Veendam 1894: Persistence and loyalty.

Words: Han Balk

Images: Han Balk

Just beyond Assen, I pass the exit to Zuidlaren. According to a 19th century nursery rhyme, Berend Botje went there. He never returned... Probably indicative of how the rest of the Netherlands perceived this area.

My destination is a bit further, and I follow the N33 through the flattest part of our flat country.

Mentioning The Henk Nienhuis Stadium, as it has been named since 2019, after the former player and manager who passed away in 2017, will probably leave the average Dutch football supporter clueless.

But if you mention Veendam as a hint; De Langeleegte almost automatically follows.

For years, De Langeleegte was the doom scenario for teams relegated from the Eredivisie. A ground attended by a handful of spectators, far from civilization on a windy and rainy evening.

De Langeleegte translates to “low” in Gronings but for the rest of the Netherlands to emptiness, referring to the small number of spectators.

Veendam is a city with 27,000 inhabitants in the east of the province of Groningen. East Groningen is traditionally associated with communism. The Communist Party Netherlands (CPN) had the majority in various municipalities there.

Nowhere in the Netherlands did the gap between rich and poor seem greater than there, amidst the fields, strawboard, and potato starch factories that dominated the landscape until the 1980s.

Sport has been played at De Langeleegte since 1895, and from 1954 to 2013, it was the stadium of the professional football club SC Veendam.

On March 25, 2013, SC Veendam was declared bankrupt. Investors still guaranteed around 250,000 euros, but that was insufficient to save SC Veendam from demise.

Immediately, 675,000 euros had to be raised. A trifling figure compared to the debts that large clubs currently have.

The bankruptcy really affected the people in Veendam. True Veendam supporters have a strong dislike for FC Groningen.

In fact, this was the second bankruptcy. In 2010, Veendam was also declared bankrupt. However, that bankruptcy was contested in court and eventually nullified.

The period between these two bankruptcies was one of the darkest in Dutch professional football. From early 2010 to April 2013, an average of one Dutch professional football club went bankrupt every ten months.

Meanwhile, the municipality of Veendam has invested over nine million euros in the stadium, and it is now a part of a Sports Park.

In addition to football pitches, you can find a cycling track, a skate park, and a BMX track.

Die-hard Veendam supporters still think the municipality could have saved the club back in 2013.

Professional club SC Veendam originated from Veendam 1894.

Amateurs and professionals formed one association until the professional club became independent in 1974.

Today Veendam 1894 faces Be Quick 1887 from Groningen at the 8th level in district North.

Traditionally, it’s a battle between the workers and the sons of doctors and lawyers from the big city.

Be Quick 1887’s greatest successes date back to well before World War II, with the highlight being the 1919/20 season when the club from the city of Groningen became national champions.

As the floodlights are switched on and the wind picks up towards the end, the real Langeleegte feeling briefly emerges.

Apparently, the players of Be Quick feel it too, as Veendam turns the 0-1 deficit into a 2-1 victory in the final stages.