Fortuna Wormerveer (6-2 aggr.).
2016 / Finishing in eleventh place in Sunday League 2B with coach Peter Dussenbroek, SV Houten fails to save its skin in the promotion-relegation play-offs, bowing out in R1 against SV DSOV (6-1 aggr.). As such, the club drops back into Sunday League 3 along with FC Weesp and bottom club VVA-Spartaan.
2017 / Finishing in joint first place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D with CVV Vriendenschaar, SV Houten goes on to meet the club from Culemborg in a tie-break match, played at Sportpark Galecop, home of JSV Nieuwegein. Suffering a 2-1 defeat in this encounter, the club fails to book a ticket for Sunday League 2. In the subsequent promotion play-offs, the club is eliminated in R1 by AFC DWS (6-5 aggr. A.E.T.). The result of both of these matches made little difference to the course of club history, though, as by then the decision had been taken by SV Houten’s board to discontinue a tradition of more than eighty years of Sunday football, with first team football being moved to the Saturday League pyramid from the 2017-18 season onwards, with SV Houten starting at the bottom of the Saturday pyramid (League 4).
2018 / Champions in District West I’s Saturday League 4G, 6 points ahead of USV Hercules (za), SV Houten wins promotion to Saturday League 3. The successful coach is Mustapha Talha. That same year, former SV Houten youth academy midfielder, Mohammed Ihattaren, makes his professional league debut at the age of sixteen at Jong PSV. The Moroccan, recognised as a talented yet mercurial player, went on to have spells at PSV, Juventus FC, UC Sampdoria, Jong AFC Ajax, AFC Ajax, SK Slavia Praha, RKC Waalwijk, and Fortuna Sittard.
2020 / In the 2019-20 season, cut short due to the first COVID lockdown in March 2020, SV Houten finds itself in joint first place in District West I’s Saturday League 3D with vv Jonathan after 17 of 26 matches, but neither club is admitted to League 2 for the new season.
2021 / The main pitch at Sportpark Oud Wulven is laid out anew with a synthetic surface.
2022 / Runners-up in District West I’s Saturday League 3D, 12 points behind runaway champions UCS EDO, SV Houten qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club knocks out vv TOV in R1 (2-1), only to be eliminated in R2 by COV DESTO (0-1).
2023 / Champions in District West I’s Saturday League 3D, 2 points ahead of runners-up SV Nieuw Utrecht, SV Houten wins promotion to Saturday League 2. The successful coach is Kevin Reinhard.
2024 / Finishing in eleventh place in Saturday League 2G, SV Houten has to save its skin in the promotion-relegation play-offs, in which the club draws a bye in R1, going on to edge past vv Rijsoord in R2 (0-1) and vv De Jonge Spartaan in R3 (5-4). Eventually, the club manages to stay up thanks to a 3-1 win in the final against vv SVW, played at LRC Leerdam’s Sportpark Glaspark.
2025 / Champions in Saturday League 2F, 4 points ahead of closest rivals vv NIVO Sparta, SV Houten manages a historic promotion to combined Sunday & Saturday League 1. The successful coach is Mohammed Touch.