The Netherlands has a rich football history and has produced some of the best players the game has ever known.
Johan Cruyff and Dennis Bergkamp are just a few of the dozens of top-rated players that once wore the orange shirt of the Dutch national team.
All of them started playing in the “Eredivisie,” the top flight of Dutch football, and in the most famous Dutch football stadiums.
Ajax, Feyenoord, and PSV Eindhoven are the major football clubs in the country and they play their home games in amazing arenas. There are, however, several other football clubs with great stadiums.
So what are the Biggest Stadiums in the Netherlands? Let’s find out!
The Johan Cruyff Arena is the amazing home stadium of the most successful football club in Dutch history, Ajax Amsterdam. It was previously known as the Amsterdam Arean and is commonly referred to as the “Arena.”
The stadium was renamed following the death of club icon Jhan Cruijff who passed away in March 2016. It was constructed between 1993 and 1996 and was an amazing sight upon completion with its retractable roof (and it still is).
Inside the Johan Cruyff Arena / Daniel / Wiki Commons
2. De Kuip
Location: Rotterdam
Capacity: 51,117
De Kuip is the nickname and commonly used name of a stadium officially known as “Stadion Feyhe nickname literally means “The tub.” As the official name suggests, it’s the home ground of another successful football club in the Netherlands, Feyenoord Rotterdam.
It’s a legendary stadium that was completed in the year 1937 and is located in the Feijenoord district of Rotterdam. The stadium was expanded twice in its history and reached a maximum capacity of 69,000 spectators in 1994. It was converted to an all-seater and completely renovated in 1999.
De Kuip in Rotterdam / Wiki Commons
3. Philips Stadion
Location: Eindhoven
Capacity: 35,000
The Philips Stadion is the home of PSV Eindhoven, the other popular football club in the Netherlands of which the name means “Philips Sport Vereniging.” It was originally established to serve as the ground for employees of the Philips Multinational company in 1910.
PSV officially started using the stadium in 1913 and the first wooden stand was completed in 1916. This was followed by several expansion phases. The final phase was completed in 2002 and this closed all corners of the stadium.
Inside a packed Phillips Stadium / Wiki Commons
4. De Grolsch Veste
Location: Enschede
Capacity: 30,205
De Grolsch Veste literally translates to “The Grolsch Fortress” and is the home stadium if Twente Enschede. The stadium was completed in 1998 and unlike the earlier mentioned stadiums in the Netherlands, it didn’t serve as a venue for the FIFA EURO 2000 Tournament.
The stadium was expanded a couple of times and got its current capacity in the summer of 2011 when an additional tier was added to the stand behind the goal. Unfortunately, this project was overshadowed by the collapse of the unfinished roof of this stand. Two workers died during this disaster and 14 others were wounded.
De Grolsh Veste during a game / Mark92 / Wiki Commons
5. Abe Lenstra Stadion
Location: Heerenveen
Capacity: 27.224
The Abe Lenstra Stadion is a stadium in Heerenveen, a city in Friesland in the northern part of the Netherlands. It was named in honor of Abe Lenstra, a relatively unknown football player from Friesland who played during the 1950s and who is considered to be one of the legends of Dutch football.
The stadium is the home of local football club SC Heerenveen and was completed between 1993 and 1994. The stadium’s capacity doubled in capacity to 26,100 seats when an expansion project was completed in 2002. Although several other expansion phases have been proposed, only slight modifications have been made so far.
Abe Lenstra Stadion / Udo Ockema / Wiki Commons
6. Stadion Galgenwaard
Location: Utrecht
Capacity: 23,750
Stadion Galgenwaard is a stadium in Utrecht that has a history that goes back to the 1930s. Today, it serves as the home of the Dutch football club FC Utrecht. It received a first thorough renovation that transformed it into one of the most modern stadiums in the world in 1982.
Another renovation project in the early 21st century gave the stadium its current appearance. Remarkably, the main stand was moved to the opposite end during this phase as two new stands along both sides of the pitch were constructed.
Stadion Galgenwaard / Kevertje77 / Wiki Commons
7. Euroborg
Location: Groningen
Capacity: 22,525
The Euroborg is the home of Dutch football club FC Groningen and is the epitome of a multi-functional stadium in the Netherlands. Apart from being the home venue of the Eredivisie club, it’s also home to a movie theater, school, supermarket, fitness center, and even a casino.
There’s a railway stadium next to the stadium as well called “Groningen Europapark” which provides easy access for traveling fans. The modern stadium was completed between 2004 and 2006 and is commonly referred to as either “The Green Hell” or “The Green Cathedral.” Yes, the colors of FC Groningen are green and white.
Euroborg in Groningen / Rickazio / Wiki Commons
8. GelreDome
Location: Arnhem
Capacity: 21,248
The GelreDome is a stadium in Arnhema dn te home ground of the football club Vitesse Arnhem. The stadium was completed in 1998 and was one of the 4 stadiums in the Netherlands that hosted games during the FIFA EURO 2000 tournament.
The stadium features both a retractable roof and a retractable pitch. This allows the grass to be saved when the stadium is used for other events, especially concerts. Some of the biggest stars in the world have performed in this stadium which gives the impression of being an indoor arena.
Gelredome in Arnhem / Maxdeswart / Wiki Commons
9. Parkstad Limburg Stadion
Location: Kerkrade
Capacity: 19,979
The Parkstad Limburg Stadion is a stadium in Kerkrade, a city in the utmost southeastern part of the Netherlands. It’s yet another stadium in the Netherlands that was completed in the early 21st century as it opened its doors in the summer of the year 2000.
The stadium is the home ground of the Dutch football club Roda JC Kerkrade, a club that was relegated from the Eredivisie and which performs in the Eerste Divisie. The first game at the stadium was played between Roda JC and the Spanish club Real Zaragoza (2–2).
Parkstad Limburg Stadion / Martijn Mureau / Wiki Commons
10. AFAS Stadion
Location: Alkmaar
Capacity: 19,500
The AFAS Stadion is a stadiupmp in Alkmaar and is the home of local football club AZ Alkmaar. The stadium was named after a Dutch software company but is also sometimes referred to as the AZ Stadium. Locally, the stadium is sometimes referred to as the Victorie Stadion, a reference to the Dutch victory over the Spanish in the Siege of Alkmaar in 1573.
The stadium was about to be expanded and was almost ready to be much higher on this list of biggest stadiums in the Netherlands, but the Dutch DSB Bank went bankrupt shortly before work started. The plans were shelved and a second tier, which would have increased the capacity to 30,000 seats, was never constructed.
