Copa Amsterdam
The Copa Amsterdam (known for sponsorship reasons as the Aegon Copa Amsterdam), formerly known as the Gestion Copa Amsterdam, is an annual youth football tournament, organized and hosted by AFC Ajax for under-19 youth teams which takes place at the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam.[1] The tournament has been contested by some of the strongest under-19 teams in football, with FC Barcelona, Chelsea and Cruzeiro amongst the participating clubs.[2] The tournament is named after its main sponsor, the insurance company AEGON and was formerly named after the publishing company Gestion, and is broadcast online in over 59 countries via Eredivisie Live, Eurosport and Fox Sports.[3][4]
 | |
| Founded | 2005 |
|---|---|
| Region | Worldwide |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| Current champions | Ajax (3rd title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Ajax Cruzeiro (3 titles each) |
| Television broadcasters | Eredivisie Live Eurosport Fox Sports |
 2016 Copa Amsterdam | |
History
Established in 2005 as part of the annual Amsterdam Sport Weekend, a citywide sponsored initiative to promote 'sports and recreation' within the city of Amsterdam, the Copa Amsterdam is an international football youth tournament held in the historic Olympic Stadium since 2010.[5] It was originally held at Sportpark Sloten, home of Blauw-Wit Amsterdam from its inception in 2005 up until 2009. Each summer the city of Amsterdam and AFC Ajax invites U-19 teams from various top clubs from around the World to play in the tournament. Seven teams are invited and participate in the competition every year with the ninth edition of the tournament having occurred in 2013. Over the years, clubs such as Barcelona, Juventus, Olympique de Marseille, Real Madrid have had their senior youth teams participate in the tournament.[6]
While hosts Ajax have won the tournament twice (2007, 2011), Cruzeiro from Brazil have won it the most, holding a total of three titles to their name (2006, 2008, 2012). Other teams who have brought home the cup include Panathinaikos (2005), AZ (2009), Chelsea (2010) and Ajax Cape Town (2013).[7] The prizes and awards were handed out by Johan Cruijff in 2009 and 2011, in 2010 it was done by Daley Blind and by Sjaak Swart two years later. Since the 2011 edition, the tournament has been broadcast live on Eredivisie Live on Dutch national television and over the internet with commentary by Leo Driessen, Mark van Rijswijk and Ron de Rijk.[8][9]
The tournament is attended by prominent local football legends such as Frits Barend, Johan Cruijff and Danny Blind, and is frequented by many talent scouts. In accordance with the theme of the annual Amsterdam Sport Weekend however, an amateur team is put together consisting of local youth players, which is then coached by former Ajax players such as Ronald de Boer did with Men United in the 9th Edition of the tournament.[10] In order to promote sport and recreation in the community, and to give young players an opportunity to present themselves at a high competitive level, coming from Amsterdam and the Region. Other teams that were assembled include the AT5 United, an all-star team composed of local Amsterdam talent, as well as FC NH (North Holland) which was an assembled selection of youth talent from the Dutch province of North Holland as a whole, and not limited to Amsterdam.[11]
Board of Advisors
The Board of Advisors for the tournament consists of seven members, namely John Jaakke, Theo van Duivenbode, Jaap de Groot, René Zegerius, Oege Boonstra, Ronald de Boer and Maarten Oldenhof.[12]
Tournament results
2005 (1st Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2006 (2nd Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2007 (3rd Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2008 (4th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2009 (5th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2010 (6th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2011 (7th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2012 (8th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2013 (9th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2014 (10th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2015 (11th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2016 (12th Edition)
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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2017–2018
For the first time in 12 years the tournament was not held in 2017 due to scheduling issues, with the organizational body making an official statement, that the tournament would presume the following year.[14]
2019 (13th Edition)
The following year the tournament was withheld once more. On April 25, 2019, Ajax announced that the tournament would finally presume, and will be held on the 29th and 30th of June at the Olympic Stadium. The invited teams include Ajax Cape Town, Sagan Tosu and Sparta Rotterdam.[15]
(Source)[13]
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Final placement
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Participation
By country
Titles and awards
Number of titles
(Source)[13]
| Nr. | Club | Titles | Winning Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Ajax |
3 | 2007, 2011, 2019 |
 Cruzeiro |
3 | 2006, 2008, 2012 | |
| 3 |  Ajax Cape Town |
2 | 2013, 2016 |
| 4 |  Panathinaikos |
1 | 2005 |
| AZ |
1 | 2009 | |
 Chelsea |
1 | 2010 | |
| Fluminense |
1 | 2014 | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Anderlecht |
1 | 2015 |
Official Hall of Fame
(Source)[13] The players below are part of the Copa Amsterdam Hall of Fame.[16]
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2005
2006
2007 |
2007 (continued) 2008
2009 2011
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2011 (continued)
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See also
References
- "New Copa Stars shine in Amsterdam". Foetbal247. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "AEGON Cope Amsterdam Informatie". copa-amsterdam.nl. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Uitzending 28 May 2011". RTVNH.nl. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Van Hanegem: "Uit spelen tegen FOX-tv"". Ajax1.nl. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Amsterdam Sport Weekend". I Amsterdam. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Copa Amsterdam". I Amsterdam. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Ajax clinch Aegon Copa title". SuperSport. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Aegon Copa Amsterdam". SportsGen. Archived from the original on 24 November 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Young Academy perform well at Copa Amsterdam". Tottenham Hotspur. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Men United: Ronald de Boer vraagt jou". Olde Veste. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Ajax wint Copa, FC NH wordt vijfde". RTV NH. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- "Copa Amsterdam - Advisory Board". Copa-amsterdam.nl. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- "Helden en Winnaars". Copa-amsterdam.nl. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- NextGen Series keert terug in 2018
- NextGen Series terug in het Olympisch Stadion
- "Hall of Fame" (in Dutch). Copa Amsterdam. 2013. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
External links
- Copa Amsterdam Archived 31 October 2020 at the Wayback Machine Official website (in Dutch and English)
- Biggest social media event at Olympic Stadium (Amsterdam)