FC Twente facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Twente

Full name	Football Club Twente
Nickname(s)	The Tukkers Pride of the East The Reds
Founded	1 July 1965; 59 years ago (1965-07-01)
Ground	De Grolsch Veste
Ground Capacity	30,205
Chairman	Paul van der Kraan
Head coach	Joseph Oosting
League	Eredivisie
2022–23	Eredivisie, 5th of 18
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Football Club Twente (often called FC Twente) is a professional football club from Enschede, a city in the Netherlands. The club started in 1965. It was formed when two older clubs, Sportclub Enschede and Enschedese Boys, joined together. FC Twente has won several important trophies. These include the Eredivisie title (the top Dutch league), the KNVB Cup (the Dutch Cup), and the Johan Cruyff Shield. They also finished second in the UEFA Cup, a big European competition. Since 1998, FC Twente has played its home games at De Grolsch Veste stadium. The club's name comes from the Twente region in the eastern part of the Overijssel province.

History of FC Twente

How the Club Started

FC Twente was created in 1965. It was a merger of two existing football clubs: Sportclub Enschede and Enschedese Boys. One of these clubs, SC Enschede, had even won a Dutch championship back in 1926.

Soon after the merger, FC Twente started to do well. This was thanks to their coach, Kees Rijvers. The team often finished in the top five of the league in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Some of their best players from that time were Epi Drost, Eddy Achterberg, Kick van der Vall, and Theo Pahlplatz.

Exciting European Adventures

The 1973–74 season was very exciting for FC Twente. They almost won the Dutch championship, finishing second after a close match against Feyenoord. This good result earned them a spot in the UEFA Cup (now called the Europa League).

In the 1974–75 UEFA Cup, FC Twente had an amazing run. They reached the final, beating strong teams like Juventus along the way. In the final, they played against German team Borussia Mönchengladbach. Twente lost the final, but reaching it was a huge achievement for the club.

In 1977, FC Twente won their first major trophy. They beat PEC Zwolle 3–0 to win the KNVB Cup.

Ups and Downs in the 80s and 90s

After their success in the 1970s, things became a bit harder for FC Twente. In 1983, the club was relegated to the Eerste Divisie, which is the second division in Dutch football. However, they quickly returned to the top league just one year later.

During the 1990s, the club became stronger again. German coach Hans Meyer helped Twente finish third in the Eredivisie in 1997. On 24 May 2001, FC Twente won the KNVB Cup for the second time. They beat PSV in a thrilling final that went to a penalty shootout.

From Challenges to Champions

Around 2002–03, FC Twente faced big financial problems. The club almost went out of business. But despite these difficulties, the team kept playing well. They reached the KNVB Cup final in 2004 and finished fourth in the league in 2007.

In the 2008–09 season, Steve McClaren, a former England manager, became the new head coach. Under him, Twente finished second in the Eredivisie. They also reached the KNVB Cup final again.

The 2009–10 season was historic for FC Twente. They won their first-ever Eredivisie title! They only lost two games all season. This made Steve McClaren the first English coach to win a Dutch national title since Bobby Robson in 1992. Winning the league meant Twente qualified for the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time.

After winning the league, McClaren left, and Michel Preud'homme became the coach. Twente continued their success by winning the 2010–11 KNVB Cup in May 2011. They came back from 2–0 down to beat Ajax 3–2 in extra time. A week later, Ajax beat Twente in the final league game, stopping Twente from winning another league title.

At the start of the 2011–12 season, under new coach Co Adriaanse, Twente beat Ajax again. This time, they won the Johan Cruijff Shield (a supercup match) 2–1.

Recent Years and Return to Europe

FC Twente faced financial issues again around 2014–15. They had points deducted in the league. In 2018, after a tough season, Twente was relegated to the Eerste Divisie once more. This was their first time outside the top league in 34 years.

However, they didn't stay there long. In the 2018–19 Eerste Divisie season, FC Twente played very well. They went on a 15-game unbeaten run. On 22 April 2019, they secured the title and promotion back to the Eredivisie.

After returning to the top league, the team had some ups and downs. The COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands ended the 2019–20 season early, and Twente finished safely in fourteenth place.

For the 2020–21 season, Ron Jans became the new coach. The club also brought in new players like Queensy Menig and Václav Černý. Young players like Mees Hilgers, Ramiz Zerrouki, and Daan Rots also became important.

In the 2021–22 Eredivisie season, Twente had a strong performance. They finished fourth in the league. This result meant they qualified for the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League. It was their first time back in European competition in eight years!

FC Twente's Home Stadium

The gate at the stadium symbolises the club's history.

FC Twente plays its home games at De Grolsch Veste. This stadium used to be called Arke Stadion. It is owned by the club itself. The stadium is located near the University of Twente. It can hold 30,205 fans. It has a special heating system under the pitch and open areas instead of fences around the stands.

De Grolsch Veste corner from the outside

De Grolsch Veste opened on 22 March 1998. It replaced the old Diekman Stadion. The club decided to build a new stadium because more fans wanted to watch games. Also, the old stadium needed big changes to meet new football rules.

Building the new stadium cost about 33 million Dutch guilders. It took 14 months to build, starting in January 1997. The stadium was designed so it could be made bigger easily in the future.

The first match at De Grolsch Veste was on 10 May 1998. FC Twente won 3–0 against PSV.

When it first opened, the stadium held 13,500 spectators. It was expanded in 2008 to 24,000 seats. After another expansion in 2011, it reached its current capacity of 30,205 seats.

Before every game, the song "You'll Never Walk Alone" is played. All the fans sing along, which creates a great atmosphere.

Sadly, on 7 July 2011, part of the stadium roof collapsed during expansion work. Two people lost their lives in this accident.

Current Team Players

No. Position Player 1 GK Lars Unnerstall 2 DF Mees Hilgers 3 DF Gustaf Lagerbielke (on loan from Celtic) 4 MF Mathias Kjølø 5 DF Bas Kuipers 6 MF Carel Eiting 7 FW Mitchell van Bergen 8 MF Youri Regeer 9 FW Ricky van Wolfswinkel 10 FW Sam Lammers 11 FW Daan Rots 14 MF Sem Steijn 16 GK Issam El Maach

No. Position Player 17 DF Alec Van Hoorenbeeck 18 MF Michel Vlap 19 MF Younes Taha 21 GK Sam Karssies 22 GK Przemysław Tytoń 23 MF Michal Sadílek 24 DF Juliën Mesbahi 28 DF Bart van Rooij 30 FW Sayfallah Ltaief 34 DF Anass Salah-Eddine 38 DF Max Bruns 41 MF Gijs Besselink

Players on Loan

Sometimes players from FC Twente play for other clubs for a while. This is called being "on loan."

No. Position Player DF Alfons Sampsted (at Birmingham City until 30 June 2025)

Club Achievements

FC Twente has won many titles and trophies over the years:

National Trophies

• Eredivisie (Dutch Top League)
  • Winners: 2009–10
  • Runners-up: 1973–74, 2008–09, 2010–11
• Eerste Divisie (Dutch Second League)
  • Winners: 2018–19
• KNVB Cup (Dutch Cup)
  • Winners: 1976–77, 2000–01, 2010–11
  • Runners-up: 1974–75, 1978–79, 2003–04, 2008–09
• Johan Cruyff Shield (Dutch Supercup)
  • Winners: 2010, 2011
  • Runners-up: 2001

International Trophies

• UEFA Cup
  • Runners-up: 1974–75

Club Staff

This table shows some of the important people who work behind the scenes at FC Twente:

Famous Players and Top Scorers

Many talented players have played for FC Twente. Some of them have also played for their national teams. The players listed in bold played for their country while they were at FC Twente.

Blaise Nkufo, with 114 goals, is the club's all-time top scorer.

This table shows the top goal scorers for FC Twente each season:

Season Name Goals 1965–66 Hans Roordink 11 1966–67 Jan Jeuring 10 1967–68 Dick van Dijk 22 1968–69 Dick van Dijk 30 1969–70 Antal Nagy 17 1970–71 Jan Jeuring 17 1971–72 René van de Kerkhof 10 1972–73 Jan Jeuring 13 1973–74 Johan Zuidema 14 1974–75 Johan Zuidema 10 1975–76 Jan Jeuring 20 1976–77 Arnold Mühren 13 1977–78 Ab Gritter 15 1978–79 Ab Gritter 14 1979–80 Hallvar Thoresen 11 1980–81 Hallvar Thoresen 15 1981–82 Manuel Sánchez Torres 15 1982–83 Martin Koopman 7 1983–84 Billy Ashcroft 21 1984–85 Willy Carbo 15 1985–86 Martin Koopman 8 1986–87 Ulrich Wilson 8 1987–88 Piet Keur 17 1988–89 Piet Keur 16 1989–90 Claus Nielsen 14 1990–91 Claus Nielsen 16 1991–92 Youri Mulder 18 1992–93 Prince Polley 11

Season Name Goals 1994–95 Michel Boerebach 12 1993–94 Edwin Vurens 10 1995–96 Arnold Bruggink 11 1996–97 John Bosman 20 1997–98 John Bosman Jan van Halst Antti Sumiala 6 1998–99 Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink 21 1999–00 Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink 19 2000–01 Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink 15 2001–02 Jack de Gier 6 2002–03 Ellery Cairo 7 2003–04 Blaise Nkufo 14 2004–05 Blaise Nkufo 16 2005–06 Blaise Nkufo 12 2006–07 Blaise Nkufo 22 2007–08 Blaise Nkufo 22 2008–09 Blaise Nkufo 16 2009–10 Bryan Ruiz 24 2010–11 Marc Janko 15 2011–12 Luuk de Jong 25 2012–13 Luc Castaignos 13 2013–14 Dušan Tadić 16 2014–15 Hakim Ziyech 11 2015–16 Hakim Ziyech 17 2016–17 Enes Ünal 18 2017–18 Oussama Assaidi 6 2018–19 Aitor Cantalapiedra 16 2019–20 Haris Vuckic 11 2020–21 Danilo Pereira da Silva 17 2021–22 Ricky van Wolfswinkel 16

Women's Team

FC Twente also has a women's football team. It was started in 2007 when the Eredivisie (the new top league for women in the Netherlands) was created. The women's team won the championship in 2010–11. This allowed them to play in the UEFA Women's Champions League in 2011–12.

See also

In Spanish: Football Club Twente para niños

• Dutch football league teams
• Derby of Twente
• Jong FC Twente
• FC Twente in European football

Images for kids

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  This chart shows FC Twente's league performance over the years.