De Graafschap

VBV De Graafschap (Dutch pronunciation: [də ˈɣraːfsxɑp]) is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands, playing in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football.

De Graafschap
Full nameVereniging Betaald Voetbal
De Graafschap
Nickname(s)Superboeren (Super Farmers)
Founded1 February 1954 (1954-02-01)
GroundDe Vijverberg
Doetinchem
Capacity12,600
ChairmanMartin Mos
Head coachRichard Roelofsen
LeagueEerste Divisie
2021–22Eerste Divisie, 9th of 20
WebsiteClub website

It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the De Vijverberg stadium. The stadium was opened on 12 August 2000 and stands on the site of the club's old pitch. The club name is Dutch for "The County". They are nicknamed Superboeren ("Super Farmers").

While not a large club by European club football standards, the club has remained a semi-permanent fixture in the Eredivisie (top league); although to date it has never won any silverware of importance. It also has a large stadium and a large fan base when compared to many other Dutch teams, particularly those in the Eerste Divisie. They had a fierce rivalry with Vitesse Arnhem, but during the years due several circumstances Go Ahead Eagles began to be a rival as well.

The club's colors are blue and white hooped shirts with white shorts and blue socks. The club's major sponsors are Pincvision and ATAG.

De Graafschap's home base, De Vijverberg has been voted as the most atmospheric stadium in the Eredivisie for the 2018–19 campaign.

History

De Graafschap had their longest streak in the Dutch top tier from 1995 until 2003. In the 1995–96 season De Graafschap finished in 8th place, an all-time high. After this season results went down and in 2003 the club was relegated after finishing in last place (18th).

Since 2003, De Graafschap was relegated four times and gained promotion five times. They were crowned champions of the Eerste Divisie in 2007 and 2010, and won the promotion playoffs in 2004 and 2015.[1] De Graafschap never finished last in the Eredivisie since 2003 but lost relegation playoffs after finishing in 17th place in 2005, 2009 and 2012.[2] In the 2015-16 Eredivisie season De Graafschap were once again relegated through playoffs after finishing 17th but not before drawing 1–1 against AFC Ajax on the final day of the season, denying Ajax the championship. In 2018, the club gained promotion again by winning the promotion playoffs, beating Almere City FC in the playoffs finals.[3] They were relegated in 2019, and the next season ended in further heartbreak on April 24, 2020 as they were denied a possible promotion back to the top flight due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the Eredivisie to declare their season void with no promotion or relegation.[4]

Late in the 2020–21 season, De Graafschap were in control of their promotion hopes, only needing one win in their final two games to secure promotion. However, they were held to a 1-1 draw, followed by a goalless draw versus Helmond Sport, denying them an automatic promotion spot and forcing them to go through the promotion playoffs.[5][6] De Graafschap crashed out of the playoffs in the first round after a 3-2 home loss to Roda JC, thus meaning that they would remain in the Eerste Divisie.[7]

Honours

Results

Below is a table with De Graafschap's domestic results since the introduction of the Eredivisie in 1956.

Players

Current squad
As of 30 January 2023[8]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Netherlands NED Hidde Jurjus
3 DF Netherlands NED Jan Lammers
4 DF Netherlands NED Xandro Schenk
6 MF Netherlands NED Lion Kaak
10 MF Netherlands NED Siem de Jong
11 FW Netherlands NED Giovanni Korte
12 DF Netherlands NED Jim van der Logt
14 MF Algeria ALG Camiel Neghli
16 GK Netherlands NED Ties Wieggers
20 DF Netherlands NED Rio Hillen
21 FW Ecuador ECU Joel Valencia (on loan from Brentford)
21 MF Cape Verde CPV Jeffry Fortes
22 FW Netherlands NED Devin Haen
23 MF Netherlands NED Philip Brittijn
No. Pos. Nation Player
24 FW Netherlands NED Mees Kaandorp
25 FW Netherlands NED Levi Schoppema
26 MF Netherlands NED Sisqo Lever
27 DF Netherlands NED Robin Schouten (on loan from SønderjyskE)
28 DF Netherlands NED Alexander Büttner
29 DF Netherlands NED Joran Hardeman
30 FW Netherlands NED Pim Lukassen
32 GK Netherlands NED Mees Bakker (on loan from AZ)
33 FW Turkey TUR Başar Önal
34 MF Netherlands NED Anis Yadir
35 FW Curaçao CUW Charlison Benschop
44 MF Netherlands NED Maas Willemsen
45 MF Netherlands NED Ezra van der Heiden

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— DF Netherlands NED Milan Hilderink (at TOP Oss until 30 June 2023)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Netherlands NED Jesse Schuurman (at Roda JC Kerkrade until 30 June 2023)

Notable former players

The players below had senior international cap(s) for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed represented their countries while playing for De Graafschap.

Coaching staff
Position Name
Interim head coach Netherlands Richard Roelofsen
Assistant coaches Netherlands Jan Oosterhuis
Netherlands Dennis te Braak
Goalkeeping coach Netherlands Edwin Susebeek

Former coaches

See also

References
  1. De Graafschap terug in eredivisie – Telegraaf (in Dutch)
  2. De Graafschap gedegradeerd – NOS (in Dutch)
  3. De Graafschap knokt zich voorbij Almere City en keert terug in Eredivisie – Voetbalprimeur (in Dutch)
  4. "Afwikkeling voetbalseizoen 2019/'20 een feit | Eredivisie". Archived from the original on 24 April 2020.
  5. "De Graafschap grijpt naast directe promotie door gelijkspel tegen Helmond Sport". De Graafschap (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  6. "Anti-climax voor De Graafschap na bizar slotstuk tegen Helmond Sport: Superboeren grijpen naast directe promotie in waterballet, Roda JC eerste tegenstander in play-offs". de Gelderlander (in Dutch). 12 May 2021. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  7. "De Graafschap vs Roda JC Kerkrade - Eredivisie Qualification - Quarter-Final stats, H2H, lineups". FotMob. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  8. "Eerste Elftal - De Graafschap".
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