Frank de Boer

Verified Timeline

Lore & 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.

In Their Own Story

The summer of 2003 marked a turning point as De Boer briefly joined Galatasaray before reuniting with his brother at Rangers in January 2004. He made his debut in a 1–0 victory away at Partick Thistle, but the visit to Scotland was marred by the Scottish League Cup semi-final against Hibernian. In the second appearance for the club, De Boer missed the decisive penalty in the shootout as Rangers lost the match. Despite making only 17 appearances and scoring two goals against Aberdeen and Dundee, the brothers departed after UEFA Euro 2004 to continue their careers in Qatar with Al-Rayyan. Their international career also faced a dramatic end; on 29 March 2003, De Boer became the first Dutch male footballer to earn 100 caps against the Czech Republic. However, an injury forced him out of the semi-final against Portugal at Euro 2004 after being substituted in the quarter-final against Sweden.

Reader's Guide

After retiring, De Boer took up a coaching role at Ajax in 2007, in charge of the youth sector. During the 2010 World Cup, he was assistant to Bert van Marwijk with the Netherlands national team. On 6 December 2010, he was appointed caretaker manager of Ajax. His first game was a Champions League match against Milan at the San Siro, which Ajax won 2–0. He led Ajax to the Eredivisie title in the 2010–11 season, winning on his 41st birthday. In 2013, he received the Rinus Michels Award after leading Ajax to their third successive Eredivisie title. The following year, he became the first manager to win four consecutive Eredivisie titles. He resigned as Ajax manager on 11 May 2016. On 9 August 2016, he signed a three-year contract with Inter Milan. His first competitive match was a 2–0 away loss to Chievo on 21 August. He later had brief spells managing Crystal Palace in 2017 and Atlanta United from 2018 to 2020. De Boer was appointed head coach of the Netherlands national team in September 2020, but left less than a year later in June 2021 after the team's disappointing Euro 2020 campaign.

Did You Know?

• De Boer is the twin brother of Ronald de Boer, with whom he was a teammate at Ajax, Barcelona, Rangers, Al-Rayyan, Al-Shamal and the Netherlands national team.
• He captained the Netherlands to the semi-finals of both the 1998 World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000.
• De Boer won a total of nine Eredivisie championships with Ajax as a player and manager, a record.
• He was the first manager to win four consecutive Eredivisie titles.