AFC Ajax

As of 18 March 2021[33]

16		Roma	84.000
17		Ajax	81.500
18		Shakhtar Donetsk	79.000

In 1900, when the club was founded, the emblem of Ajax was just a picture of an Ajax player. The crest was slightly altered following the club's promotion to the top division in 1911 to match the club's new outfits. In 1928, the club logo was introduced with the head of the Greek hero Ajax. The logo was once again changed in 1990 into an abstract version of the previous one. The new logo still sports the portrait of Ajax, but drawn with just 11 lines, symbolizing the 11 players of a football team.[38]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to AFC Ajax kits.

Ajax originally played in an all-black uniform with a red sash tied around the players' waists, but that uniform was soon replaced by a red/white striped shirt and black shorts. Red, black and white are the three colours of the flag of Amsterdam. When under manager Jack Kirwan, however, the club earned promotion to the top flight of Dutch football for the first time in 1911 (then the Eerste Klasse or 'First Class', later named the Eredivisie), Ajax were forced to change their colours because Sparta Rotterdam already had exactly the same outfit. Special kits for away fixtures did not exist at the time and according to football association regulations the newcomers had to change their colours if two teams in the same league had identical uniforms. Ajax opted for white shorts and white shirt with a broad, vertical red stripe over chest and back, which still is Ajax's outfit.

AFC Ajax is the only Dutch club with an initial public offering (IPO). The club is registered as a Naamloze vennootschap (N.V.) listed on the stock exchange Euronext Amsterdam, since 17 May 1998. With a launch price of ƒ25,- (Guilders) the club managed to a bring their total revenue up to €54 million (converted) in their first year on the market.[39] After short-lived success, however, the rate dropped, at one point as low as €3.50. Criticism was brought forth that the legal grid for a naamloze vennootschap would not be suitable for a Football club, and that the sports related ambitions would suffer from the new commercial interests of the now listed Ajax. Shares of the company in the year 2008 were valued at approximately €5.90 per share.[40]

In 2008, a Commission under guidance of honorary member Uri Coronel concluded that the IPO was of no value to the club, and that measures should be taken to exit the stock exchange by purchasing back all public shares.[41] Ajax remain on the stock exchange.[42]

2011 AFC Ajax team wearing their home kit by adidas with the AEGON sponsor across the chest, ahead of their UEFA Champions League match against Olympique Lyonnais.

Ajax's shirts have been sponsored by TDK from 1982 to 1991, and by ABN AMRO from 1991 to 2008. AEGON then replaced ABN AMRO as the new head sponsor for a period of seven years.[43] On 1 April 2007, Ajax wore a different sponsor for the match against Heracles Almelo, Florius. Florius is a banking programme launched by ABN AMRO who wanted it to be the shirt sponsor for one match.

The shirts have been manufactured by Le Coq Sportif (1973–1977), Puma (1977–1979),[44] Cor du Buy (1979-1980), Le Coq Sportif (1980–1984),[45] Kappa (1985–1989)[46] and Umbro (1989–2000) in the past, and by Adidas since 2000 (until at least 2025).[47][48]

At the conclusion of the 2013–14 season, Ajax won the Football shirt of the Year award for their black and rose colored away shirt by Adidas. The annual award was presented by Subside Sports, which had previously given the award to Internazionale, Juventus and the Belgium national team. It was Ajax's first time winning the award.[49]

On 7 November 2014, it was announced that Ajax had agreed to a four-and-a-half-year contract worth €8 million annually with Dutch cable operating company Ziggo as the new shirt sponsor for the club.[50] Having extended their contract with AEGON for half a season until December, the club featured Fonds Gehandicaptensport, a charitable fund for handicapped sports on its away shirts for a six-month period before transitioning to Ziggo in 2015.[51]

Jong Ajax (formerly more commonly known as Ajax 2) is the reserve team of AFC Ajax. The team is composed mostly of professional footballers, who are often recent graduates from the highest youth level (Ajax A1) serving their first professional contract as a reserve, or players who are otherwise unable to play in the first team.[54]

Since 1992, Jong Ajax competed in the Beloften Eredivisie, competing against other reserve teams such as Jong PSV, Jong FC Groningen or Jong AZ. They have won the Beloften Eredivisie title a record eight times, as well as the KNVB Reserve Cup three times, making them the most successful reserve squad in the Netherlands. By winning the Beloften Eredivisie title, Jong Ajax were able to qualify for the actual KNVB Cup, even advancing to the semi-finals on three occasions. Their best result in the Dutch Cup was under manager Jan Olde Riekerink in 2001–02, when a semi-final loss to Utrecht in a Penalty shoot-out after extra time, which saw Utrecht advance, and thus preventing an Ajax–Jong Ajax Dutch Cup final.[55]

The 2013–14 season marked the Jupiler League debut of the Ajax reserves' squad, Jong Ajax.[56] Previously playing in the Beloften Eredivisie (a separate league for reserve teams, not included in the Dutch professional or amateur league structure), players were allowed to move around freely between the reserve team and the first team during the season.[57] This is no longer the case as Jong Ajax now registers and fields a separate squad from that of Ajax first team for the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of professional football in the Netherlands. Their home matches are played at Sportpark De Toekomst, except for the occasional match in the Johan Cruyff Arena. Now regarded a semi-professional team in their own respect, the only period in which players are able to move between squads are during the transfer windows, unless the player has made less than 15 appearances for the first team, then he is still eligible to appear in both first team and second team matches during the season.[58] Furthermore, the team is not eligible for promotion to the Eredivisie or to participate in the KNVB Cup. Jong Ajax were joined in the Eerste Divisie by Jong Twente and Jong PSV, reserve teams who have also moved from the Beloften Eredivisie to the Eerste Divisie, in place of VV Katwijk, SC Veendam and AGOVV Apeldoorn, increasing the total number of teams in the Jupiler League from 18 to 20.[59]

Ajax reserve squad Jong Ajax left the Beloften Eredivisie in 2013, having held a 21-year tenure in the reserves league, having also won the league title a record eight times (1994, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2009).[60]

AFC Ajax Vrouwen (English: AFC Ajax Women) are the women's team of AFC Ajax, competing in the women's eredivisie, the highest level of women's football in the Netherlands. Founded on 18 May 2012, the women's team saw Ajax attracting many of the Netherlands top talents, with International players such as Anouk Hoogendijk, Daphne Koster and Petra Hogewoning joining the Amsterdam club in its maiden season in women's professional football.[61] The team won their first piece of silverware when they defeated PSV/FC Eindhoven 2–1 in the final of the KNVB Women's Cup.

AFC Ajax Amateurs, better known as Ajax Zaterdag, is a Dutch amateur football club founded 18 March 1900. It is the amateur team of the professional club AFC Ajax, who play their home matches at the Sportpark De Toekomst training grounds to a capacity of 5,000. The team was promoted from the Eerste Klasse to the Hoofdklasse ahead of the 2011–12 season, the league in which they are currently competing. The team has won the Eerste Klasse title twice, as well as the *KNVB District Cup West I on two occasions as well.[62]

Furthermore, Ajax Zaterdag have also managed to qualify for the KNVB Cup on their own accord on three occasions, namely in 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2021. Even advancing to the second round before bowing out to Vitesse on 24 September 2008.

Ajax HVA (1922–1972) was the baseball team of AFC Ajax founded in 1922, and competed as founding members of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse, the top flight of professional baseball in the Netherlands. Ajax won the national baseball title a total of four times (1924, 1928, 1942, 1948) before the club opted to no longer field a baseball team, and to focus solely on football in 1972.[63] Ajax spent a total of 50 years at the top flight of Baseball in the Netherlands from 1922 to 1972. The dissolution of Ajax baseball club resulted in the players finding a new sponsor in a mustard manufacturing company called Luycks, while merging with the Diemen Giants to become the Luycks Giants, thus replacing both former clubs.[64]

In 2016, Ajax launched an esports team, with Koen Weijland as the club's first signing, making their debut on the Global stage of professional gaming. They have since signed the likes of Dani Hagebeuk, Lev Vinken, Joey Calabro and Bob van Uden, the latter spent his first season on loan to the esports team of Japanese club Sagan Tosu.[65][66][67]

Feyenoord from Rotterdam are Ajax's archrivals. Every year both clubs play the De Klassieker ("The Classic"), a match between the teams from the two largest cities of the Netherlands.[88] During the 1970s, Ajax and Feyenoord were the only two clubs in the Netherlands who were able to clinch national titles, as well as achieve continental and even global success.[89] A meeting between the two clubs became the measure for who was truly the best club in the Netherlands. The Klassieker is the most famous of all the rivalries in the Netherlands and the matches are always sold out.[90] The fixture is seen in the public eye as "the graceful and elegant football of Ajax, against the indomitable fighting spirit of Feyenoord"; the confidence of the capital city versus the blue collar mentality of Rotterdam.[91] Matches are known for their tension and violence, both on and off the pitch. Over the years, several violent incidents have taken place involving rival supporters, leading to the current prohibition of away supporters in both stadiums.[92] The lowest point was reached on 23 March 1997, when supporters of both clubs met on a field near Beverwijk, where Ajax-supporter Carlo Picornie was fatally injured, the incident is commonly referred to as the "Battle of Beverwijk".[93]

PSV are also a rival of Ajax, but in terms of tension and rivalry, these matches are not as loaded as the duels with Feyenoord. The rivalry has existed for some time with PSV and stems from various causes, such as the different interpretations of whether current national and international successes of both clubs correlates and the supposed opposition between the Randstad and the province. The matches between these two teams is commonly referred to as "De Topper" ("The Topper"), and involves the two most trophy-laden sides in Dutch football and is essentially a clash of two competing schools of thought in Dutch football. Historically, PSV compete with a workmanlike ethic, preferring a more robust 4–3–1–2 or 4–2–3–1, typically shunning the frivolous 4–3–3 approach favoured in Amsterdam. While Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff helped to innovate Total Football in the sixties and seventies, a different philosophy was honed in Eindhoven by Kees Rijvers and Guus Hiddink in the late 1970s and '80s.[94] This in turn has created one of the more philosophical rivalries in football, an ideological battleground, which is gradually becoming as heated and intense as the matches Ajax and Feyenoord partake in.[95]

Aside from Feyenoord and PSV, Ajax have several other rivalries, although in most cases the sentiment is mostly felt by the opposition and is more directed towards Ajax, with one of them being Utrecht.[96] Although the rivalry is more felt on the Utrecht side then with Ajax, matchups between the two sides are often quite intense.[97] Both teams have fanatic supporters, and clashes off the pitch are more often the rule than the exception. The same goes for ADO Den Haag, with both supporter groups often getting in conflicts, when ADO-Hooligans set fire to the supporters home of Ajax, and Ajax hooligans subsequently broke into the Supporters home of ADO tensions between the two clubs rose. In 2006, supporters from both clubs were banned from attending away matches for five years due to frequent violent outbreaks and clashes.[98]

Further teams who share a rivalry with Ajax include Twente, Vitesse Arnhem, Groningen and AZ, although the latter is often regarded by Ajax supporters as the club's "little brother".[99] With AZ being from nearby Alkmaar and therefore situated in the same province as Ajax, match-ups between the two sides are commonly known as the "De Noord-Hollandse Derby" ("North Holland Derby") and are often very competitive, intense and loaded fixtures.[100]

Past rivalries include local Amsterdam derbies between Ajax and clubs such as Blauw-Wit, DWS and De Volewijckers (which later merged to become FC Amsterdam in 1972).[101] However, the tension between the local sides lessened as the division of the clubs through playing in different leagues over time became greater. Years of not competing in the same league resulted in less frequent match-ups, until tensions finally settled between the Amsterdam clubs.[102] The last Amsterdam derby to take place in an official league match was when Ajax defeated FC Amsterdam 5–1 on 19 March 1978.[103]

Ajax supporters celebrating the club's 30th Dutch national championship in 2011

The Supporters Club Ajax (Dutch: Supportersvereniging Ajax) is officially the largest supporters club in the Netherlands with 94,000 members.[111] Founded on 7 May 1992, the supporters club organize big monthly events throughout the Netherlands, and particularly around the official Ajax Open Training Day, which attracts thousands of supporters each year.[112] Furthermore, the supporters group is responsible for the Ajax Life website, as well as the fanzine which is issued 20 times a year.[113]

In 2006, the AFCA Supportersclub was introduced as the club's second official supporters' association, through the merger of the Onafhankelijke Fanclub Ajax (OFA) and the Ajax Supporters Delegatie (ASD).[114] The AFCA Supportersclub has a reported 42,000 members, as well as a former member on the Board of Administration of Ajax, in Ronald Pieloor.[115]

The third official supporters club is the Ajax Business Associates (ABA). Founded in 1991 the ABA is the Business club of Ajax. Members occupy the skyboxes in the Stadium and can make use of the clubs' amenities and luxury suites including the ABA club and lounge.[116] The ABA is also responsible for hosting the annual Ajax Business Golf Trophy, an amateur golf tournament where several active and former Ajax players, as well as prominent people and members of the ABA, participate.[117]

This graph displays the average attendance for home matches of Ajax from 1988 to 2018, whereby the difference in capacity of the De Meer Stadion and the Johan Cruyff Arena (est. 1996) is clearly visible.

As of 1 September 2022[125]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  NED Maarten Stekelenburg 2 DF  NED Jurriën Timber 3 DF  NGA Calvin Bassey 4 MF  MEX Edson Álvarez 5 DF  NED Owen Wijndal 6 MF  NED Davy Klaassen (3rd captain) 7 FW  NED Steven Bergwijn 8 MF  NED Kenneth Taylor 9 FW  NED Brian Brobbey 10 MF  SRB Dušan Tadić (captain) 11 FW  ARG Lucas Ocampos (on loan from Sevilla) 13 DF  TUR Ahmetcan Kaplan

No. Pos. Nation Player 15 DF  NED Devyne Rensch 16 GK  NED Jay Gorter 17 DF  NED Daley Blind (vice-captain) 18 FW  ITA Lorenzo Lucca (on loan from Pisa) 19 DF  MEX Jorge Sánchez 20 MF  GHA Mohammed Kudus 21 MF  AUT Florian Grillitsch 22 GK  NED Remko Pasveer 23 FW  NED Steven Berghuis 29 DF  ARG Lisandro Magallán 35 FW  POR Francisco Conceição 39 DF  NED Kik Pierie

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF  DEN Victor Jensen (at Rosenborg until 31 December 2022) — FW  DEN Mohamed Daramy (at Copenhagen until 30 June 2023)

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW  NED Naci Ünüvar (at Trabzonspor until 30 June 2023)

The iconic number 14, retired in 2007 to honor Johan Cruyff

• 14 – Johan Cruyff (Forward, 1964–73, 1981–83). Number retired on 25 April 2007 at Cruyff's 60th birthday celebration match.[126]

[note 1]

Notes:

• Lucky Lynx, is the official team mascot.[128] (2000–present)

For the reserve squad of Ajax see: Jong Ajax.

Executive Board

• Chairman: Frank Eijken
  • Board members: 6 – ( Jan Buskermolen, Ruud Haarms, Wendy Nagel, Cees van Oevelen, Maarten Oldenhof and Marc Stuut)

Frank de Boer led the club to four consecutive national titles during his tenure as coach (2010–2016)

Board of Directors

• General director: Edwin van der Sar
• Financial director: Susan Lenderink
• Marketing director: Menno Geelen
• Director of football: 2 – ( Gerry Hamstra, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar)

Supervisory Board

• Chairman: Leen Meijaard
  • Board members: 4 – ( Annette Mosman, Ernst Ligthart, Peter Mensing, Georgette Schlick)

Edwin van der Sar became the general director for Ajax in 2016

Coaching staff

• Head coach: Alfred Schreuder
• Assistant coach: Matthias Kaltenbach
• Assistant coach: Michael Reiziger
• Member of coaching staff: Richard Witschge
• Goalkeeper coach: Anton Scheutjens

Medical staff

• Team doctor: Bas Peijs
• Team doctor: Don de Winter
• Physiotherapist: Ralph van der Horst
• Physiotherapist: Pim van Dord
• Physiotherapist: Frank van Deursen
• Fitness coach / Recovery trainer: Björn Rekelhof

Accompanying staff

• Team manager: Jan Siemerink
• Players supervisor: Herman Pinkster
• Performance coach: Alessandro Schoenmakers
• Press officer: Miel Brinkhuis

• Netherlands Football League Championship / Eredivisie (36; record):

1917–18, 1918–19, 1930–31, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1946–47, 1956–57, 1959–60, 1965–66, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1976–77, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1984–85, 1989–90, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1997–98, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22

• KNVB Cup (20; record):

1916–17, 1942–43, 1960–61, 1966–67, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1978–79, 1982–83, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1992–93, 1997–98, 1998–99, 2001–02, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2018–19, 2020–21

• Johan Cruyff Shield (9):

1993, 1994, 1995, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2013, 2019

Several of Ajax' international trophies

• European Cup / UEFA Champions League (4; Dutch record):

1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1994–95[129]

• European Cup Winners' Cup (1; Dutch record):

1986–87[129]

• UEFA Cup (1):

1991–92[129]

• Super Competition / UEFA Super Cup (2; Dutch record):

1973, 1995[7] Ajax also won in 1972, however, UEFA only sanctioned the UEFA Super Cup for the first time in 1973 so the 1972 edition was an unofficial one. Played against Rangers, winners of the 1971–72 European Cup Winners' Cup, it actually went ahead as 'a celebration of the Centenary of Rangers F.C.' (see below) because Rangers were serving a one-year ban at the time, imposed by UEFA for the misbehaviour of their fans. That victory meant Ajax had won every tournament (5 in total) they entered that year, a feat Celtic achieved in 1967 (with 6 trophies), Barcelona in 2009 (6 trophies), and Bayern in 2020 (also 6 trophies).

• Intercontinental Cup (2; Dutch record):

1972, 1995[129]

Ajax have won numerous friendly tournaments, unsanctioned by UEFA or FIFA, including the Amsterdam Tournament, Bruges Matins Trophy, Trofeo Santiago Bernabéu, Eusébio Cup, Ted Bates Trophy, Jalkapalloturnaus and Chippie Polar Cup. (For a complete list, see the list of AFC Ajax honours)

• World Soccer World Team of the Year : 1

1995

• France Football European Team of the Year : 4

1969, 1971, 1972, 1973

• Dutch Sports Team of the Year : 5

1968, 1969, 1972, 1987, 1995[130]

• Sports Team of the Year : 1

1990

• Dick van Rijn Trophy : 1

1995

• Amsterdam Sportsteam of the year: 3

2011, 2013, 2014[131]

• ING Fair Play Award : 2

2013, 2014[132][133]

• Fair Play Cup : 1

1995

• FIFA Club of the Century : shared 5th place

20th Century

• kicker Sportmagazin Club of the Century: 2nd place

20th Century

• Best Dutch club after 50 years of professional football : 1

2004[134]

• Football shirt of the Year : Ajax away shirt by adidas

2013–14[135]

• The Four-Four-Two Greatest Club Side Ever : Ajax (1965–1973)

2013[136]

• VVCS Best Pitch of the Year : 1

2012

Below is a table with Ajax's domestic results since the introduction of the Eredivisie in 1956.

Established in 1975 as the Amsterdam 700 Tournament to celebrate 700 years of history in the city.[150] The tournament was hosted annually each summer by Ajax until 1992, when the last edition of the original tournament was played. It returned in 1999 with the backing of the International Event Partnership (IEP).[151] Four teams participated in the competition, played in a league format since 1986.[150] Since its return,[152] the tournament used an unusual point scoring system. As with most league competitions, three points were awarded for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. An additional point, however, was awarded for each goal scored.[153] The system was designed to reward teams that adopted a more attacking style of play.[154] Each entrant played two matches, with the winner being the club that finished at the top of the table.[155] The original competition was held at Het Olympisch Stadion where Ajax played the bigget games until 1996.[156] The Amsterdam Arena (now Johan Cruyff Arena) played host to the event since its return until the last edition was played in 2009. Ajax is the most successful team of the tournament, having won it a record ten times, while Benfica from Portugal were the last team to win the tournament, in 2009.

Established in 2005, the Copa Amsterdam is an international friendly football tournament for Under-19 youth teams, that is organized by Ajax and the Amsterdam city council, which takes place at the Olympic Stadium as part of the annual Amsterdam Sports Weekend, a citywide sponsored initiative to promote 'sports and recreation' within the city of Amsterdam.[157] Each Summer the city of Amsterdam and Ajax invite U-19 teams from various top clubs from around the World to participate in the tournament. Seven teams are invited and play in the competition every year. Over the years, clubs such as Barcelona, Juventus, Chelsea and Real Madrid have had their senior youth teams participate in the tournament.[158] Cruzeiro from Brazil are the most successful club in the history of the tournament, having won it three times in total.

Established in 2010, the AEGON Future Cup is an international friendly tournament for Under-17 youth teams, which is organized by AFC Ajax and their main sponsor, the insurance company AEGON. The tournament is held each year at the Johan Cruyff Arena and at the Sportpark De Toekomst, the team's training ground, which also inspired the name of the competition, since De Toekomst in Dutch means The Future.[159] Every year during the Easter weekend, six U-17 teams are invited to participate in the competition, while the seventh place for the contesters is reserved for the winners of the "Craques Mongeral AEGON Future Cup" in Brazil, the sister competition of the tournament in South America.[160] Youth teams from top clubs such as Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Milan and many more have participated in the competition over the years.[161] Ajax are the most successful club of the tournament, having won the trophy a total of five times.