Wim Suurbier

Wilhelmus Lourens Johannes Suurbier (16 January 1945 – 12 July 2020) was a Dutch professional footballer who played as a right back. He was a key figure for both the Netherlands national team and AFC Ajax during the 1970s.

Born in Eindhoven, Suurbier moved to Amsterdam as a child. He made his Ajax debut at age 19 and spent 13 years with the club, playing over 500 official matches and earning a place in the Club van 100. Known for his speed and endurance, he was a regular in the "total football" Ajax side—often called the "Twelve Apostles"—led by Johan Cruijff, which won three consecutive European Cups. After leaving Ajax in 1977, he played one season with FC Schalke 04. In 1979, he joined the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League, then moved to the San Jose Earthquakes for 1982. When the team became the Golden Bay Earthquakes and entered the Major Indoor Soccer League that fall, Suurbier retired as a player and became an assistant coach. He later returned to playing as a player-coach for the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the American Indoor Soccer Association.

Internationally, Suurbier earned 60 caps and scored three goals for the Netherlands from 1966 to 1978. He played in the 1974 and 1978 World Cups, both of which the Dutch finished as runners-up, and also featured in the 1976 UEFA European Championship.

After his playing career, Suurbier worked as an assistant coach for the Golden Bay Earthquakes in 1983. He became head coach of the Tulsa Roughnecks in 1984, leading them to a 10–14 record. In 1986, he coached the Los Angeles Heat in the Western Soccer League, then later that year took over the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the American Indoor Soccer Association. In November 1987, he was named head coach of the newly formed Fort Lauderdale Strikers, who reached the American Soccer League championship in 1988.

He resigned in January 1989 and became head coach of the Miami Sharks the following month, but was fired after a 2–3 start. In 1994, he coached the St. Petersburg Kickers. In 1999, he joined Al Etehad in Qatar as an assistant to René Meulensteen, winning the Arab Cup and H.H. Apparent Cup. The next season, they moved to Al Sadd and won the Emir Cup.

From 2001 to 2002, Suurbier worked as an assistant for Heerenveen’s U-20 squad. In 2017, he served as a mentor to Meulensteen during the Kerala Blasters’ preseason in Spain.

Suurbier married Maya Verkaart in 1967; they divorced in the 1980s and had one daughter. While playing in the United States, he befriended George Best and described Best’s lifestyle as "a bit boring". He was known for his humor and practical jokes, notably at the 1974 World Cup when he and Ruud Krol (nicknamed Snabbel and Babbel) constantly teased Ruud Geels. In May 2020, Suurbier was hospitalized in intensive care after a major intracerebral haemorrhage. He died on 12 July 2020.