Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: AV&AC Eendracht (±1919-1964) / RKSV VDZ (1964-)

Sportpark 't Cranevelt veld 8, Arnhem (RKSV VDZ, formerly AV&AC Eendracht)

Netherlands, province: Guelders = Gelderland

10 V 2026 / RKVV VDZ - SC Doesburg 2-1 / Sunday League 3K (= NL level 8)

Timeline

1913 / The town council of Arnhem makes known its intention to lay out a large sports park in the so-called Platte Stuk area to the north of Park Sonsbeek in Arnhem, with – among other facilities – two football pitches being projected. However, due to the outbreak of World War I and the mobilisation of the Netherlands’ armed forces, the plans are postponed for some years.
1915 / Foundation of a football club in Arnhem, which takes on the name Arnhemsche Voetbalclub (AV) Wilhelmina, often referred to simply as AVW. It is unclear where AVW played its home matches in the first years of its existence.
1916 / Foundation of a football club in Arnhem, which takes on the name Arnhemsche Voetbal- en Athletiekclub (AV&AC) Eendracht. Joining the so-called Arnhemsche Voetbalbond, the Arnhem sub-branch of the Netherlands’ Football Association, the club settles on a pitch laid out at the crossroads of Schelmscheweg and Apeldoornscheweg in the north of the city.
± 1919 / Moving away from Terrein Schelmscheweg, AV&AC Eendracht settles on a newly laid-out pitch in the so-called Platte Stuk area to the north of Park Sonsbeek in Arnhem. Around this time, a larger sports facility is laid out in this area, on the northern outskirts of Arnhem, with various football clubs settling here around the same time or in the following years, including – among others – the aforementioned AV Wilhelmina (AVW), AV&AC Hertog Hendrik (HH), RKVV Swift, and vv Arnhemsche Boys, founded in 1919, with each of these clubs having its own pitch in the park, which is initially referred to locally as the Volkssportpark or Gemeentelijk Sportpark, but later officially renamed Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt.
1920 / Leaving the ranks of the Arnhemsche Voetbalbond, AV&AC Eendracht now joins the Geldersche Voetbalbond (GVB)
1921 / AV&AC Eendracht gains promotion from GVB (Sunday) Division 1 to NVB District East’s (Sunday) League 3, i.e. the third level of the Netherlands’ football pyramid.
1922 / Champions in District East’s League 3D, 5 points ahead of closest followers V&AV Doesburg, AV&AC Eendracht wins promotion to League 2 for the first time. Also in 1922, AV Wilhelmina (AVW) wins promotion to (Sunday) League 3. AVW’s pitch is situated in the area occupied nowadays by the cycling track at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt, with the club later moving to Pitch/Veld 5 at the south side of the park (a pitch no longer existing, its location coinciding with a parking lot at the southeastern entrance of the park).
1923 / On October 7th, 1923, a covered stand is inauguarated alongside the southern touchline of the pitch of AV&AC Eendracht, modern-day Pitch/Veld 8 of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt. The construction, partly built in wood and offering a covered seat to some 360 spectators, follows a design of Eendracht board member Hendrik Willem Schippers.
± 1923 / In 1923 or 1924, AV&AC Hertog Hendrik (HH) leaves the Gemeentelijk Sportpark (‘t Cranevelt), settling on a new location elsewhere in Arnhem, Terrein Zonneweide.
1925 / Champions in District East’s League 2B, 1 point ahead of closest rivals AGOVV, AV&AC Eendracht fails to win promotion to League 1 in the ensuing championship play-offs.
1926 / Two new football clubs see the daylight in Arnhem, both intended for the Roman Catholic part of the city’s population; first, there is Roomsch-Katholieke Voetbalvereeniging (RKVV) Sint-Jan, a club of which the history has been poorly documented, but it is clear this club played its football at the northern end of the Gemeentelijk Sportpark (‘t Cranevelt), possibly from its foundation onwards. The second club is Roomsch-Katholieke Sportvereeniging (RKSV) Volharding Doet Zegevieren (VDZ). This club is formed at the instigation of a local chaplain, André Janssen, in the Roman-Catholic Civic Centre St Francis (Sint-Franciscus). Th. Brits becomes the new club’s first chairman. RKSV VDZ settles on a pitch laid-out at modern-day Breitnerstraat, referred to at the time as Terrein Sterrenberg. RKVV Sint-Jan as well as RKSV VDZ refrain from joining the official Netherlands’ Football Association (NVB, later renamed KNVB), becoming member clubs of the so-called Roomsch-Katholieke Federatie (RKF) instead – or, more specifically, its sub-branch Roomsch-Katholieke Utrechtsche Voetbalbond (RKUVB).
1928 / Gaining the title in RKUVB’s so-called Transition Division (Overgangsklasse) without suffering a single defeat all season, RKSV VDZ accedes to RKF Nationwide Division 2.
1929 / Winning back to back titles, RKSV VDZ conquers first place in RKF Division 2, thus acceding to RKF Division 1 – renamed IVCB Division 1 in the early 1930s – a level at which the club would remain until the outbreak of World War II in 1940. Also in or around 1929, VDZ moves away from Terrein Sterrenberg, settling at the Gemeentelijk Sportpark (‘t Cranevelt), initially groundsharing with AV Wilhelmina (AVW) on the location now occupied by the cycling track at the western end of the ground.
1933 / Finishing bottom of the table in District East’s League 2B, AV&AC Eendracht drops back into League 3.
± 1936 / In the relief work projects so typical of the Netherlands of the 1930s, a first major renovation round is undertaken at the Gemeentelijk Sportpark (‘t Cranevelt), with a central main building being constructed with 32 dressing rooms as well as boards (i.e. terracing, but in wood) alongside one of the pitches, probably the pitch of AV&AC Eendracht.
1940 / Having spent the first years of their existence in the RKF and its sub-branches, RKVV Sint-Jan and RKSV VDZ are now constrained to make the step to the official Netherlands’ FA (renamed NVB following the German oppression of the Netherlands, abandoning the royal epithet ‘koninklijk’ for obvious reasons), as all other football associations are abolished by German occupation authorities. With RKVV Sint-Jan being placed in the ranks of Afdeling Arnhem, as the Arnhemse Voetbalbond is renamed, VDZ takes its place in Sunday League 3 – with the club’s board preferring to start at this level rather than in Sunday League 2 due to fears of being unable to cope with the higher level of the (K)NVB divisions.
1944 / Having to move away from Terrein Valkenhuizen, which is commandeered by the German Wehrmacht in the last year of German occupation of the Netherlands, AV&AC Hertog Hendrik moves back to the Gemeentelijk Sportpark. At the facility, HH takes the place of football club (vv?) Giro, which had ceased its activities for the time being, probably the location coinciding with Pitch/Veld 5, later removed to make way for a parking lot at the southeastern side of the park.
1947 / AV&AC Eendracht Arnhem finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 3D, 5 points behind champions VV&AC Gelria. Also in 1947, a merger is concluded between RKSV VDZ and the smaller RKVV Sint-Jan, with the latter being absorbed into VDZ. With VDZ moving away from the western side of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt after some eighteen years, the club now settles at the pitch of the former Sint-Jan, at the park’s northeastern end.
1954 / Runaway champions in District East’s Sunday League 3C, 10 points ahead of closest followers Sportclub Silvolde, AV&AC Eendracht goes on to win the championship play-offs, thus returning to Sunday League 2 after an absence of 21 years.
1956 / RKSV VDZ crowns itself champion in District East’s Sunday League 3C, finishing four points ahead of closest rivals VVG ’25. The decisive points are clinched in an emphatic home win over VVG (6-1), attended by some 2,500 fans. Subsequently, VDZ also wins the championship play-off competition, with a 1-0 home win over vv Daventria (goal by Theo van Noesel) proving decisive. The successful coach is J. Hielkema.
1957 / AV&AC Hertog Hendrik (HH) abandons Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt after thirteen seasons, settling at the newly laid-out Sportcomplex Valkenhuizen, a new facility situated at Beukenlaan, used by various other sports clubs as well. Much later, in 1994, HH would conclude a merger with vv GOVA, resulting in the foundation of SV De Paasberg.
1958 / With the pitch of RKSV VDZ falling victim to the building plans of Arnhem’s municipal authorities – the location is occupied by a block of flats at Eduard van Beinumlaan nowadays – the club concludes a groundsharing agreement with vv Arnhemse Boys, playing its home matches at that club’s pitch at the far southwestern end of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt (modern day Pitch/Veld 1 of the park).
1959 / In one of the highlights in club history, RKSV VDZ conquers the title in District East’s Sunday League 2A, 1 point ahead of closest rivals SV Leones. In the decisive match, played at vv Arnhemse Boys in front of a crowd of over 2,500, the club has the better of Sportclub Silvolde (4-1). In the subsequent round of championship play-offs, the club finishes in first place in a group with DOS ’19, vv Rood Geel, and vv Hoogezand – with a 7-1 home win over DOS ’19 and a 5-1 away win in Hoogezand being the stand-out results. As such, VDZ wins promotion to Sunday League 1 for the first – and so far only – time in club history. With still no solution for its lack of a ground of its own in sight and in view of the larger crowds expected for home matches in League 1, VDZ is allowed by Arnhem’s municipal authorities to move into a groundshare with professional league side AVC Vitesse at Stadion Nieuw-Monnikenhuize.
1960 / Finishing bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 2A, AV&AC Eendracht suffers relegation into Sunday League 3 after six seasons. Meanwhile, at Stadion Nieuw-Monnikenhuize, RKSV VDZ just staves off relegation in Sunday League 1B, finishing 1 point ahead of bottom club ZVV Be Quick. For the 1960-61 season, an adapted arrangement is worked out, with first team football continuing to be played at Nieuw-Monnikenhuize, but with Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt and Sportcomplex Valkenhuizen being used as well for lower team football and training sessions. Meanwhile, also in 1960, Joop Willems is the first-ever VDZ player to venture into professional league football, signing a contract with BV De Graafschap; Willems would go on to play at WVV Wageningen, eventually bowing out into non-league in 1967. In the course of the 1960s, another VDZ player, Paul Koevoet, would also go on to play for WVV Wageningen and AVC Vitesse.
1961 / Finishing in joint last place in Sunday League 1A with WVC, RKSV VDZ goes on to meet the club from Winterswijk in a tie-break match, played in Doetinchem. Going on to suffer a clear-cut defeat (5-2), VDZ drops back into Sunday League 2 after two years. With VDZ’s spell in League 1 thus coming to an end, first team football is moved back to the pitch of vv Arnhemse Boys at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt.
1964 / Finishing in second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, AV&AC Eendracht suffer the ignominy of descending into Sunday League 4 for the first time in club history, dropping into that level alongside bottom club MVV ’18. After the 1963-64 season, Eendracht abandons Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt after some 45 years, moving into the newly laid-out Sportpark Over het Lange Water (West) in the Presikhaaf neighbourhood on the eastern outskirts of Arnhem – a move which had been in the pipeline for some years. That summer, after six years of groundsharing with other clubs, RKSV VDZ moves into the part of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt abandoned by Eendracht, notably the main pitch with the covered stand dating back to 1923 (modern-day Pitch/Veld 8); and a training pitch at the other side of the grandstand, to the south of the main pitch (Pitch/Veld 10). The club’s first official match on its new main pitch results in an emphatic 7-1 win over ZVV AZC.
1966 / RKSV VDZ finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 2A, 3 points behind champions ZVV AZC. In the fall of that year, the club inaugurates its new clubhouse at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt, of which the first stone had been laid by Fr Janssen, the founder of the club forty years previously. Also in 1966, 19-year-old VDZ midfielder Marcel Broecks signs a professional league deal with WVV Wageningen, going on to have a spell at BV De Graafschap, eventually ending his eleven-year-long playing career at WVV Wageningen in 1977.
1967 / RKSV VDZ finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 2A, 7 points behind champions ZVV Be Quick. Meanwhile, also in 1967, in a move reflective of the secularisation of the 1960s, the club’s board takes the decision to allow non-Catholics to join as members as well.
1968 / Finishing bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 2A, RKSV VDZ descends into Sunday League 3 alongside the club in second-last place, derby rivals vv SML.
1970 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 3D, 2 points ahead of closest rivals SV Spero, RKSV VDZ wins promotion to Sunday League 2. The successful coach is Dick Overmars.
1972 / Finishing in second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 2A, RKSV VDZ drops back into Sunday League 3 after two years, along with bottom club TSV Theole.
1974 / RKSV VDZ manages a remarkable 2-0 win over professional league side AVC Vitesse in a pre-season friendly at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt.
1979 / Finishing in joint second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D with vv ONA ’53, RKSV VDZ meets the club from Wageningen in a tie-break match. At a neutral venue, Sportpark De Waayenberg in Doorwerth, VDZ manages a 1-0 win, with Evert van Amerongen scoring the all-important goal. As such, the club saves its skin, with vv ONA ’53 joining bottom club SV Hatert in dropping back into Sunday League 4.
1980 / The uncovered terracing – possibly the boards added to the set-up at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt in the mid-1930s? – alongside the main pitch of RKSV VDZ are knocked down.
1982 / Coached by Dick Overmars, RKSV VDZ finishes in second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D; as such, the club descends into Sunday League 4 for the first time in club history, alongside bottom club KSV Fortissimo.
1983 / RKSV VDZ manages a second place in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 4 points behind champions vv Eldenia.
1984 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 7 points ahead of closest followers ESCA, RKSV VDZ manages a return to Sunday League 3 after two seasons. The successful coach is Bert Teunissen.
1986 / RKSV VDZ finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 3D, 1 points behind champions vv Arnhemia.
1987 / RKSV VDZ conquers the Arnhem Cup for the first time – going on to win the tournament four more times in the following decade-and-a-half (1988, 1991, 1993, 1999).
1988 / RKSV VDZ manages a second place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, 1 point behind champions SV Hatert. Moreover, the club also conquers the Veluwezoom Cup.
1989 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 3D, 8 points ahead of closest rivals SV Blauw Wit (Nijmegen), RKSV VDZ wins promotion to Sunday League 2, thus managing a return to that level after seventeen years. The decisive point is clinched in a goalless away draw at vv Ede. The successful coach is Jan Schmitz.
1991 / RKSV VDZ finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 2A, 2 points behind champions OVC ’85. Also in 1991, the training pitch (Pitch/Veld 10), at the back of the grandstand at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt, is laid out anew with a synthetic surface.
1992 / Finishing bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 2A, RKSV VDZ descends into Sunday League 3 after three years, along with the club in second-last place, SV AWC. Coach Jan Schmitz leaves VDZ after five years. Later that year, on December 15th, 1992, the brand-new floodlights around the main pitch of VDZ at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt are inaugurated with a gala match against SBV Vitesse.
1994 / RKSV VDZ entertains the national team of Nigeria, coached by a Clemens Westerhof, originally from Arnhem, in a friendly in the lead-up to the 1994 World Cup in the USA (0-4).
1995 / AV Wilhelmina (AVW), the club playing at the southeasternmost pitch of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt (Pitch/Veld 5), concludes a merger with AV&AC VIJDO (Volhardende IJver Doet Overwinnen, founded in 1920), resulting in the foundation of Arnhemse Voetbalclub (AV) Cranevelt. With VIJDO abandoning its own Sportpark De Del in Rozendaal, all activities move to AVW’s ground.
1996 / Finishing in joint first position in District East’s Sunday League 3D with vv Jonge Kracht, RKSV VDZ meets the club from Huissen in a tie-break match – and, going on to win the encounter, the club manages a return to Sunday League 2 after four years.
1997 / Finishing in tenth place in Sunday League 2I, RKSV VDZ descends into Sunday League 3 after just one year, along with SC Varsseveld and bottom club vv Germania.
2001 / The grandstand at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt is renamed Geert Egging-tribune in honour of an honorary member of VDZ.
2002 / Finishing in fourth place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, RKSV VDZ goes on to win the promotion play-offs, resulting in the club being placed in Sunday League 2. The successful coach is Marcel Tombokan.
2003 / Former VDZ striker Rein Meekels makes his professional league debut at the ripe age of 27 with AGOVV Apeldoorn. Staying with the club from Apeldoorn for two years, Meekels bowed out into non-league with vv De Bataven, going on to have a final spell at Sportclub Bemmel before hanging up his boots.
2006 / Coached by Armand Rood and Eric Arentsen, a duo which replaced Fethi Ozerdogan in the course of the season, RKSV VDZ finishes bottom of the table in Sunday League 2I, dropping back into Sunday League 3 along with the club in second-last place, AVV Columbia.
2007 / Finishing bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 3D, RKSV VDZ drops back into Sunday League 4 along with vv Arnhemse Boys and vv SML. Following the 2006-07 season, coach Mark Geutjes is succeeded by Roberto Straal, a former professional league defender at BV De Graafschap, SBV Vitesse, MVV, SC Heerenveen, and DSC Arminia Bielefeld (1986-2001). Also in 2007, twelve years after the merger between AV Wilhelmina (AVW) and AV&AC VIJDO, AV Cranevelt is absorbed into neighbour club vv Arnhemse Boys. Pitch/Veld 5 of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt is removed to make way for a parking lot subsequently.
2009 / Roberto Straal leaves RKSV VDZ after having been the club’s first team coach for two seasons. In the summer of 2009, the main pitch of VDZ at Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt is laid out anew with a synthetic surface. Also in 2009, former VDZ youth academy midfielder Davy Pröpper makes his professional league debut with SBV Vitesse at the age of eighteen. Pröpper would go on to have spells at PSV and Brighton & Hove Albion FC, eventually closing off his career at Vitesse in 2024; furthermore, he also won 19 caps for the Netherlands (2015-19). Meanwhile, still in 2009, vv Arnhemse Boys leaves Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt after ninety years, starting a new existence as vv Arnhemse Boys Schuytgraaf at the newly laid-out Sportpark Schuytgraaf.
2010 / American football club Arnhem Falcons moves into the part of Sportpark ‘t Cranevelt abandoned by vv Arnhemse Boys the previous year, i.e Pitch/Veld 1. This pitch has remained in use for lower team football and training sessions by RKSV VDZ as well, probably from 2009 onwards.
2011 / Finishing in third place in District East’s Sunday League 4F, RKSV VDZ qualifies for the promotion-relegation play-offs. Knocking out NSVV Kunde (3-1 aggr.) and SV Blauw Wit (Nijmegen, 2-2 aggr. & penalty shoot-out) in the first two rounds, the club would eventually defeat VVO in the final (2-1). As such, VDZ wins promotion to Sunday League 3 alongside champions vv ONA ’53. The successful coach is Willy Melchers. Also in 2011, former VDZ player Johnatan (sic) Opoku makes his professional league debut at SC Veendam at the age of 21; the midfielder would go on to have further spells at FC Oss, VVV-Venlo, BV De Graafschap, and Jeddah SC, eventually hanging up his boots in 2023.
2012 / Davy Pröpper’s younger brother Robin, another former VDZ youth academy player, makes his professional league debut at BV De Graafschap at the age of nineteen. Robin Pröpper would go on to have further spells at Heracles Almelo, FC Twente, and Rangers FC.
2014 / Finishing in eleventh place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, RKSV VDZ has to save its skin in the promotion-relegation play-offs, succeeding in doing so following successive wins over RKVV Overasseltse Boys (4-2 aggr.) and KSV Fortissimo (4-3 aggr.).
2019 / Finishing in third place in District East’s Sunday League 3C, RKSV VDZ qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club edges past ZVV AZC (0-1) and SV OBW (1-2) in the first two rounds; however, in the final, played at Sportpark Vossenpels in Lent, VDZ was pipped at the post by RKSV Eendracht ’30 (1-0).
2023 / Finishing as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 3C, 3 points behind champions Sportclub Westervoort, RKSV VDZ qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club draws a bye in R1, only to be eliminated in R2 by Quick 1888 (0-3).
2024 / Finishing in third place in District East’s Sunday League 3B, RKSV VDZ qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is knocked out in R1 by WVV ’34 (1-0).

Note – Important parts of the information above have been derived from a booklet, compiled on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of RKSV VDZ in 2001: “VDZ. 75 jaar familievereniging”, by Harry Langeland / Roel van der Leij / Henk Matser, ed. Adavi: Arnhem 2001.