Frank de Boer
Dutch defender and manager, Ajax legend and four-time Eredivisie-winning coach.
Franciscus de Boer (born 15 May 1970) is a Dutch football manager and former player. As a defender, he played mostly for Ajax, where he collected five Eredivisie titles, two KNVB Cups, three Super Cups, a UEFA Super Cup, a UEFA Cup, a UEFA Champions League, and an Intercontinental Cup. He then spent five seasons at Barcelona, winning La Liga in 1998–99, before shorter stints at Galatasaray, Rangers, Al-Rayyan, and Al-Shamal, after which he retired. With 112 caps, he is the third-most capped outfield player for the Netherlands. He captained the national team to the semi-finals of the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000. He is the twin of Ronald de Boer, his teammate at Ajax, Barcelona, Rangers, Al-Rayyan, Al-Shamal, and the Dutch national side.
After retiring, De Boer coached in Ajax’s youth system and served as an assistant to Bert van Marwijk with the Netherlands. In December 2010, he became Ajax’s head coach and won the Eredivisie in his first season. He received the 2013 Rinus Michels Award for Dutch manager of the year after leading Ajax to a third straight league title. The following year, he became the first manager to win four consecutive Eredivisie crowns. He later had brief spells at Inter Milan (2016), Crystal Palace (2017), and Atlanta United (2018–2020). In September 2020, he was appointed head coach of the Netherlands, but left in June 2021 after a disappointing Euro 2020 campaign.
Quick Facts
- Full name
- Franciscus de Boer
- Born
- 15 May 1970
- Birthplace
- Hoorn, Netherlands
- Height
- 1.79 m / 5 ft 10 in
- Position
- Centre-back, left-back
- Total caps
- 519
- Total goals
- 43
Facts from the source article.
Background
De Boer grew up in Grootebroek and started playing football with his brother Ronald at local club De Zouaven, where his father Kees was their coach. He began his career as a left-back at Ajax before switching to centre-back. He won both the 1991–92 UEFA Cup and 1994–95 UEFA Champions League while at Ajax, in addition to five Eredivisie titles and two KNVB Cups. After signing a six-year contract extension with Ajax for the 1998–99 season, he and his twin brother Ronald took successful legal action to have it voided.
In January 1999, Frank and Ronald de Boer signed for Barcelona for £22 million, joining their former Ajax manager Louis van Gaal. After winning the 1998–99 La Liga title, they were unable to repeat their earlier triumphs. In 2000, Van Gaal was sacked and Frank tested positive for nandrolone a year later; he was suspended but reinstated after a successful appeal. De Boer briefly moved to Galatasaray in summer 2003 before joining his brother at Rangers in January 2004.
He made 17 appearances for Rangers, scoring two goals. The De Boer brothers left Rangers after UEFA Euro 2004 to play in Qatar with Al-Rayyan. De Boer announced his retirement in April 2006. He made his international debut in September 1990 against Italy.
He played in the 1994 and 1998 World Cups, and the 1992, 2000 and 2004 European Championships; he missed Euro 1996 due to injury. He is remembered for the 60-yard pass that set up Dennis Bergkamp's goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup quarter-final. During Euro 2000, he missed a penalty in the semi-final against Italy and another in the shootout, leading to elimination. On 29 March 2003, he became the first Dutch male footballer to gain 100 caps. He ended his international career after an injury forced him off in a quarter-final match against Sweden at Euro 2004.
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