FC Eindhoven

Lore & Background

The club was founded on 16 November 1909 as E.V.V. from the fusion of Sparta and Eindhovia. It changed its name to E.V.V. Eindhoven in 1921 after fusing with Gestel. The club won the KNVB Beker in 1937 and was the last Dutch league champion before the introduction of professional football in 1954. After turning professional, it played in the Eredivisie until 1957, was relegated to the Eerste Divisie, and later to the Tweede Divisie in 1969. It secured promotion back to the Eerste Divisie in 1971 and to the Eredivisie in 1975, but was relegated back to the Eerste Divisie in 1977, where it has remained ever since. In 1997, the professional club became an amateur club, and a new professional club SBV Eindhoven was founded, changing its name to FC Eindhoven in 2002.

In Their Own Story

The rain slicked the streets leading away from the station as Elias tightened his scarf against the evening chill. He had been coming to this match since he was a boy, standing in the same section where his father once stood. The air smelled of damp earth and burning flares drifting from the Kop. As he stepped onto the concourse of Philips Stadion, the roar of thousands of voices washed over him, a low hum that only rises when the local boys take the field. Tonight was not about Europe or trophies; it was about Eindhoven against Eindhoven.

Reader's Guide

FC Eindhoven's former biggest rivalry is with neighbours PSV Eindhoven, against whom they contest the Lichtstad Derby ('City of Light Derby'). However, the clubs have not faced each other in league competition since the 1976–77 season. Nowadays, Helmond Sport are seen as the biggest rivals. The clubs are about 15 km apart and have been playing in the same league for years.

Did You Know?

• FC Eindhoven was founded on 16 November 1909 as E.V.V., from the fusion of Sparta and Eindhovia.
• The club won the KNVB Beker in 1937 and was the last Dutch league champion before professional football was introduced in 1954.
• FC Eindhoven and PSV Eindhoven have not faced each other in league competition since the 1976–77 season.