Derde Divisie

"Topklasse" redirects here. For other uses, see Topklasse (disambiguation).

Derde Divisie

Founded	2010 as Topklasse
Country	Netherlands
Confederation	UEFA
Divisions	2
Number of teams	36
Level on pyramid	4
Promotion to	Tweede Divisie
Relegation to	Hoofdklasse
Domestic cup(s)	KNVB Cup
Current champions	Saturday: SV Spakenburg Sunday: Jong Vitesse (2017–18)
Most championships	SV Spakenburg (3 Saturday titles)
2018–19 Derde Divisie

The Derde Divisie (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈdɛrdə diˈvizi]; English: Third Division), formerly known as Topklasse (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈtɔpklɑsə]; English: Top Class), is the fourth tier of football in the Netherlands, which had its inaugural season as a third tier in 2010–11 and as a fourth tier in 2016–17. The league is placed between the Tweede Divisie and the Hoofdklasse, the third and fifth tiers of Dutch football, respectively.^[1] The introduction of the then Topklasse resulted from discussions between the Royal Dutch Football Association, the Coöperatie Eerste Divisie (the clubs in the Eerste Divisie) and the Centraal Overleg Hoofdklassers (the clubs in the Hoofdklasse).

Contents

• 
  1 Background
  


• 
  2 Confirmed structure
  


• 
  3 Reforms from the 2016–17 season
  


• 
  4 Perception among amateur clubs
  


• 
  5 Current teams (2017–18)
  
  • 
    5.1 Saturday League
    
  
  
  • 
    5.2 Sunday League
    
  
  


• 
  6 Champions
  


• 
  7 References
  


• 
  8 External links
  

Background

A national football competition in the Netherlands was established in 1956. Prior to that, the districts of the Dutch football association held their own competitions, and the champions of these competitions faced each other for the national title. The highest national division in the new league structure became the Eredivisie, followed by the Eerste Divisie and the Tweede Divisie. The Tweede Divisie was disbanded in 1971; six clubs were promoted to the Eerste Divisie (champions De Volewijckers along with FC Eindhoven, VVV, Fortuna Vlaardingen, PEC and Roda JC), while the remaining ten clubs became amateur clubs. The Eerste Divisie subsequently became the lowest league in professional football in the Netherlands.

The amateur football clubs had a separate league system, the highest league of which was the Eerste Klasse (later: Hoofdklasse). There was no promotion and relegation between professional football and amateur football; a professional football club could only drop to the amateur leagues if its licence for professional football was revoked, while an amateur football club could only be promoted after application and meeting a number of criteria.

The calls for a Topklasse largely stemmed from the professionalization of amateur football clubs in the Netherlands in recent years, in the sense that many Hoofdklasse club players now receive a salary.^[2] This has closed the gap between the top of the Hoofdklasse and the bottom of the Eerste Divisie. Chairman of the Dutch football association Henk Kesler had therefore repeatedly called for the creation of the Topklasse to establish promotion and relegation between professional and amateur football, creating a league pyramid akin to the English football league system.

The first plans for a Topklasse were rejected by the Eerste Divisie clubs in 1999.^[3]

Confirmed structure

Former Topklasse logo.

The new league structure was approved at an amateur clubs meeting on 6 June 2009.^[4] The KNVB introduced the new level for the 2010–11 season, comprising 32 clubs. After the 2009–10 season, the bottom 2 teams in the Eerste Divisie, whose size was reduced from 20 to 18 clubs, and the top four clubs from each of the six Hoofdklasse divisions – a total of 26 clubs – automatically joined the new level. These clubs were joined by six playoff winners from a pool of 12 clubs that finished in 5th or 6th place in their group within the Hoofdklasse.

The 32 clubs within the Topklasse were divided into two leagues comprising 16 clubs. One league is a "Saturday" league and the other a "Sunday" league, a setup that is still in place. At the end of the season, both clubs that finished at the top of their division play each other. The winner of that tie was promoted to the Eerste Divisie, replacing the team that finished 18th. If the winner refused promotion or was ineligible for promotion, the runners-up were promoted. If both teams refused promotion, no promotion and relegation took place between the Eerste Divisie and Topklasse.

In January 2010, the exclusion of bankrupt HFC Haarlem from the Eerste Divisie reduced the number of scheduled relegations to one only, and led the KNVB to announce that this vacancy would be filled by an additional Hoofdklasse club.
On May 12, 2010 it was announced that BV Veendam had declared bankruptcy, possibly giving (otherwise relegated) FC Oss a chance to stay in the Eerste Divisie, with the extra slot filled by another Hoofdklasse club. Veendam's bankruptcy was then reversed on appeal, thus confirming FC Oss' relegation into the Topklasse.

After the 2015–16 season promotion to the reintroduced Tweede Divisie, placed between the Eerste Divisie and the Topklasse, renamed Derde Divisie, was implemented. Thus, the Derde Divisie and lower leagues were decremented by one step in the pyramid, with the latter expanding to 36 clubs, 18 in each division.^[1][5] The division winners are promoted and no longer compete for the amateur championship which was made redundant.^[6]

Reforms from the 2016–17 season

There were several reforms from the 2016–17 season. The league was reformed as follows:

Situation until the 2015–16 season	Situation from the 2016–17 season
The name of the league was Topklasse.	The name of the league is Derde Divisie (English: Third Division)
Promotion to the Eerste Divisie was optional.	Promotion to the Tweede Divisie is mandatory.
There were no reserve teams in the league.	Two reserve teams of professional clubs, determined by a ranking, gained entry.

A proposal to split the two divisions determined by region and not by playing date has been rejected.^[7]

Perception among amateur clubs

IJsselmeervogels, one of the most successful amateur football clubs in the Netherlands, was a strong opponent of the plans; chief Arian van de Vuurst has stated that "professional football does not fit in with our culture."^[2] Because of these objections, promotion to the Eerste Divisie was not mandatory for the champion of the former Topklasse. After 2016, however, promotion to the Tweede Divisie is required.

Current teams (2017–18)

Saturday League

Club	City	Stadium	Capacity	Manager	2015/16
ACV	Assen	Univé Sportpark		Fred De Boer
ASWH	Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht	Sportpark Schildman	3,000	Cesco Agterberg	3rd Hoofdklasse B
Capelle	Capelle aan den IJssel	Sportpark 't Slot	4,000	Ron Timmers	11th
DOVO	Veenendaal	Sportpark Panhuis		Gert Kruys
DVS '33	Ermelo	Sportlaan	1,500	Bert van Hunenstijn	9th
Harkemase Boys	Harkema	Sportpark De Bosk		Henk Herder	1st Hoofdklasse C
Jong Almere City FC	Almere	Yanmar Stadion	3,200	Ivar van Dinteren	7th Beloften Eredivisie
Jong FC Groningen	Groningen	Sportpark Corpus den Hoorn		Alfons Arts	5th Beloften Eredivisie
Jong Twente	Enschede	De Grolsch Veste	30,205	Dennis Demmers
Jong FC Volendam	Volendam	Kras Stadion	6,984	Johan Steur	8th Beloften Eredivisie
Magreb '90	Utrecht	Sportpark Papendorp	1,000	Jamal Yahiaoui	15th (Playoff winners)
ODIN '59	Heemskerk	Sportpark Assumburg		Richard Plug	1st Hoofdklasse A
ONS Sneek	Sneek	Sportpark Zuidersportpark	950	Chris de Wagt	10th
Quick Boys	Katwijk	Sportpark Nieuw Zuid	8,500	Jan Zoutman	1st Hoofdklasse B
Scheveningen	Scheveningen	Sportpark Houtrust	3,500	John Blok	13th
Spakenburg	Spakenburg	Sportpark De Westmaat	2,500	John de Wolf
Spijkenisse	Spijkenisse	Sportpark Jaap Riedijk		Peter Wubben
VVOG	Harderwijk	Sportpark De Strokel	10,000	Hans van Arum	2nd Hoofdklasse C

Sunday League

Club	City	Stadium	Capacity	Manager	2015/16
ADO '20	Heemskerk	Sportpark De Vlotter		Raymond Bronkhorst
Blauw Geel '38	Veghel	Prins Willem Alexander Sportpark		Niels van Casteren
Be Quick	Groesbeek	Sportpark Zuid	4,000	Marko Sanders	2nd Hoofdklasse C
De Meern	De Meern	Sportpark De Meern		Joel Titaley
Dongen	Dongen	Sportpark De Biezen	1,800	Ron Timmers	1st Hoofdklasse B
EVV	Echt	Sportpark In de Bandert	2,000	Leo Beckers	11th
HBS	The Hague	Sportpark Daal en Bergselaan	1,000	Marcel Koning	12th
Hercules	Utrecht	Sportpark Voordorp	800	Eric Speelziek	10th
HSC '21	Haaksbergen	Sportpark Groot Scholtenhagen	4,500	Daniel Nijhof	8th
Jong De Graafschap	Doetinchem	Sportpark Varsselder	1,500	Jan Vreman	9th Beloften Eredivisie
Jong Vitesse	Arnhem	Papendal		Joseph Oosting
JVC Cuijk	Cuijk	Sportpark De Groenendijkse	3,000	Ruud Kaiser	9th
OFC	Oostzaan	Sportpark OFC	1,500	Yuri Rose	4th Hoofdklasse A
OJC Rosmalen	Rosmalen	Sportpark De Groote Wielen	3,000	David Vecht	14th
Quick	Den Haag	Sportpark Nieuw Hanenburg		Paul van der Zwaan
Quick '20	Oldenzaal	Vondersweijders	7,000	Michel Steggink	3rd Hoofdklasse C
UNA	Veldhoven	Sportpark Zeelst		Jeroen van Bezouwen
Westlandia	Naaldwijk	Sportpark De Hoge Bomen	2,000	Edwin Grünholz	1st Hoofdklasse A

Champions

Topklasse
Season	Saturday champions	Sunday champions	Overall champions	Promotion
2010–11	IJsselmeervogels	FC Oss	IJsselmeervogels	FC Oss
2011–12	Spakenburg	Achilles '29	Achilles '29	None
2012–13	Katwijk	Achilles '29	Katwijk	Achilles '29
2013–14	Spakenburg	AFC	Spakenburg	None
2014–15	Kozakken Boys	FC Lienden	FC Lienden	None
2015–16	Excelsior Maassluis	FC Lienden	Excelsior Maassluis	14 clubs
Derde Divisie
Season	Saturday champions	Sunday champions
2016–17	IJsselmeervogels	ASV De Dijk
2017–18	Spakenburg	Jong Vitesse

References

1. 
   ^ ^ab "Plannen tweede divisie gaan door". NOS.nl (in Dutch). 2014-12-02. Retrieved 2015-07-16. 
   


2. 
   ^ ^ab Robert Missèt (2007-06-18). "'Kesler heeft geen idee wat amateurvoetbal inhoudt'" (in Dutch). de Volkskrant. p. 17. Retrieved 2012-06-09. 
   


3. 
   ^ Erik Oudshoorn (1999-06-01). "Clubs eerste divisie dwarsbomen Topklasse" (in Dutch). NRC Handelsblad. p. 11. Retrieved 2007-11-15. 
   


4. 
   ^ "Topklasse in amateurvoetbal krijgt groen licht". Voetbalzone. 2009-06-06. 
   


5. 
   ^ "Vanaf seizoen 2016/17: promotie/degradatie tussen amateurvoetbal en betaald voetbal". KNVB.nl (in Dutch). 2014-12-02. Archived from the original on 2015-07-17. Retrieved 2015-07-16. 
   


6. 
   ^ "Last amateur championship". knvb.nl (in Dutch). 19 May 2016. 
   


7. 
   ^ "Topklasse gaat volgend seizoen verder als Derde Divisie". KNVB.nl (in Dutch). 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016. 
   

External links

• 
  derdedivisie.org - Latest news from and about the Derde Divisie. (in Dutch)
  


• 
  League321.com - Dutch football league tables, records & statistics database. (in English)
  

v t e Derde Divisie · 2017–18
Teams	Saturday ACV Jong Almere City ASWH Capelle DOVO DVS '33 Jong Groningen Harkemase Boys Magreb '90 ODIN '59 ONS Sneek Quick Boys Scheveningen Spakenburg Spijkenisse Jong Twente Jong Volendam VVOG Sunday ADO '20 Be Quick 1887 Blauw Geel '38 Jong De Graafschap Dongen EVV HBS Craeyenhout USV Hercules HSC '21 JVC Cuijk De Meern OFC OJC Rosmalen Quick '20 Quick (H) UNA Jong Vitesse Westlandia
Seasons	Topklasse 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 Derde Divisie 2016–17 2017–18

v t e Football in the Netherlands
Overview	Football Association League system Clubs Stadiums Champions Players Managers Referees Footballer of the Year
International	Men Netherlands U-21 U-19 U-17 U-16 Variants (Beach Futsal) Women Netherlands women
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Tournaments	Men Amsterdam Tournament (1975–2009) Copa Amsterdam Eurovoetbal Feyenoord Tournament (1978–91) Future Cup Otten Cup

v t e Fourth-level football leagues of Europe (UEFA)
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