The Netherlands national football team of the Netherlands and is controlled by the Royal Netherlands Football Association. It won Euro 88 and reached two consecutive World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978 but lost both finals to their respective host nations, West Germany and Argentina. At the peak of its success in the 1970s, the team was famous for its mastery of Total Football and was nicknamed "Clockwork Orange" for its precision passing. In many countries the team is colloquially referred to as "Holland".
European Champions
After losing the first group match against the USSR (1-0) Rinus Michels returned to coach the team for the Euro 88 tournament, the Netherlands went on to qualify for the semi-final by defeating England 3-1 (with a hat-trick by the tournament's top scorer Marco van Basten), and Republic of Ireland (1-0). For many Dutch football supporters, the most important match in the tournament was the semi-final against West Germany, the host country, considered a revenge for the lost 1974 World Cup final (also in West Germany). Marco van Basten, who would later become national team coach, scored in the 89th minute of the game to sink the German side. The game is also remembered for its post-match shenanigans, including Ronald Koeman, who, in front of the German supporters, provocatively pretended to wipe his backside with the shirt of Olaf Thon as if it were toilet paper, an action Koeman later regretted. The Netherlands won the final with a convincing victory over the USSR, a rematch on the round robin game, through a header by Ruud Gullit and a volley by Van Basten. This was the national team's first major tournament win and it restored them to the forefront of international football after almost a decade in wilderness.
Team configuration
Nickname | Oranje The Flying Dutchmen A Clockwork La Machina Naranja |
Association | Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbalbond — KNVB |
Confederation | UEFA ( |
Head coach | Bert van Marwijk |
Asst coach | Philip Cocu Frank de Boer Dick Voorn |
Captain | Giovanni van Bronckhorst |
Most caps | Edwin van der Sar (130) |
Top scorer | Patrick Kluivert (40) |
Home stadium | De Kuip Philips Stadion |
FIFA code | NED |
FIFA ranking | 3 |
Highest FIFA ranking | 2 (November 1993, June 2009) |
Lowest FIFA ranking | 25 (May 1998) |
All players of Netherlands
GK Maarten Stekelenburg GK Sander Boschker GK Piet Velthuizen |
DF Giovanni van DF Ron Vlaar DF Gregory van der Wiel DF Edson Braafheid DF André Ooijer DF John Heitinga DF Joris Mathijsen |
MF MF Ibrahim Afellay MF Stijn Schaars MF Demy de Zeeuw MF Mark van Bommel MF Nigel de Jong MF Rafael van der Vaart MF Wesley Sneijder |
FW Dirk Kuyt FW Ryan Babel FW Arjen Robben FW Eljero Elia FW Klaas-Jan Huntelaar |
Most matches played
1. Edwin van der Sar |
2. Frank de Boer |
3. Phillip Cocu |
4. Giovanni van Bronckhorst |
5. Clarence Seedorf |
6. Marc Overmars |
7. Aron Winter |
8. Ruud Krol |
9. Patrick Kluivert Dennis Bergkamp |
