Alkmaar Zaanstreek, better known as AZ Alkmaar or simply and most common in the Netherlands as AZ, is a Dutch professional football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan district. The club plays in the Eredivisie, the highest professional football league in the Netherlands.
Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is best remembered for his epigrams and plays, his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, and the circumstances of his criminal conviction for gross indecency for consensual homosexual acts in "one of the first celebrity trials", imprisonment, and early death from meningitis at the age of 46.
Rutger Oelsen Hauer was a Dutch actor. In 1999, he was named by the Dutch public as the Best Dutch Actor of the Century.
Feyenoord Rotterdam is a Dutch professional association football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after its neighbourhood in 1912 as SC Feijenoord, updated in 1974 to SC Feyenoord, and then to Feyenoord in 1978, when it split from the amateur club under its wing, SC Feyenoord. Since 1937, Feyenoord's home ground has been the Stadion Feijenoord, nicknamed De Kuip, the second largest stadium in The Netherlands.
Marcel "Marco" van Basten is a Dutch former football manager and player who played for Ajax and AC Milan, as well as the Netherlands national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest strikers of all time, he scored 300 goals in a high-profile career, but played his last match in 1993, at the age of 28, due to an ankle injury which forced his retirement two years later. He was later the head coach of Ajax and the Netherlands national team.
Ruud Gullit is a Dutch footballer and subsequent manager who played professionally in the 1980s and 1990s as a defender, midfielder or forward. In 2004, he was named one of the Top 125 greatest living footballers as part of FIFA's 100th anniversary celebration.
Philips Sport Vereniging, abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven, is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional football department, which has played in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football, since its inception in 1956. Along with Ajax and Feyenoord, PSV is one of the country's "big three" clubs that have dominated the Eredivisie.
David “Dave” Holland is an English jazz double bassist, composer and bandleader who has been performing and recording for five decades. He has lived in the United States for over 40 years.
Patrick Stephan Kluivert is a Dutch former football player, coach and sporting director. He played as a striker, most notably for Ajax, Barcelona and the Netherlands national team. He is currently the manager of Süper Lig club Adana Demirspor.
Franklin Edmundo Rijkaard is a Dutch former footballer and former manager who played as a defensive midfielder. Rijkaard played for Ajax, Real Zaragoza and AC Milan and represented the Netherlands national team side 73 times, scoring 10 goals. In his managerial career, he was at the helm of the Netherlands national team, Sparta Rotterdam, Barcelona, Galatasaray and the Saudi Arabia national team.
Football Club Groningen is a Dutch professional association football club based in the city of Groningen, province of Groningen. Founded on 16 June 1971 as the successor of GVAV, the team will compete in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football, following relegation from the 2022–23 Eredivisie. Groningen played their inaugural season in the Eredivisie, before the side were relegated to the Eerste Divisie in 1973–74 as they got into financial difficulties. Groningen were promoted back to the Eredivisie as champions in 1979–80 and remained in the top flight for almost 20 seasons before they dropped to the second tier in 1997–98. The team won promotion to the Eredivisie in 1999–2000, where they remained for 23 seasons before suffering relegation in 2022–23.
The Eredivisie is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. As of the 2022–23 season, it is ranked the sixth-best league in Europe by UEFA.
Thomas Anthony Hollander is a British actor. As a child Hollander trained with the National Youth Theatre and was later involved in stage productions as a member of the Footlights and was president of the Marlowe Society. He later gained success for his roles on stage and screen, winning a BAFTA Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, as well as nominations for a Tony Award and Olivier Award.
Daley Blind is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder, left-back or centre-back for the Netherlands national team. He is the son of former Ajax defender and former Netherlands national team manager Danny Blind.
Hendrik Johannes Cruijff was a Dutch professional football player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, and as the greatest Dutch footballer ever, he won the Ballon d'Or three times, in 1971, 1973, and 1974. Cruyff was a proponent of the football philosophy known as Total Football explored by Rinus Michels, which Cruyff also employed as a manager. Because of the far reaching impact of his playing style and his coaching ideas, he is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in modern football. For his achievements as a manager, he is also viewed as one of the greatest managers of all time.
Thomas Stanley Holland is an English actor. His accolades include a British Academy Film Award and three Saturn Awards. Some publications have called him one of the most popular actors of his generation.
Hakim Ziyech is a Moroccan professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Premier League club Chelsea and the Morocco national team. He is nicknamed "The Wizard", a title given to him by his former club Ajax supporters.
Wout François Maria Weghorst is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Burnley and the Netherlands national team.
Cody Mathès Gakpo is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Liverpool and the Netherlands national team.
Jurriën David Norman Timber is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a defender for Eredivisie club Ajax and the Netherlands national team. Mainly a centre-back, he can also play as a right-back.
