DENNIS AND THE NETHERLANDS

 

The Netherlands national football team has represented the country sometimes known as Holland in international men's matches since 1905. The men's national team is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB), the governing body for football in the country, which is a part of UEFA, under the jurisdiction of FIFA. The Netherlands played their first international match in Antwerp against Belgium on 30 April 1905, with the players selected by a five-member commission from the Dutch Football Association. After 90 minutes, the score was 1–1. As the match was for the Coupe van den Abeele, it went into extra-time, during which Eddy de Neve scored three, making the score 4–1 for the Netherlands.

An England match against "Holland" was first played in 1935...

Referee	Peco Bauwens
Competition	International Friendly
Venue	Olympisch Stadion, Amsterdam
Attendance	33,000

Date	Match	Result	Score	Competition
18 May 1935	Netherlands v England	W	0-1	International Friendly
27 Nov 1946	England v Netherlands	W	8-2	International Friendly
09 Dec 1964	Netherlands v England	D	1-1	International Friendly
05 Nov 1969	Netherlands v England	W	0-1	International Friendly
14 Jan 1970	England v Netherlands	D	0-0	International Friendly
09 Feb 1977	England v Netherlands	L	0-2	International Friendly
25 May 1982	England v Netherlands	W	2-0	International Friendly
23 Mar 1988	England v Netherlands	D	2-2	International Friendly
15 Jun 1988	England v Netherlands	L	1-3	UEFA European Championship
16 Jun 1990	England v Netherlands	D	0-0	FIFA World Cup
28 Apr 1993	England v Netherlands	D	2-2	FIFA World Cup
13 Oct 1993	Netherlands v England	L	2-0	FIFA World Cup
18 Jun 1996	England v Netherlands	W	4-1	UEFA European Championship
15 Aug 2001	England v Netherlands	L	0-2	International Friendly
13 Feb 2002	Netherlands v England	D	1-1	International Friendly
09 Feb 2005	England v Netherlands	D	0-0	International Friendly
15 Nov 2006	Netherlands v England	D	1-1	International Friendly
12 Aug 2009	Netherlands v England	D	2-2	International Friendly
29 Feb 2012	England v Netherlands	L	2-3	International Friendly
29 Mar 2016	England v Netherlands	L	1-2	International Friendly
23 Mar 2018	Netherlands v England	W	0-1	International Friendly
06 Jun 2019	England v Netherlands	L	1-3	UEFA Nations League

The team is colloquially referred to as Het Nederlands Elftal (The Dutch Eleven) or Oranje, after the House of Orange-Nassau and their distinctive orange jerseys. Informally the team, like the country itself, was referred to as Holland. The fan club is known as Het Oranje Legioen (The Orange Legion).

The Netherlands has competed in eleven FIFA World Cups, appearing in the final three times (in 1974, 1978 and 2010). They finished runners-up on all three occasions. They have also appeared in eleven UEFA European Championships, winning the 1988 tournament in West Germany. Additionally, the team won a bronze medal at the Olympics in 1908, 1912 and 1920. The Netherlands has long-standing football rivalries with neighbours Belgium and Germany.

The 1970s saw the invention of Total Football (Dutch: Totaalvoetbal), pioneered by Feyenoord and Ajax and led by playmaker Johan Cruyff and national team coach Rinus Michels. The Dutch made huge strides, qualifying for two World Cup finals in the decade. The captain of the Brazilian team that won the 1970 FIFA World Cup, Carlos Alberto, went on to say "The only team I’ve seen that did things differently was Holland at the 1974 World Cup in Germany. Since then everything looks more or less the same to me…. Their ‘carousel’ style of play was amazing to watch and marvellous for the game."

The Netherlands teams of 1974, 1988 and 1998 have been described as the greatest national teams of their respective generations and the Netherlands are often regarded as the best team that has never won the World Cup.

Netherlands literally means "lower countries" in reference to its low elevation and flat topography, with 26% situated below sea level. Most of the areas below sea level, known as polders, are the result of land reclamation that began in the 14th Century.