Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: VVIJ

Sportpark Groenvliet Zuid, IJsselstein (RKVVIJ, in practice always referred to as VVIJ)

Netherlands, province: Utrecht

21 II 2026 / VVIJ - RKVV Onze Gezellen 3-2 / District West I, Regional Cup R3

Timeline

1926 / Foundation of a Roman Catholic football club in IJsselstein, which takes on the name Sparta – but has to change its denomination upon applying for membership of the Utrechtsche Provinciale Voetbalbond (UPVB), the Utrecht sub-branch of the Netherlands’ official Football Association (NVB, later KNVB). Thereupon, the name VVIJ is adopted – officially RKVVIJ, Roomsch-Katholieke Voetbalvereeniging IJsselstein, but this full name is hardly ever used, not even in pre-war source material. Jac van de Tier is chosen as the new club’s first chairman. The creation of VVIJ (Sparta) coincides with the foundation of various other clubs in the region, with SV Saestum, VSV Vreeswijk, SO Soest, and JSV all being formed that same year. The first pitch of VVIJ is situated at Hoge Biezen.
1927 / After one year in the ranks of the UPVB, VVIJ chooses to change allegiance by joining the Roomsch-Katholieke Utrechtsche Voetbalbond (RKUVB), one of the sub-branches of the Roman Catholic Football Federation, RKF (Roomsch-Katholieke Federatie).
1928 / VVIJ wins promotion from the ranks of the RKUVB to the nationwide divisions of the RKF, probably being placed in the so-called Overgangsklasse – and winning promotion to RKF Division 2 (renamed IVCB Division 2 in 1932 – IVCB standing for Interdiocesane Voetbalcompetitiebond) in one of the subsequent two seasons.
1930 / Moving away from Terrein Hoge Biezen after four years, VVIJ settles on a newly laid-out pitch, Terrein Noord-IJsseldijk. That same year, a Saturday club is founded in IJsselstein, IJFC (IJsselsteinsche Football Club), a non-confessional club.
1933 / Clinching the title in IVCB Division 2, VVIJ goes on to win the championship play-offs against VVA and KSV Limvio, resulting in the club acceding to Division 1, the top tier of the IVCB pyramid.
1934 / Moving away from Terrein Noord-IJsseldijk after four years, VVIJ settles on a newly laid-out pitch, Terrein Zwarte Dijk. Some time in the post-war years, the club moved again, to Sportterrein Hogeland, and later to Terrein IJsseloever, but it is unclear in which years the relocations took place.
1940 / As the RKF/IVCB, the RKUVB as well as all other football federations other than the official Netherlands’ Football Association (renamed NVB for the duration of World War II) are wound up in the face of prospective orders to be expected from German authorities, VVIJ joins the NVB, being placed in NVB District West I’s Sunday League 3 for the 1940-41 season.
1942 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 3F, VVIJ descends into Sunday League 4.
1943 / VVIJ finishes as runner-up in District West I’s Sunday League 4M, 6 points behind champions vv RUC.
1950 / Champions in District West I’s Sunday League 4L, 5 points ahead of closest rivals vv Amsvorde, VVIJ fails to win promotion in the subsequent round of championship play-offs.
1955 / VVIJ finishes as runner-up in District West I’s Sunday League 4H along with vv Amsvorde, 10 points behind runaway champions JSV.
1963 / Champions in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 1 point ahead of closest rivals ASV Meerboys, VVIJ manages a return to Sunday League 3 after an absence of twenty years.
1966 / Finishing in second-last place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, VVIJ drops back into Sunday League 4 along with bottom club vv Veenendaal.
1967 / Finishing top of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 4H along with vv Amsvorde, VVIJ goes on to defeat the club from Amersfoort in a tie-break match for the title (1-0). As such, VVIJ manages an immediate return to Sunday League 3.
1969 / Finishing top of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 3D with USV Holland, VVIJ goes on to defeat the club from Utrecht in a tie-break match for the title – thus acceding to Sunday League 2 for the first time in club history.
1973 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 2B, VVIJ drops back into Sunday League 3 alongside the club in second-last place, SV Hoofddorp.
1979 / Frans Adelaar, an 18-year-old midfielder who had joined FC Utrecht’s youth academy from VVIJ two years previously, makes his professional league debut at FC Utrecht, going on to wear the red-and-white shirt in 234 league matches in the following eleven years – withdrawing into non-league with vv DOVO in 1990. Later on, Adelaar would have a long career as a trainer with a long string of league and non-league clubs.
1981 / Moving away from Sportterrein IJsseloever, VVIJ settles on the newly laid-out Sportpark Groenvliet, along with village rivals IJFC. With IJFC finding its new home on the northern part of the park, VVIJ settles on its southern half – with the two main pitches being adjacent to one another. VVIJ inaugurates its new ground with a gala match against FC Utrecht (0-6).
1982 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, VVIJ descends into Sunday League 4, along with the club in second-last place, HVV ‘t Gooi.
1984 / VVIJ finishes as runner-up in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 3 points behind champions SV Saestum.
1989 / VVIJ finishes as runner-up in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 2 points behind champions JSV Nieuwegein. Also in 1989, former VVIJ youth academy player Raymond Victoria makes his professional league debut at Feyenoord Rotterdam at the age of seventeen. The midfielder would go on to have spells at FC Bayern München, BV De Graafschap, Willem II, AEK Larnaca, and ADO Den Haag, hanging up his boots in 2008. Moreover, Victoria, whose ancestry was from Curaçao, won 3 caps for the Netherlands’ Antilles in 2003.
1994 / Former VVIJ youth academy player Remco Heerkens makes his professional league debut at SBV Excelsior at the age of seventeen. The midfielder would go on to have spells at RBC Roosendaal, ADO Den Haag, Rot-Weiss Essen, FC Dordrecht, KV Oostende, and FC Omniworld, withdrawing into non-league football in 2008.
1996 / Finishing top of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 4H alongside vv MSV ’19, VVIJ goes on to suffer defeat in a tie-break match for the title against the club from Montfoort, thus missing out on promotion.
1998 / Former VVIJ youth academy player Ruud Berger makes his professional league debut at FC Utrecht at the age of eighteen. The midfielder would go on to have spells at Cambuur-Leeuwarden, FC Emmen, FC Zwolle, and RKC Waalwijk, hanging up his boots in 2010.
1999 / Finishing bottom of the table in the Central District’s Sunday League 4H, VVIJ descends into Sunday League 5 for the first time in club history, along with the club in second-last place, DEV.
2001 / Champions in the Central District’s Sunday League 5A, 6 points ahead of closest rivals HC&FC Victoria, VVIJ manages a return to Sunday League 4 in the year of the club’s 75th anniversary.
2004 / VVIJ finishes as runner-up in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 12 points behind runaway champions vv Amsvorde.
2005 / Champions in District West I’s Sunday League 4H, 6 points ahead of closest followers AVV HVC, VVIJ wins promotion to Sunday League 3 after an absence of 23 years at that level. The successful coach is Michel Blokker.
2006 / Winning back-to-back titles, RKVVIJ finishes top of the table in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, 15 points ahead of closest followers vv Brederodes. As such, the club manages a return to Sunday League 2 after an absence of 33 years at that level. The successful coach, Michel Blokker, leaves the club after the 2005-06 season.
2010 / Champions in Sunday League 2B, 1 point ahead of closest rivals RKSV Pancratius, VVIJ wins promotion to Sunday League 1 for the first time in club history. The successful coach is Herman Wallenburg.
2012 / In the best season in club history, VVIJ manages a sixth place in Sunday League 1A, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. Seeing off RKSV VELO in the semis (3-3 aggr. & penalty shoot-out), the club misses out on promotion to Zondag Hoofdklasse by a whisker, narrowly losing out to vv DHC (3-2 aggr.).
2013 / Finishing in third-last place in Sunday League 1A with coach Herman Wallenburg, VVIJ has to save its skin in the promotion-relegation play-offs, failing to do so by suffering defeat in a spectacular R1 match against SO Soest (9-8 aggr.). As such, the club drops back into Sunday League 2 after three years, along with ASV DWV, VPV Purmersteijn, and bottom club FC Blauw-Wit Amsterdam. In the summer of 2013, the main pitch of Sportpark Groenvliet Zuid is laid out anew with a synthetic surface. Also in 2013, former VVIJ youth academy player Sean Klaiber makes his professional league debut at Jong FC Utrecht at the age of nineteen; the defender would go on to have spells at FC Utrecht, FC Dordrecht, AFC Ajax, and Brøndby IF – moreover winning his first cap for Surinam in 2021.
2014 / Runner-up in Sunday League 2B, 1 point behind champions SO Soest, VVIJ qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club manages successive wins over VSV (zo) (3-1 aggr.) and SV Hoofddorp (3-3 aggr. & penalty shoot-out), resulting in an immediate return to Sunday League 1. The successful coach is David Vecht.
2015 / Equalling the best achievement in club history from 2012, VVIJ finishes in sixth place in Sunday League 1A; however, this time around, the club misses out on the promotion play-offs.
2016 / Finishing in eleventh place in Sunday League 1A with coach David Vecht, VVIJ has to stave off relegation in the promotion-relegation play-offs, in which the club edges past vv West Frisia in the semis (3-2 aggr.), only to stumble over RKVV Velsen in the final (2-1 aggr.). As such, the club drops back into Sunday League 2 after two years, alongside, vv De Zouaven, AFC Quick 1890, and bottom club SV De Foresters.
2020 / In parallel to a team in the Sunday divisions, VVIJ chooses to enter a regular first team in the Saturday leagues as well, with VVIJ (za) starting its existence in District West I’s Saturday League 4.
2022 / Finishing in eleventh place in Sunday League 2B with coach Fabian Schaken, VVIJ has to stave off relegation in the promotion-relegation play-offs, in which the club edges past VSV (zo) in R1 (1-1 & penalty shoot-out), only to suffer defeat in the final against AVV ZSGOWMS (2-1). As such, the club drops back into Sunday League 3 along with FC Jeugd and bottom club SV Nieuw Utrecht. However, with the Netherlands’ FA offering clubs the opportunity to change from one pyramid to the other without having to restart at the bottom level, VVIJ chooses to abandon Sunday league football, a tradition of nearly 100 years, in favour of a new existence in the Saturday divisions, being placed in District West I’s Saturday League 3D for the 2022-23 season. Thereby, the Sunday team replaces the original Saturday team, which finished in third place in Saturday League 4H and withdrew from the promotion play-offs.
2023 / Former VVIJ youth academy midfielder Espen van Ee makes his professional league debut at SC Heerenveen at the age of twenty. Van Ee would go on to have a subsequent spell at FC Arouca.
2024 / Runner-up in District West I’s Saturday League 3D, with an equal number of points as champions USV Elinkwijk, but with a slightly inferior goal difference (+39 vs. +38), VVIJ has to make do with a place in the promotion play-offs, in which the club stumbles over the first hurdle, VVOP (2-2 & penalty shoot-out).
2025 / Champions in District West I’s Saturday League 3D, 1 point ahead of closest rivals SCH ’44, VVIJ wins promotion to Saturday League 2.