Ajax Codexery

Sportpark Berg & Bos

Football complex in Apeldoorn, home of AGOVV since 1921.

Sportpark Berg & Bos is a football complex in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, that has served as the home ground of AGOVV since 1921. Located in a wooded area adjacent to Apenheul, the complex includes four football fields and a stadium. In 2021, Voetbal International named it the most beautiful football complex in the Netherlands.

Quick Facts

Location
Apeldoorn, Netherlands
Opened
1921
Renovated
2003; 2016
Expanded
2003
Owner
AGOVV
Architect
Gerrit de Zeeuw
Tenants
AGOVV; KNVB
Capacity
3,250 seats (Stadion Berg & Bos)

Facts from the source article.

Stadion Berg & Bos

A football stadium was built at the sports park for AGOVV's return to professional football in 2003. The professional football attendance record at the stadium was set on September 24, 2009, during a cup match between AGOVV and Ajax, which sold out at 3,500 spectators. Since 2006, the stadium has used artificial turf from Royal Ten Cate NV, approved by UEFA. From 2010 to 2013, it bore the sponsored name Fly Brazil & Desko Stadium. AGOVV had ambitions to promote to the Eredivisie and explored building a new stadium with about 6,000 seats at locations such as Kuipersdijk or the Europaweg, or having the municipality buy back the site. Negotiations fell through in March 2012 due to a price disagreement. On January 8, 2013, the professional branch AGOVV Apeldoorn was declared bankrupt; the amateur side continued playing at the stadium.

Main stand

The main stand, designed in 1924 by city architect Gerrit de Zeeuw, is listed on the municipal monuments list and sits next to the club building 'De Blauwe Drukte', also from the 1920s. Unemployed workers were employed in its construction under a job creation scheme. In July 2012, the Municipality of Apeldoorn ordered the stand closed after the Asian longhorn beetle damaged a load-bearing pole, threatening collapse; a metal emergency construction averted this.

The financially distressed club did not submit a recovery plan, so the municipality closed the stand in December 2012. A thorough renovation in 2016, funded by a municipal subsidy and a crowdfunding campaign—with former player Klaas-Jan Huntelaar calling for support and supporters sponsoring seats for 100 euros—allowed the stand to be put back into use. In 2021, platform Nederlandse Velden voted it the most beautiful main stand in Gelderland.

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