The Low Countries derby between Belgium and the Netherlands
has a long tradition, having been played 129 times (not including
7 unofficial meetings); only Austria/Hungary
(137 matches) and Argentina/Uruguay
(over two hundred matches, of which about nine tenth may be considered
official, depending on the definition) have played each other more often.
Belgium were the first ever opponents of the Netherlands, if not
vice versa (Belgium had played France
a year before meeting the Netherlands) and the two neighbours traditionally
met twice a year (both hosting once) until the mid-sixties.
Until 1925, matches in Belgium were played for the
Coupe Vanden Abeele
(also known as het koperen dingetje, "the copper thingy"), which
explains why extra time was played on three occasions.
This trophy was offered by Frédéric "Frits" Vanden Abeele, father of the
secretary general of Beerschot (also called Frédéric), in reaction
to the successful staging by Léopold Club (Brussels) of the
Coupe Van der Straeten Ponthoz
one year earlier.
The Vanden Abeele family withdrew the trophy in 1926 after the
Belgian FA had decided to move the match against the Netherlands
from Het Kiel, the Beerschot ground, to the Boschuil stadium of
hated local rivals Antwerp FC (a stadium which later earned the
nickname Hel van Deurne ("Deurne Hell") in the Netherlands).
Starting from 1926, matches in Belgium were played for the
Coupe De Laveleye, while those in the Netherlands had the
Rotterdamsch Nieuwsblad Beker at stake ever since the first
meeting on Dutch soil in May 1905. It is certain both trophies were
still competed for in the late forties and most likely as long as the
matches were held twice a year (until the 99th meeting in 1964).
After the sixties, the traditional importance of the derby
rapidly diminished with the advent of (semi)professional
football in both countries, but in the last three decades of
the twentieth century Oranje and the Rode Duivels
regularly met in competitive matches, with the Netherlands
having the better of the exchanges in the seventies and the
nineties and Belgium in the eighties.
More than a century of rivalry with way over 100 matches has resulted
in many memories and legendary matches. We just pick out eleven of
the most spectacular or important matches.
In the first match on April 30, 1905,
Eddy de Neve
scores the first
goal after 80 minutes, but Belgium equalises 6 minutes later thanks
to an own goal by
Bertus Stom
(who would play each of the first nine
international matches of the Netherlands, the only player to do so).
Because of the cup on offer, extra time is played, and Eddy de Neve
manages to score 3 more goals within fifteen minutes, becoming the
first Dutch topscorer.
The twelfth match on April 10, 1910 sees the Netherlands establishing
a record win for the fixture, 7-0 thanks to 3 goals by Mannes Francken
and 2 each by Caius Welcker and Jan Thomée. But the topic of the day
are the
Hörburger twins Arnold and Anton.
Arnold had started the
match, Anton was the only reserve, but substitutions during the match
were not allowed at the time. Arnold hurts his knee after half an
hour, and stops playing. After the break, he is back, fitter than
ever, and the Belgians (and most others) are convinced Anton has
entered the field. As it had already been 4-0 at half-time, the
presumed "trick" will not have greatly influenced the outcome of the match.
The thirty-first match on May 2, 1926, sees Belgium winning 5-1
in Amsterdam, their highest ever away win in the fixture (equal
to the highest ever Dutch away win, on March 19, 1911). It is the
match of Beerschot star
Raymond Braine,
who scores two himself;
Belgium score 4 goals in the third quarter of the match, which had
been tied 1-1 at half-time. Braine would later become professional
at Sparta Praha, playing three finals for the
Mitropa Cup, winning
one (in 1935). He captained the European selection playing England
at Wembley on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the FA, and
was by far the best Belgian football player (and perhaps of both
Low Countries) before the second World War (and of all Belgian
players in the twentieth century, only
Paul Van Himst
may challenge the title).
The forty-seventh match on March 11, 1934, sees Belgium take the
lead in the very first minute in Amsterdam. Then, after a quarter
of an hour,
Bep Bakhuys
equalises with an iconic goal that entered into Dutch footballing
legend, jumping forward, just above ground level, to meet a cross
by Wels. Such a zweefkopbal ("floating header") becomes
known as a goal à la Bakhuys. After that goal, the
floodgates open: Kick Smit scores two, Bakhuys one more, and
Leen Vente no fewer than 5, for a 9-3 win. Seven of the nine
goals (those by Vente and Bakhuys) are scored by players active at
the second class
club level in the Netherlands.
The fifty-ninth match, on March 17, 1940, sees Belgium chalk up
their record win in the fixture, a 7-1 trashing mostly thanks to
a hat-trick by 19-year-old Jules Van Craen. This great talent,
who replaced the aging Raymond Braine, dominated Belgian football
during the war, winning the league with Lierse in 1942 (after
unofficial titles in the previous two seasons) and becoming Belgian
topscorer with 43 goals in the next season (in which Lierse finished
third). He tragically died in October 1945, just 25 years of age,
following two unsuccessful operations necessitated by a kick in the
stomach during a league match against Tilleur.
The seventy-third match sets a record for goals in the fixture,
with Belgium winning 7-6 on November 25, 1951 in Rotterdam. The
match is notable for two other things: Jan de Cler writes a lengthy
poem relating the match, with the refrain Hup Holland Hup,
still sung at matches of the Dutch national team, and a tragic
injury of Dutch left back
Henk Schijvenaar,
who broke his leg after a sliding on
Jef Mermans
(who at the same time gave the assist to
Verbruggen scoring 3-4). This happened just after the break, and
as substitutions for injured players were only allowed during the
first half, the Dutch played the second half with 10 players.
The eighty-ninth match on October 4, 1959 is probably the most
one-sided ever. In the Feijemoord ("murder at Feijenoord
stadium"), both
Faas Wilkes
(one week short of his 36th birthday
but man of the match) and Piet van der Kuil score three goals,
and the score reaches 9-0 in the 84th minute. The stadium starts
shouting for 10 (behaviour condemned by sanctimonious newspapers
the next day) but instead the 10th goal of the day is scored by
Belgian sub Delire, 3 minutes before the end of the match. It is
the third match in Dutch history in which the Netherlands score
nine goals (one more followed, a 9-0 over Norway in 1972) but it will
take the Netherlands still more than half a century before managing
to score ten in one match (on September 2, 2011, San Marino are
beaten 11-0 in Eindhoven). The match is the
last international appearance for Belgian enfant terrible
and Beerschot icon
Rik Coppens,
whose way of leaving the field (arm-in-arm with Faas Wilkes,
laughing) is not appreciated by Belgian FA officials.
The hundred-fourth derby is played on November 18, 1973, and
crucial for qualification for the 1974 World Cup. The first
match between the two rivals, one year before, had finished
a drab and ill-tempered 0-0 draw in Antwerp, and both teams
have beaten the other two group rivals, Iceland and Norway, twice,
Belgium with an aggregate score of 12-0 over 4 matches, the
Netherlands with 24-2. As goal difference (rather than goal
average) is the tie-breaker, the Dutch team only need a draw
at home, but concede a goal by Verheyen shortly before the end
of the match, after a free kick by Van Himst. However, the Soviet
linesman has flagged off-side, a marginal and controversial
decision, and the referee follows his advice: the score remains
0-0 and the Belgian side coached by Raymond Goethals (later
involved in bribery scandals in two different countries) is
eliminated without conceding a goal in qualifying – tellingly
illustrative of Goethals' catenaccio vision on football.
The hundred-sixth derby on April 25, 1976, is another competitive
match, the first leg of the quarter-finals of the European
Championship (at the time, the final tournament involved only
four countries). The Netherlands have qualified for this stage
by winning a qualifying group containing Poland (third at the
1974 World Cup, where the Netherlands lost the final to the hosts)
and Italy (fourth at the 1978 World Cup, where the Netherlands again
lost the final to the hosts), probably the strongest ever European
qualifying group for any major tournament; Belgium have eliminated
France and East Germany at the group stage. It is the match of
Rob Rensenbrink,
who plays at Belgian top side Anderlecht. By the time of the
match, the Dutch outside left had played for more than 5 years in
the Belgian league, so Belgian defenders should know him, but
het Slangenmens ("snake man") eludes them time and again,
scoring 3 goals in a 5-0 win which secures Dutch qualification
even before the away match (which Oranje would win 2-1
four weeks later). In 2007, Rensenbrink was chosen as the best
foreigner ever to grace the Belgian league.
After the Netherlands had eliminated Belgium in three consecutive
qualifying tournaments in the 1970s (those for the 1974 and 1978
World Cup and in the quarter-finals for the 1976 European
championship), Belgium had gotten the better of the northerners in
qualifying for the 1982 World Cup (Belgium winning the qualifying
group with a match to spare while the Netherlands lost out on the
second qualifying place against Platini's France). For the 1986
World Cup, the two neighbours met for the fourth consecutive World
Cup qualifying tournament in spite of having been drawn in different
groups. Belgium had finished runners-up in their group behind
Poland, the Netherlands had been second behind Hungary in their
group. Whereas the third runners-up in a four team group (Scotland)
got an easy ride to Mexico by having to face Australia in a playoff,
Belgium and the Netherlands had to play each other. Belgium had won
the ill-tempered first match 1-0 (Kieft having been sent off after 3
minutes after some pitiful show-acting by Vercauteren) but on
November 20, 1985, in the hundred-fifteenth derby, the Netherlands
take a 2-0 lead in the second half of the return (albeit much against
the run of play). With just 5 minutes left, Gerets crosses and
Georges Grün heads the ball: 2-1, the most devastating "win"
ever for the Netherlands. In Mexico, Belgium will eliminate the
Soviet Union and Spain before falling to Maradona's Argentina in
the semi-final.
The hundred-twenty-first derby is played on September 4, 1999,
a friendly match in anticipation of the 2000 European championship,
jointly organised by Belgium and the Netherlands. Both teams
are at a low ebb: the Netherlands have failed to win any of their
previous eight matches, and Belgium are fresh from a 3-4 home
loss against Finland; their other results in 1999 had mostly been
0-1 losses against equally unimpressive opponents such as Egypt
and Greece.
The match seems to take the derby back by half a century or more:
both teams twice take the lead (Belgium 0-2 and 3-4, the Netherlands
3-2 and 5-4) before settling for a 10-goal draw. It is the highest
ever scoring draw for both countries (the Netherlands had played a
5-5 against Germany back in 1912, Belgium had never drawn higher
than 4 all), with
Patrick Kluivert
scoring a hat-trick for the Netherlands
and Croatian-born Branko Strupar leading Belgium with two goals in
the first half hour.
All matches listed are friendlies unless otherwise stated.
Game Date Venue Result Remark 1. 30- 4-1905 Antwerpen Belgium 1-4 Netherlands [aet] 2. 14- 5-1905 Rotterdam Netherlands 4-0 Belgium 3. 29- 4-1906 Antwerpen Belgium 5-0 Netherlands 4. 13- 5-1906 Rotterdam Netherlands 2-3 Belgium 5. 14- 4-1907 Antwerpen Belgium 1-3 Netherlands [aet] 6. 9- 5-1907 Haarlem Netherlands 1-2 Belgium 7. 29- 3-1908 Antwerpen Belgium 1-4 Netherlands 8. 26- 4-1908 Rotterdam Netherlands 3-1 Belgium 9. 21- 3-1909 Antwerpen Belgium 1-4 Netherlands 10. 25- 4-1909 Rotterdam Netherlands 4-1 Belgium 11. 13- 3-1910 Antwerpen Belgium 3-2 Netherlands [aet] 12. 10- 4-1910 Haarlem Netherlands 7-0 Belgium 13. 19- 3-1911 Antwerpen Belgium 1-5 Netherlands 14. 2- 4-1911 Dordrecht Netherlands 3-1 Belgium 15. 10- 3-1912 Antwerpen Belgium 1-2 Netherlands 16. 28- 4-1912 Dordrecht Netherlands 4-3 Belgium 17. 9- 3-1913 Antwerpen Belgium 3-3 Netherlands 18. 20- 4-1913 Zwolle Netherlands 2-4 Belgium 19. 15- 3-1914 Antwerpen Belgium 2-4 Netherlands 20. 26- 4-1914 Amsterdam Netherlands 4-2 Belgium 21. 31- 8-1920 Antwerpen Belgium 3-0 Netherlands [Olympic Games] 22. 15- 5-1921 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 23. 26- 3-1922 Antwerpen Belgium 4-0 Netherlands 24. 7- 5-1922 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-2 Belgium 25. 29- 4-1923 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 26. 23- 3-1924 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 27. 27- 4-1924 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 28. 15- 3-1925 Antwerpen Belgium 0-1 Netherlands 29. 3- 5-1925 Amsterdam Netherlands 5-0 Belgium 30. 14- 3-1926 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 31. 2- 5-1926 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-5 Belgium 32. 13- 3-1927 Antwerpen Belgium 2-0 Netherlands 33. 1- 5-1927 Amsterdam Netherlands 3-2 Belgium 34. 11- 3-1928 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 35. 1- 4-1928 Antwerpen Belgium 1-0 Netherlands 36. 5- 6-1928 Rotterdam Netherlands 3-1 Belgium [Olympic Games (Consolation Tournament)] 37. 4-11-1928 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 38. 5- 5-1929 Antwerpen Belgium 3-1 Netherlands 39. 4- 5-1930 Amsterdam Netherlands 2-2 Belgium 40. 18- 5-1930 Antwerpen Belgium 3-1 Netherlands 41. 29- 3-1931 Amsterdam Netherlands 3-2 Belgium 42. 3- 5-1931 Antwerpen Belgium 4-2 Netherlands 43. 20- 3-1932 Antwerpen Belgium 1-4 Netherlands 44. 17- 4-1932 Amsterdam Netherlands 2-1 Belgium 45. 9- 4-1933 Antwerpen Belgium 1-3 Netherlands 46. 7- 5-1933 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-2 Belgium 47. 11- 3-1934 Amsterdam Netherlands 9-3 Belgium 48. 29- 4-1934 Antwerpen Belgium 2-4 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 49. 31- 3-1935 Amsterdam Netherlands 4-2 Belgium 50. 12- 5-1935 Brussel Belgium 0-2 Netherlands 51. 29- 3-1936 Amsterdam Netherlands 8-0 Belgium 52. 3- 5-1936 Brussel Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 53. 4- 4-1937 Antwerpen Belgium 2-1 Netherlands 54. 2- 5-1937 Rotterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium 55. 27- 2-1938 Rotterdam Netherlands 7-2 Belgium 56. 3- 4-1938 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 57. 19- 3-1939 Antwerpen Belgium 5-4 Netherlands 58. 23- 4-1939 Amsterdam Netherlands 3-2 Belgium 59. 17- 3-1940 Antwerpen Belgium 7-1 Netherlands 60. 21- 4-1940 Amsterdam Netherlands 4-2 Belgium 61. 12- 5-1946 Amsterdam Netherlands 6-3 Belgium 62. 30- 5-1946 Antwerpen Belgium 2-2 Netherlands 63. 7- 4-1947 Amsterdam Netherlands 2-1 Belgium 64. 9- 5-1947 Antwerpen Belgium 1-2 Netherlands 65. 14- 3-1948 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 66. 18- 4-1948 Rotterdam Netherlands 2-2 Belgium 67. 21-11-1948 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 68. 13- 3-1949 Amsterdam Netherlands 3-3 Belgium 69. 6-11-1949 Rotterdam Netherlands 0-1 Belgium 70. 16- 4-1950 Antwerpen Belgium 2-0 Netherlands 71. 12-11-1950 Antwerpen Belgium 7-2 Netherlands 72. 15- 4-1951 Amsterdam Netherlands 5-4 Belgium 73. 25-11-1951 Rotterdam Netherlands 6-7 Belgium 74. 6- 4-1952 Antwerpen Belgium 4-2 Netherlands 75. 19-10-1952 Antwerpen Belgium 2-1 Netherlands 76. 19- 4-1953 Amsterdam Netherlands 0-2 Belgium 77. 25-11-1953 Rotterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium 78. 4- 4-1954 Antwerpen Belgium 4-0 Netherlands 79. 24-10-1954 Antwerpen Belgium 4-3 Netherlands 80. 3- 4-1955 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium 81. 16-10-1955 Rotterdam Netherlands 2-2 Belgium 82. 8- 4-1956 Antwerpen Belgium 0-1 Netherlands 83. 14-10-1956 Antwerpen Belgium 2-3 Netherlands 84. 28- 4-1957 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 85. 17-11-1957 Rotterdam Netherlands 5-2 Belgium 86. 13- 4-1958 Antwerpen Belgium 2-7 Netherlands 87. 28- 9-1958 Antwerpen Belgium 2-3 Netherlands 88. 19- 4-1959 Amsterdam Netherlands 2-2 Belgium 89. 4-10-1959 Rotterdam Netherlands 9-1 Belgium 90. 24- 4-1960 Antwerpen Belgium 2-1 Netherlands 91. 2-10-1960 Antwerpen Belgium 1-4 Netherlands 92. 22- 3-1961 Rotterdam Netherlands 6-2 Belgium 93. 12-11-1961 Amsterdam Netherlands 0-4 Belgium 94. 1- 4-1962 Antwerpen Belgium 3-1 Netherlands 95. 14-10-1962 Antwerpen Belgium 2-0 Netherlands 96. 3- 3-1963 Rotterdam Netherlands 0-1 Belgium 97. 20-11-1963 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 98. 22- 3-1964 Antwerpen Belgium 0-0 Netherlands 99. 30- 9-1964 Antwerpen Belgium 1-0 Netherlands 100. 17- 4-1966 Rotterdam Netherlands 3-1 Belgium 101. 16- 4-1967 Antwerpen Belgium 1-0 Netherlands 102. 7- 4-1968 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-2 Belgium 103. 19-11-1972 Antwerpen Belgium 0-0 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 104. 18-11-1973 Amsterdam Netherlands 0-0 Belgium [World Cup Qualifier] 105. 30- 4-1975 Antwerpen Belgium 1-0 Netherlands 106. 25- 4-1976 Rotterdam Netherlands 5-0 Belgium [European Champ QF] 107. 22- 5-1976 Brussel Belgium 1-2 Netherlands [European Champ QF] 108. 26- 3-1977 Antwerpen Belgium 0-2 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 109. 26-10-1977 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium [World Cup Qualifier] 110. 26- 9-1979 Rotterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium 111. 19-11-1980 Brussel Belgium 1-0 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 112. 14-10-1981 Rotterdam Netherlands 3-0 Belgium [World Cup Qualifier] 113. 21- 9-1983 Brussel Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 114. 16-10-1985 Brussel Belgium 1-0 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 115. 20-11-1985 Rotterdam Netherlands 2-1 Belgium [World Cup Qualifier] 116. 9- 9-1987 Rotterdam Netherlands 0-0 Belgium 117. 25- 6-1994 Orlando Netherlands 0-1 Belgium [World Cup] 118. 14-12-1996 Brussel Belgium 0-3 Netherlands [World Cup Qualifier] 119. 6- 9-1997 Rotterdam Netherlands 3-1 Belgium [World Cup Qualifier] 120. 13- 6-1998 St-Denis Netherlands 0-0 Belgium [World Cup] 121. 4- 9-1999 Rotterdam Netherlands 5-5 Belgium 122. 29- 3-2000 Brussel Belgium 2-2 Netherlands 123. 20- 8-2003 Brussel Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 124. 29- 5-2004 Eindhoven Netherlands 0-1 Belgium 125. 15- 8-2012 Brussel Belgium 4-2 Netherlands 126. 9-11-2016 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-1 Belgium 127. 16-10-2018 Brussel Belgium 1-1 Netherlands 128. 3- 6-2022 Brussel Belgium 1-4 Netherlands [European Nations League] 129. 25- 9-2022 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium [European Nations League]
Total record:
Netherlands 129 57 31 41 285-221 145
Belgium 129 41 31 57 221-285 113
Some more stats:
Pd B D N BG- NG
In Belgium: 64 27 15 22 122-112
Antwerpen 52 24 10 18 106- 93
Brussel 12 3 5 4 14- 19
In the Netherlands: 63 13 15 35 100-173
Amsterdam 33 6 11 16 55- 79
Rotterdam 24 4 4 16 34- 77
elsewhere 6 3 0 3 11- 17
Elsewhere: 2 1 1 0 1- 0
Pd B D N BG- NG
prebellum 20 5 1 14 36- 65
1905-1914 20 5 1 14 36- 65
interbellum 40 13 10 17 75- 90
1920-1930 20 8 8 4 35- 25
1931-1940 20 5 2 13 40- 65
postbellum i 39 15 10 14 82- 86 (twice-a-year friendlies until 1965)
1946-1955 21 9 6 6 53- 42
1956-1965 18 6 4 8 29- 44
postbellum ii 30 8 10 12 28- 44 (matches at irregular intervals since 1965)
1966-1975 6 3 2 1 5- 4
1976-1985 10 2 1 7 5- 17
1986-1995 2 1 1 0 1- 0
1996-2005 7 1 4 2 10- 14
2006-2015 1 1 0 0 4- 2
2016-2025 4 0 2 2 3- 7
In addition to the 129 official derby matches above, 7 more matches were played between the full international sides of Belgium and the Netherlands between 1925 and 1939, but these were not declared official because of being played for specific occasions and not being part of the annual home-and-away series.
Note that the list below does not include the four matches played for the Coupe Vanden Abeele between 1901 and 1904, as the Belgian sides in those matches were Belgian League XIs and included up to four English players, while the Dutch sides were unofficial selections without direct involvement from the Dutch FA.
Game Date Venue Result Remark
U 1. 6- 9-1925 Antwerpen Belgium 1-1 Netherlands [FIFA fundraiser]
U 2. 29- 8-1926 Rotterdam Netherlands 1-5 Belgium [charity]
U 3. 8-12-1929 Amsterdam Netherlands 1-0 Belgium [40-year anniversary NVB]
U 4. 14- 9-1930 Brussel Belgium 4-1 Netherlands [opening Heysel stadium]
U 5. 14- 2-1932 Amsterdam Netherlands 2-3 Belgium [FIFA fundraiser]
U 6. 16-10-1932 Brussel Belgium 2-3 Netherlands [charity]
U 7. 10-12-1939 Rotterdam Netherlands 5-2 Belgium [50-year anniversary KNVB]
Total unofficial record:
Netherlands 7 3 1 3 14- 17 7
Belgium 7 3 1 3 17- 14 7
Some more stats:
Pd B D N BG- NG
In Belgium: 3 1 1 1 7- 5
Antwerpen 1 0 1 0 1- 1
Brussel 2 1 0 1 6- 4
In the Netherlands: 4 2 0 2 10- 9
Amsterdam 2 1 0 1 3- 3
Rotterdam 2 1 0 1 7- 6
Belgium - List of International Matches
Netherlands - List of International Matches
Sources include: [VeW 00], [Ver 01], [Ver 02], [Ver 03], [Ver 04], [VeV 05], [VeV 06], [VeV 07], [VeV 08], [VeV 09]
Thanks to Roberto Di Maggio
Prepared and maintained by Karel Stokkermans for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation
Author: Karel Stokkermans
Last updated: 21 Sep 2024
(C) Copyright Karel Stokkermans and RSSSF 1996/2024
You are free to copy this document in whole or part provided that proper
acknowledgement is given to the author. All rights reserved.