Willem II (football club)

Established on 12 August 1896 in Tilburg as Tilburgia, the club first played at the Gemeentelijk Sportpark Tilburg and in 1995 relocated to the Koning Willem II Stadion, the ground where they have played ever since. Willem were champions of the Eredivisie in 1916, 1952 and 1955. The Tricolores also won two KNVB Cups in 1944 and 1963 and were also crowned champs of the Eerste Divisie in 1958, 1965 and 2014.

With regard to European competition, Willem II first appeared in UEFA Cup Winners' Cup of 1963 where they lost to Manchester United in the first round by an aggregate score of 7–2. In 1998–99, Willem once again competed in the Cup Winners' Cup and after beating Dinamo Tbilisi of Georgia 6–0 in both legs, Willem then lost to Spanish side Real Betis in the second round, 4–1 on aggregate. A second place in the Eredivisie of 1999 guaranteed the club a UEFA Champions League berth for the first time. At the tournament's group stage, Willem only attained two points in their six group G matches and were thus eliminated. After reaching the KNVB Cup final in 2005 where they lost 4–0 against PSV Eindhoven, Willem II again qualified again for the UEFA Cup, in which they lost to French side AS Monaco in the first round by 5–1 on aggregate.

At the end of the 2010–11 season, Willem II were relegated from the Eredivisie for the first time in 24 years. In the 2011–12 season under new manager Jurgen Streppel Willem II was promoted back to the Eredivisie, but they went right back down the next season after finishing bottom of the table. The club became champions of the Eerste Divisie in the subsequent season and were thus promoted back to the Eredivisie.

In early 2015, journalists at De Volkskrant revealed that Willem II had its matches fixed by an "Asian gambling syndicate", who had paid Willem's players a total sum of €100,000 to lose matches against Ajax and Feyenoord (in October and December 2009). According to the journalists, midfielder Ibrahim Kargbo was the Asians' main contact within the club; Kargbo denies having accepted their money. The Royal Dutch Football Association called the affair "the most concrete case of match fixing in the Netherlands" and took legal action as well as asking UEFA and FIFA to reevaluate previous matches.

In 2019, Willem II reached the KNVB Cup Final for the fourth time in their history. They beat AZ Alkmaar in the semi-finals after a penalty shoot-out, but were defeated by in the final by AFC Ajax.

The fans of Willem II have close links with the fans of English championship club Bristol City. Willem supporters have been known to travel to Bristol, with Bristol City fans heading the other way to Tilburg. At Bristol City's game on 31 October 2009 against Sheffield Wednesday, some Willem II fans were seen in the 'Eastend' of the Ashton Gate Stadium, and songs were sung about Willem II by City fans.

Willem II longest-running and deepest rivalry is with their neighbour, NAC Breda. This rivalry originated in the 1920s. Matches between the two are referred to as the derby of Brabant. The two cities of Breda and Tilburg are just 20 kilometres apart, leading to an intense feeling of a cross-town rivalry, heightened by a feeling that it is city against city with local pride at stake.

Current squad

As of 20 January 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Notable players

The following players were called-up to represent their national teams in international football and received caps during their tenure with Willem II:

• Players in bold actively play for Willem II and for their respective national teams. Years in brackets indicate careerspan with Willem II.

National team players by Confederation

Member associations are listed in order of most to least amount of current and former Willem II players represented Internationally

The following is a list of Willem II players who have competed in international tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup, UEFA European Championship, CONCACAF Gold Cup, Africa Cup of Nations and the Copa América. To this date no Willem II players have participated in the AFC Asian Cup, or the OFC Nations Cup while playing for Willem II.

Below is a table with Willem II's domestic results since the introduction of the Eredivisie in 1956.

• National Football League Championship/Eredivisie
  • Winners (3): 1915–16, 1951–52, 1954–55
  • Runners-up (1): 1998–99
• Eerste Divisie
  • Winners (3): 1956–57, 1964–65, 2013–14
  • Runners-up (1): 1986–87
• KNVB Cup
  • Winners (2): 1943–44, 1962–63
  • Runners-up (2): 2004–05, 2018–19

• Dutch football league teams

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