The club was formed in 1965 as a merger of two professional clubs Sportclub Enschede and the Enschedese Boys. Although the current club has never won the Dutch championship, SC Enschede did, in 1926.
The first successes of the club started just after the merger of 1965, under coach Kees Rijvers. Twente finished 3rd in 1969, 4th in 1970, 5th in 1971, 3rd in 1972 and once again 3rd in 1973. The team's key figures were local heroes, such as Epi Drost, Eddy Achterberg, Kick van der Vall and Theo Pahlplatz. Their finest Eredivisie season was 1973-1974, in which Twente battled for the Dutch championship with Feyenoord. A head-to-head confrontation in the very last game of the season, in Rotterdam, had to bring the decision. Feyenoord were slightly luckier: 3-2. A second slot and a UEFA Cup ticket -- that was all for FC Twente.
However, the Tukkers (as people from Twente are generally called) almost made the very most out of that UEFA Cup ticket. After beating Juventus in the semi-finals, FC Twente lost to German side Borussia Mönchengladbach in the finals.
Things went downhill for Twente after that, and the club was relegated to the Eerste Divisie in 1982. Twente returned to the top flight a year later, but the club soon became known for their amazing number of 1-1 and 0-0 draws. Their new reputation 'boring Twente' overshadowed the fact that the club kept qualifying for European football on a fairly regular basis: five times since 1985.
Re-establishment followed in the 1990s. German coach Hans Meyer led Twente to the third slot in the Eredivisie of 1997 and to the third round of the UEFA Cup the next season. On May 24 2001, Twente clinched the KNVB Cup, beating PSV in the final after being 3-1 down in the penalty shoot-out.
The season thereafter Twente crashed out of the cup against the teenagers of Ajax's second team, results in the league were poor and the hard core Twente fans Ultras Vak-P went on a rampage at the club's brand-new Arke Stadion out of frustration. The club's mother corporation (FC Twente '65) was declared bankrupt in the 2002-03 season, almost leading to the end of the club's existence. The club survived and made it to another KNVB Cup final in 2004 and struck back with a fantastic Eredivisie season in 2006-07. In the season 2007-08, FC Twente placed fourth and won the play-offs for a ticket to the Champions League Qualifiers by defeating Ajax in the play-off finals.
On 20th June 2008, Twente appointed former England boss Steve McClaren as their new manager.
Stadium
The Grolsch Veste, formerly named Arke Stadion, is the official stadium of FC Twente. It is located in Enschede, the Netherlands at the Business & Science Park, near the University of Twente. It has a spectator capacity of 13,250 with a standard pitch heating system and has a promenade instead of fences around the stands. The stadium is currently being reconstructed and will be reopened at the start of next season with an increased capacity of 24,353.
The Grolsch Veste replaced the old Diekman Stadion as Twente's home ground on 22 March 1998. Plans have been afoot to expand and to renovate the old and now demolished Diekman stadium, however, with a growing fan capacity and with arguments that the location of the Diekman stadium was not strategic enough, the idea was conceived to build a new arena for the Twente fans. The Diekman ground had also faced problems with its seating plans as a result of the FIFA regulations which imposes a necessity to construct a seating tribune behind each goal post. Fans of the club seldom use the official name but refer to the stadium as 'Epi Drost Stadium' after all-time club hero Epi Drost.
The cost of the construction was estimated to be around 33 million guilders and took fourteen months to complete, with its foundation stone having been laid on 31 January 1997. Due to the tight budget available, the layout of the stadium was constructed in such that future expansions may be made possible without the necessity to tear down entire tribunes.
The first match played at the stadium was a historic 3-0 victory by the home team against PSV on 10 May 1998 in an Eredivisie match.
The famous You'll Never Walk Alone recording by musicians Gerry & The Pacemakers is loudly sung along in the whole stadium before every kick-off.
In 2006 plans have been unfolded to increase the stadium capacity to 24,353 seats. This expansion is expected to be ready in September 2008. FC Twente is also considering to expand to 40,000 seats in 2011.
Players
Current squad
As of July 9th, 2008.Out on loan
Notable players
- See also: FC Twente players
- Eddy Achterberg
- Billy Ashcroft
- Berthil ter Avest
- Kennedy Bakircioglü
- Evert Bleuming
- Ronald de Boer
- Michel Boerebach
- Scott Booth
- Jaap Bos
- Sander Boschker
- John Bosman
- Paul Bosvelt
- Theo ten Caat
- Ellery Cairo
- Willy Carbo
- Dick van Dijk
- Issy ten Donkelaar
- Epi Drost
- Karim El Ahmadi
- Orlando Engelaar
- Giorgi Gakhokidze
- André van Gerven
- Ab Gritter
- Spira Grujić
- Erik ten Hag
- Jan van Halst
- Gene Hanssen
- Jeroen Heubach
- Nico-Jan Hoogma
- Pieter Huistra
- Benno Huve
- Kees van Ierssel
- Jan Jeuring
- Collins John
- Martin Jol
- André Karnebeek
- René van de Kerkhof
- Willy van de Kerkhof
- Piet Keur
- Hans de Koning
- Martin Koopman
- Blaise Kufo
- Mika Lipponen
- Rob McKinnon
- Mitar Mrkela
- Arnold Mühren
- Youri Mulder
- Antal Nagy
- Claus Nielsen
- Peter Niemeyer
- René Notten
- Arthur Numan
- Kalle Oranen
- Niels Oude Kamphuis
- Rahim Ouédraogo
- Niels Overweg
- Theo Pahlplatz
- André Paus
- Marcel Peeper
- Johan Plageman
- Prince Polley
- Helmut Rahn
- Ferdi Rohde
- Fred Rutten
- Manuel Sanchez Torres
- Andy Scharmin
- Piet Schrijvers
- Theo Snelders
- Jan Sørensen
- Frans Thijssen
- Hallvar Thoresen
- Andy van der Meyde
- Kick van der Vall
- Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink
- Willem de Vries
- Rob Wielaert
- Piet Wildschut
- Luke Wilkshire
- Ramon Zomer
- Clemens Zwijnenberg
Topscorers by season
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%" !style="background: #DD0000;" align=center|Season !style="background: #DD0000;" width=70%|Name !style="background: #DD0000;" align=center|Goals |- |align=center|1965/1966 | Hans Roordink |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1966/1967 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1967/1968 | Dick van Dijk |align=center|22 |- |align=center|1968/1969 | Dick van Dijk |align=center|30 |- |align=center|1969/1970 | Antal Nagy |align=center|17 |- |align=center|1970/1971 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|17 |- |align=center|1971/1972 | René van de Kerkhof |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1972/1973 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|13 |- |align=center|1973/1974 | Johan Zuidema |align=center|14 |- |align=center|1974/1975 | Johan Zuidema |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1975/1976 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|20 |- |align=center|1976/1977 | Arnold Mühren |align=center|13 |- |align=center|1977/1978 | Ab Gritter |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1978/1979 | Ab Gritter |align=center|14 |- |align=center|1979/1980 | Hallvar Thoresen |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1980/1981 | Hallvar Thoresen |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1981/1982 | Manuel Sanchez Torres |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1982/1983 | Martin Koopman |align=center|7 |- |align=center|1983/1984 | Billy Ashcroft |align=center|21 |- |align=center|1984/1985 | Willy Carbo |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1985/1986 | Martin Koopman |align=center|8 |- |align=center|1986/1987 | Ulrich Wilson |align=center|8 |- |align=center|1987/1988 | Piet Keur |align=center|17 |- |align=center|1988/1989 | Piet Keur |align=center|16 |- |align=center|1989/1990 | Claus Nielsen |align=center|14 |- |align=center|1990/1991 | Claus Nielsen |align=center|16 |- |align=center|1991/1992 | Youri Mulder |align=center|18 |- |align=center|1992/1993 | Prince Polley |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1993/1994 | Edwin Vurens |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1994/1995 | Michel Boerebach |align=center|12 |- |align=center|1995/1996 | Arnold Bruggink |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1996/1997 | John Bosman |align=center|20 |- |align=center|1997/1998 | John Bosman / Jan van Halst / Antti Sumiala |align=center|6 |- |align=center|1998/1999 | Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink |align=center|21 |- |align=center|1999/2000 | Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink |align=center|19 |- |align=center|2000/2001 | Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink |align=center|15 |- |align=center|2001/2002 | Jack de Gier |align=center|6 |- |align=center|2002/2003 | Ellery Cairo |align=center|7 |- |align=center|2003/2004 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|14 |- |align=center|2004/2005 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|16 |- |align=center|2005/2006 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|12 |- |align=center|2006/2007 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|22 |- |align=center|2007/2008 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|22 |-Head coaches
- 1965-1966 : Friedrich Donenfeld
- 1966-1972 : Kees Rijvers
- 1972-1979 : Spitz Kohn
- 1980-1981 : Hennie Hollink
- 1981-1982 : Rob Groener
- 1982-1983 : Spitz Kohn
- 1983-1986 : Fritz Korbach
- 1986-1992 : Theo Vonk
- 1992-1994 : Rob Baan
- 1994-1995 : Issy ten Donkelaar
- 1996-1999 : Hans Meyer
- 1999-2001 : Fred Rutten
- 2001-2002 : John van 't Schip
- 2002-2004 : René Vandereycken
- 2004-2006 : Rini Coolen
- 2006-2006 : Jan van Staa (interim)
- 2006-2008 : Fred Rutten
- 2008-current: Steve McClaren
Honours
National
- Eredivisie
- Winners (1): 1926 (as Sportclub Enschede)
- Runners-up (2): 1974, 2008
- KNVB Cup
- Winners (2): 1977, 2001
- Runners-up (3): 1975, 1979, 2004
- Johan Cruijff Shield
- Runners-up (1): 2001
International
- UEFA Cup
- Runners-up (1): 1975
- UEFA Intertoto Cup
- Winners (1): 2006
Sponsors
See also
References
External links
Official- FCTwente.nl Official website of FC Twente
- Eredivisie.nl Official website Dutch Eredivisie General fan
- FC Twente Online
- FC Twente Online English Section
- Vak-P
- Madness Vak D
- FCT Riessen
- Twentefans News
- Football-Lineups.com / FC Twente
- VI / FC Twente
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Last updated on Sunday July 20, 2008 at 13:48:00 PDT (GMT -0700)
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The club was formed in 1965 as a merger of two professional clubs Sportclub Enschede and the Enschedese Boys. Although the current club has never won the Dutch championship, SC Enschede did, in 1926.
The first successes of the club started just after the merger of 1965, under coach Kees Rijvers. Twente finished 3rd in 1969, 4th in 1970, 5th in 1971, 3rd in 1972 and once again 3rd in 1973. The team's key figures were local heroes, such as Epi Drost, Eddy Achterberg, Kick van der Vall and Theo Pahlplatz. Their finest Eredivisie season was 1973-1974, in which Twente battled for the Dutch championship with Feyenoord. A head-to-head confrontation in the very last game of the season, in Rotterdam, had to bring the decision. Feyenoord were slightly luckier: 3-2. A second slot and a UEFA Cup ticket -- that was all for FC Twente.
However, the Tukkers (as people from Twente are generally called) almost made the very most out of that UEFA Cup ticket. After beating Juventus in the semi-finals, FC Twente lost to German side Borussia Mönchengladbach in the finals.
Things went downhill for Twente after that, and the club was relegated to the Eerste Divisie in 1982. Twente returned to the top flight a year later, but the club soon became known for their amazing number of 1-1 and 0-0 draws. Their new reputation 'boring Twente' overshadowed the fact that the club kept qualifying for European football on a fairly regular basis: five times since 1985.
Re-establishment followed in the 1990s. German coach Hans Meyer led Twente to the third slot in the Eredivisie of 1997 and to the third round of the UEFA Cup the next season. On May 24 2001, Twente clinched the KNVB Cup, beating PSV in the final after being 3-1 down in the penalty shoot-out.
The season thereafter Twente crashed out of the cup against the teenagers of Ajax's second team, results in the league were poor and the hard core Twente fans Ultras Vak-P went on a rampage at the club's brand-new Arke Stadion out of frustration. The club's mother corporation (FC Twente '65) was declared bankrupt in the 2002-03 season, almost leading to the end of the club's existence. The club survived and made it to another KNVB Cup final in 2004 and struck back with a fantastic Eredivisie season in 2006-07. In the season 2007-08, FC Twente placed fourth and won the play-offs for a ticket to the Champions League Qualifiers by defeating Ajax in the play-off finals.
On 20th June 2008, Twente appointed former England boss Steve McClaren as their new manager.
Stadium
The Grolsch Veste, formerly named Arke Stadion, is the official stadium of FC Twente. It is located in Enschede, the Netherlands at the Business & Science Park, near the University of Twente. It has a spectator capacity of 13,250 with a standard pitch heating system and has a promenade instead of fences around the stands. The stadium is currently being reconstructed and will be reopened at the start of next season with an increased capacity of 24,353.
The Grolsch Veste replaced the old Diekman Stadion as Twente's home ground on 22 March 1998. Plans have been afoot to expand and to renovate the old and now demolished Diekman stadium, however, with a growing fan capacity and with arguments that the location of the Diekman stadium was not strategic enough, the idea was conceived to build a new arena for the Twente fans. The Diekman ground had also faced problems with its seating plans as a result of the FIFA regulations which imposes a necessity to construct a seating tribune behind each goal post. Fans of the club seldom use the official name but refer to the stadium as 'Epi Drost Stadium' after all-time club hero Epi Drost.
The cost of the construction was estimated to be around 33 million guilders and took fourteen months to complete, with its foundation stone having been laid on 31 January 1997. Due to the tight budget available, the layout of the stadium was constructed in such that future expansions may be made possible without the necessity to tear down entire tribunes.
The first match played at the stadium was a historic 3-0 victory by the home team against PSV on 10 May 1998 in an Eredivisie match.
The famous You'll Never Walk Alone recording by musicians Gerry & The Pacemakers is loudly sung along in the whole stadium before every kick-off.
In 2006 plans have been unfolded to increase the stadium capacity to 24,353 seats. This expansion is expected to be ready in September 2008. FC Twente is also considering to expand to 40,000 seats in 2011.
Players
Current squad
As of July 9th, 2008.Out on loan
Notable players
- See also: FC Twente players
- Eddy Achterberg
- Billy Ashcroft
- Berthil ter Avest
- Kennedy Bakircioglü
- Evert Bleuming
- Ronald de Boer
- Michel Boerebach
- Scott Booth
- Jaap Bos
- Sander Boschker
- John Bosman
- Paul Bosvelt
- Theo ten Caat
- Ellery Cairo
- Willy Carbo
- Dick van Dijk
- Issy ten Donkelaar
- Epi Drost
- Karim El Ahmadi
- Orlando Engelaar
- Giorgi Gakhokidze
- André van Gerven
- Ab Gritter
- Spira Grujić
- Erik ten Hag
- Jan van Halst
- Gene Hanssen
- Jeroen Heubach
- Nico-Jan Hoogma
- Pieter Huistra
- Benno Huve
- Kees van Ierssel
- Jan Jeuring
- Collins John
- Martin Jol
- André Karnebeek
- René van de Kerkhof
- Willy van de Kerkhof
- Piet Keur
- Hans de Koning
- Martin Koopman
- Blaise Kufo
- Mika Lipponen
- Rob McKinnon
- Mitar Mrkela
- Arnold Mühren
- Youri Mulder
- Antal Nagy
- Claus Nielsen
- Peter Niemeyer
- René Notten
- Arthur Numan
- Kalle Oranen
- Niels Oude Kamphuis
- Rahim Ouédraogo
- Niels Overweg
- Theo Pahlplatz
- André Paus
- Marcel Peeper
- Johan Plageman
- Prince Polley
- Helmut Rahn
- Ferdi Rohde
- Fred Rutten
- Manuel Sanchez Torres
- Andy Scharmin
- Piet Schrijvers
- Theo Snelders
- Jan Sørensen
- Frans Thijssen
- Hallvar Thoresen
- Andy van der Meyde
- Kick van der Vall
- Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink
- Willem de Vries
- Rob Wielaert
- Piet Wildschut
- Luke Wilkshire
- Ramon Zomer
- Clemens Zwijnenberg
Topscorers by season
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%" !style="background: #DD0000;" align=center|Season !style="background: #DD0000;" width=70%|Name !style="background: #DD0000;" align=center|Goals |- |align=center|1965/1966 | Hans Roordink |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1966/1967 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1967/1968 | Dick van Dijk |align=center|22 |- |align=center|1968/1969 | Dick van Dijk |align=center|30 |- |align=center|1969/1970 | Antal Nagy |align=center|17 |- |align=center|1970/1971 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|17 |- |align=center|1971/1972 | René van de Kerkhof |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1972/1973 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|13 |- |align=center|1973/1974 | Johan Zuidema |align=center|14 |- |align=center|1974/1975 | Johan Zuidema |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1975/1976 | Jan Jeuring |align=center|20 |- |align=center|1976/1977 | Arnold Mühren |align=center|13 |- |align=center|1977/1978 | Ab Gritter |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1978/1979 | Ab Gritter |align=center|14 |- |align=center|1979/1980 | Hallvar Thoresen |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1980/1981 | Hallvar Thoresen |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1981/1982 | Manuel Sanchez Torres |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1982/1983 | Martin Koopman |align=center|7 |- |align=center|1983/1984 | Billy Ashcroft |align=center|21 |- |align=center|1984/1985 | Willy Carbo |align=center|15 |- |align=center|1985/1986 | Martin Koopman |align=center|8 |- |align=center|1986/1987 | Ulrich Wilson |align=center|8 |- |align=center|1987/1988 | Piet Keur |align=center|17 |- |align=center|1988/1989 | Piet Keur |align=center|16 |- |align=center|1989/1990 | Claus Nielsen |align=center|14 |- |align=center|1990/1991 | Claus Nielsen |align=center|16 |- |align=center|1991/1992 | Youri Mulder |align=center|18 |- |align=center|1992/1993 | Prince Polley |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1993/1994 | Edwin Vurens |align=center|10 |- |align=center|1994/1995 | Michel Boerebach |align=center|12 |- |align=center|1995/1996 | Arnold Bruggink |align=center|11 |- |align=center|1996/1997 | John Bosman |align=center|20 |- |align=center|1997/1998 | John Bosman / Jan van Halst / Antti Sumiala |align=center|6 |- |align=center|1998/1999 | Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink |align=center|21 |- |align=center|1999/2000 | Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink |align=center|19 |- |align=center|2000/2001 | Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink |align=center|15 |- |align=center|2001/2002 | Jack de Gier |align=center|6 |- |align=center|2002/2003 | Ellery Cairo |align=center|7 |- |align=center|2003/2004 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|14 |- |align=center|2004/2005 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|16 |- |align=center|2005/2006 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|12 |- |align=center|2006/2007 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|22 |- |align=center|2007/2008 | Blaise Kufo |align=center|22 |-Head coaches
- 1965-1966 : Friedrich Donenfeld
- 1966-1972 : Kees Rijvers
- 1972-1979 : Spitz Kohn
- 1980-1981 : Hennie Hollink
- 1981-1982 : Rob Groener
- 1982-1983 : Spitz Kohn
- 1983-1986 : Fritz Korbach
- 1986-1992 : Theo Vonk
- 1992-1994 : Rob Baan
- 1994-1995 : Issy ten Donkelaar
- 1996-1999 : Hans Meyer
- 1999-2001 : Fred Rutten
- 2001-2002 : John van 't Schip
- 2002-2004 : René Vandereycken
- 2004-2006 : Rini Coolen
- 2006-2006 : Jan van Staa (interim)
- 2006-2008 : Fred Rutten
- 2008-current: Steve McClaren
Honours
National
- Eredivisie
- Winners (1): 1926 (as Sportclub Enschede)
- Runners-up (2): 1974, 2008
- KNVB Cup
- Winners (2): 1977, 2001
- Runners-up (3): 1975, 1979, 2004
- Johan Cruijff Shield
- Runners-up (1): 2001
International
- UEFA Cup
- Runners-up (1): 1975
- UEFA Intertoto Cup
- Winners (1): 2006
Sponsors
See also
References
External links
Official- FCTwente.nl Official website of FC Twente
- Eredivisie.nl Official website Dutch Eredivisie General fan
- FC Twente Online
- FC Twente Online English Section
- Vak-P
- Madness Vak D
- FCT Riessen
- Twentefans News
- Football-Lineups.com / FC Twente
- VI / FC Twente
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