Netherlands women's national football team
The Netherlands women's national football team (Dutch: Nederlands vrouwenvoetbalelftal) represents the Netherlands in international women's football, and is directed by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB), which is a member of UEFA and FIFA.
| Nickname(s) | Oranje (Orange) Leeuwinnen (Lionesses)[1] |
|---|---|
| Association | Royal Dutch Football Association (Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbalbond) |
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) |
| Head coach | Andries Jonker |
| Captain | Sherida Spitse |
| Most caps | Sherida Spitse (227) |
| Top scorer | Vivianne Miedema (95) |
| FIFA code | NED |
| FIFA ranking | |
| Current | 7 (15 December 2023)[2] |
| Highest | 3[2] (July – December 2019; April 2021) |
| Lowest | 20[2] (June – September 2008) |
| First international | |
| (unofficial) West Germany 2–1 Netherlands (Essen, Germany; 23 September 1956)[3][4] (FIFA recognised) France 4–0 Netherlands (Hazebrouck, France; 17 April 1971)[5] | |
| Biggest win | |
| Netherlands 12–0 Israel (Zaandam, Netherlands; 22 August 1977) Netherlands 13–1 Macedonia (Zwolle, Netherlands; 29 October 2009) Netherlands 12–0 Cyprus (Groningen, Netherlands; 8 April 2022)[6] | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Sweden 7–0 Netherlands (Borås, Sweden; 26 September 1981) | |
| World Cup | |
| Appearances | 3 (first in 2015) |
| Best result | Runners-up (2019) |
| Olympic Games | |
| Appearances | 1 (first in 2020) |
| Best result | Quarter-finals (2020) |
| European Championship | |
| Appearances | 4 (first in 2009) |
| Best result | Winners (2017) |
In 1971, the team played the first women's international football match recognized by FIFA against France.[7] They played at the final tournament of the UEFA Women's Championship four times and were champions in 2017 as hosts. They qualified for the World Cup three times, reaching the final of the 2019 edition of the World Cup, losing 2–0 against the United States. The result of the 2019 World Cup meant that the Netherlands team qualified for 2020 Olympics where they lost in the quarter-finals.
The Netherlands was one of numerous countries where women's football was banned for a long time, and received scepticism afterwards. The team grew in popularity during and after their surprise victory on home soil at the 2017 Euro's.
The nicknames for the team are Oranje (Orange) and Leeuwinnen (Lionesses).[1] The Dutch women's team logo features a lioness making it different from the men's team logo, which sports a male lion. Andries Jonker has been head coach since the conclusion of the UEFA Women's Euro 2022.
History edit
On 17 April 1971, the Dutch team played the first women's international football match recognized by FIFA against France.[7] The match took place in Hazebrouck, France and resulted in a 4–0 defeat for the Netherlands, Jocelyne Ratignier and Marie-Claire Caron-Harant scoring.[8]
In 1980s and 1990s, the team failed to qualify for the final tournaments of UEFA's European Championship and later also for the FIFA's World Championship.[8] The Royal Dutch Football Association began major investments into women's football in the 2000s, culminating in the establishment of the Women's Eredivisie in 2007 (which was merged with the Belgian league in 2012).[9][10] This resulted in the team qualifying for a major tournament for the first time at the UEFA Women's Euro 2009. They finished in third place, together with Norway, behind second placed England and winners Germany (first place).[11] The team again qualified for the UEFA Women's Euro 2013, but did not advance after the group stage.[12]
The team qualified for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup and reached thirteenth place, losing their first match in the knockout stage to Japan.[13]
In 2017, the Netherlands won their first major women's trophy, ending Germany's seemingly unbeatable reign over the UEFA Women's Championship and surprising friend and foe alike by winning the tournament on home soil, beating Denmark 4–2 in the final.[14] The successful campaign in which oranje managed to win all of their matches highly contributed to the popularity of women's football in the Netherlands.[15]
In 2018, the Netherlands finished second in their UEFA Qualifying Group behind Norway. Therefore, they had to go through the UEFA play-off in order to qualify for the 2019 World Cup. Switzerland, Belgium and Denmark were the other teams in the play-off.[16] The Netherlands beat Denmark 4–1 on aggregate in the play-off semi-finals and repeated that result against Switzerland over two legs in the play-off final to qualify.[17] In the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, the Netherlands had another strong performance, reaching the final before losing 2–0 to the United States.
They qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics thanks to their position at the 2019 World Cup where they finished among the 3 best European teams. The Netherlands passed the 1st round at their first Olympic participation, finishing at the top of their group thanks to 2 large victories (10–3 against Zambia and 8–2 against China) and a draw (3–3 against Brazil), displaying an attractive offensive game but a certain defensive frailty (8 goals conceded in the group stages). However, their journey ended in the quarter-finals against the United States, an opponent who had already played the role of tormentor of the Oranje in the final of the French World Cup two years earlier, losing in penalty kicks (2–2, 2 pts to 4). The Dutch will have regrets, Lieke Martens having missed a decisive penalty in the 81st minute of the game when the score was tied 2–2.
Coach Sarina Wiegman left the team after the Olympics and was replaced by Englishman Mark Parsons. The Netherlands reached UEFA Women's Euro 2022 in England with a perfect record of ten victories in qualification. In England, the Netherlands passed the group stage thanks to two victories over Switzerland and Portugal. A draw against Sweden however meant the team had to face France in the quarterfinals. Although they only lost in extra time, they were thoroughly outplayed and it was decided to part ways with Parsons.
Andries Jonker took over coaching responsibilities and was immediately faced with a must win game versus Iceland if the Netherlands wanted to avoid the play-offs for the 2023 World Cup. In a tense game Esmee Brugts scored the desperately needed goal only in stoppage time and the Netherlands qualified for their third World Cup.
At the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, Netherlands were in Group E along with USA, Portugal and Vietnam.[18] It started with a 1-0 win over Portugal, followed this with a 1-1 draw with USA and finished with a 7-0 victory over Vietnam to top the group.
Team image edit
Nicknames edit
The Netherlands women's national football team is known or nicknamed as both the "Leeuwinnen" (Lionesses) and "Oranje" (Orange).
Results and fixtures edit
The following is a list of matches in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.[19]
- Legend
Win Draw Lose Void or Postponed Fixture
2023 edit
| 17 February Friendly | Netherlands | 1–2 | Austria | Paola, Malta |
| 18:00 |
| Stadium: Hibernians Stadium |
| 21 February Friendly | Netherlands | 4–0 | Austria | Ta' Qali, Malta |
| 18:00 |
| Stadium: National Stadium, Ta' Qali |
| 7 April Friendly | Netherlands | 0–1 | Germany | Sittard, Netherlands |
| 20:00 | Report |
| Stadium: Fortuna Sittard Stadion |
| 11 April Friendly | Netherlands | 4–1 | Poland | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| 20:00 |
| Report |
| Stadium: Sparta Stadion Het Kasteel |
| 2 July Friendly | Netherlands | 5–0 | Belgium | Kerkrade, Netherlands |
| 20:45 | Report | Stadium: Parkstad Limburg Stadion |
| 23 July 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup GS | Netherlands | 1–0 | Portugal | Dunedin, New Zealand |
| 19:30 UTC+12 | van der Gragt 13' | Report (FIFA) | Stadium: Forsyth Barr Stadium Attendance: 11,991 Referee: Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine) |
| 27 July 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup GS | United States | 1–1 | Netherlands | Wellington, New Zealand |
| 13:00 UTC+12 |
| Report (FIFA) |
| Stadium: Wellington Regional Stadium Attendance: 27,312 Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan) |
| 1 August 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup GS | Vietnam | 0–7 | Netherlands | Dunedin, New Zealand |
| 19:00 UTC+12 | Report (FIFA) |
| Stadium: Forsyth Barr Stadium Attendance: 8,215 Referee: Ivana Martinčić (Croatia) |
| 6 August 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup R16 | Netherlands | 2–0 | South Africa | Sydney, Australia |
| 12:00 UTC+10 |
| Report (FIFA) | Stadium: Sydney Football Stadium Attendance: 40,233 Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan) |
| 11 August 2023 FIFA World Cup QF | Spain | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Netherlands | Wellington, New Zealand |
| 13:00 |
| Report |
| Stadium: Wellington Regional Stadium Attendance: 32,021 Referee: Stéphanie Frappart (France) |
| 22 September 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League A | Belgium | 2–1 | Netherlands | Leuven, Belgium |
| Stadium: Den Dreef |
| 26 September 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League A | Netherlands | 2–1 | England | Utrecht |
| Russo 64' | Stadium: Stadion Galgenwaard |
| 27 October 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League A | Netherlands | 4–0 | Scotland | Nijmegen |
| Report | Stadium: Goffertstadion Referee: Ivana Projkovska (North Macedonia) |
| 31 October 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League A | Scotland | 0–1 | Netherlands | Glasgow |
| 20:45 (19:45 GMT) | Report |
| Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 5,186 Referee: Jana Adámková (Czech Republic) |
| 1 December 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League A | England | 3–2 | Netherlands | London |
| 20:45 (19:45 GMT) | Report |
| Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 71.632 Referee: Tess Olofsson (Sweden) |
| 5 December 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League A | Netherlands | 4–0 | Belgium | Tilburg |
|
2024 edit
| 23 February 2023–24 UEFA Nations League SF | Spain | v | Netherlands | Cádiz |
| Report | Stadium: Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla |
| 28 February 2023–24 UEFA Nations League 3rd/F | Netherlands | v | TBD | Netherlands |
Players edit
Current squad edit
The following 24 players are named in the squad for the 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League matches against England and Belgium on 1 and 5 December respectively.[20]
Caps and goals correct as of 5 December 2023, after the match against Belgium.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Daphne van Domselaar | 6 March 2000 | 24 | 0 | Aston Villa |
| 16 | GK | Jacintha Weimar | 11 June 1998 | 1 | 0 | Feyenoord |
| 23 | GK | Barbara Lorsheyd | 26 March 1991 | 1 | 0 | ADO Den Haag |
| 2 | DF | Lynn Wilms | 3 October 2000 | 39 | 1 | VfL Wolfsburg |
| 3 | DF | Caitlin Dijkstra | 30 January 1999 | 19 | 1 | Twente |
| 5 | DF | Merel van Dongen | 11 February 1993 | 63 | 2 | Monterrey |
| 18 | DF | Kerstin Casparij | 19 August 2000 | 32 | 0 | Manchester City |
| 20 | DF | Dominique Janssen | 17 January 1995 | 106 | 6 | VfL Wolfsburg |
| 6 | MF | Jill Roord | 22 April 1997 | 98 | 26 | Manchester City |
| 8 | MF | Sherida Spitse (captain) | 29 May 1990 | 227 | 44 | Ajax |
| 10 | MF | Daniëlle van de Donk | 5 August 1991 | 150 | 36 | Lyon |
| 14 | MF | Jill Baijings | 23 February 2001 | 8 | 0 | Bayern Munich |
| 17 | MF | Victoria Pelova | 3 June 1999 | 51 | 4 | Arsenal |
| 19 | MF | Wieke Kaptein | 29 August 2005 | 5 | 0 | Twente |
| 21 | MF | Damaris Egurrola | 26 August 1999 | 27 | 5 | Lyon |
| MF | Jackie Groenen | 17 December 1994 | 108 | 9 | Paris Saint-Germain | |
| 4 | FW | Romée Leuchter | 12 January 2001 | 12 | 2 | Ajax |
| 7 | FW | Lineth Beerensteyn | 11 October 1996 | 100 | 32 | Juventus |
| 9 | FW | Vivianne Miedema | 15 July 1996 | 117 | 95 | Arsenal |
| 11 | FW | Lieke Martens | 16 December 1992 | 156 | 61 | Paris Saint-Germain |
| 12 | FW | Shanice van de Sanden | 2 October 1992 | 96 | 21 | Liverpool |
| 13 | FW | Renate Jansen | 7 December 1990 | 61 | 5 | Twente |
| 15 | FW | Katja Snoeijs | 31 August 1996 | 24 | 11 | Everton |
| 22 | FW | Esmee Brugts | 28 July 2003 | 28 | 8 | Barcelona |
Recent call-ups edit
The following players have also been called up to the squad in the past 12 months.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Lize Kop | 17 March 1998 | 7 | 0 | Leicester City | v. England, 26 September 2023 |
| GK | Daniëlle de Jong | 11 October 2002 | 0 | 0 | Twente | v. England, 26 September 2023 |
| DF | Marisa Olislagers | 9 September 2000 | 10 | 0 | Twente | v. Scotland, 31 October 2023 |
| DF | Marit Auée | 11 January 2000 | 0 | 0 | Twente | v. Scotland, 31 October 2023 |
| DF | Stefanie van der Gragt | 16 August 1992 | 107 | 14 | Retired | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup RET |
| DF | Aniek Nouwen | 9 March 1999 | 43 | 2 | Chelsea | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup |
| DF | Kika van Es | 11 October 1991 | 77 | 0 | Retired | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup RET |
| DF | Alieke Tuin | 24 January 2001 | 0 | 0 | Fortuna Sittard | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup PRE |
| MF | Sisca Folkertsma | 21 May 1997 | 16 | 0 | Feyenoord | v. Poland, 11 April 2023 |
| FW | Fenna Kalma | 21 December 1999 | 6 | 2 | VfL Wolfsburg | v. England, 26 September 2023 |
| FW | Tiny Hoekstra | 15 September 1996 | 0 | 0 | Ajax | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup PRE |
INJ Injured | ||||||
Coaching staff edit
Technical staff edit
- As of 4 November 2023.[21]
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Andries Jonker |
| Assistant coach | Arvid Smit |
| Assistant coach | Janneke Bijl |
| Goalkeeper coach | Erskine Schoenmakers |
| Fitness coach | René Wormhoudt |
Head coaches edit
| Period | Coach | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972–1973 | Siem Plooyer | [22] | |
| 1973–1974 | Bert Wouterse | [22] | |
| 1974–1975 | Ger Blok | [22] | |
| 1975–1977 | Ron Groenewoud | [22] | |
| 1977–1978 | Ruud de Groot | [22] | |
| 1979–1987 | Bert van Lingen | [22] | |
| 1987 | Nick Labohm | 1 match (3–1 defeat to West Germany on 1 April 1987) | [22] |
| 1987 | Dick Advocaat | 1 match (0–0 against Norway on 23 May 1987) | [22] |
| 1987–1989 | Piet Buter | [22] | |
| 1989–1992 | Bert van Lingen | second spell as coach (first spell from 1979 to 1987) | [22][23] |
| 1992–1995 | Jan Derks | [22][23] | |
| 1995–2001 | Ruud Dokter | [22][23] | |
| 2001 | Andries Jonker | interim coach | [22][23] |
| 2001–2004 | Frans de Kat | [22][23] | |
| 2004 | Remy Reynierse | interim coach | [22][23] |
| 2004–2010 | Vera Pauw | [22][23][24][25] | |
| 2010 | Ed Engelkes | interim coach | [22][23] |
| 2010–2015 | Roger Reijners | [22][23][26][25] | |
| 2015 | Sarina Wiegman | interim coach | [27] |
| 2015–2016 | Arjan van der Laan | [27] | |
| 2016–2017 | Sarina Wiegman | second spell as interim coach (first spell in 2015) | [28] |
| 2017–2021 | permanent coach | ||
| 2021–2022 | Mark Parsons | [29] | |
| 2022– | Andries Jonker | second spell as coach (first spell as interim in 2001) | [30] |
Coaches' records edit
| # | Name | Period | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sarina Wiegman1 | 2015–2021 | 86 |
| 2 | Vera Pauw | 2004–2010 | 73 |
| 3 | Roger Reijners | 2010–2015 | 71 |
| 4 | Ruud Dokter | 1995–2000 | 64 |
| 5 | Bert van Lingen | 1979–1986, 1989–1991 | 46 |
| 6 | Frans de Kat | 2001–2004 | 27 |
| 7 | Andries Jonker | 2001, 2022− | 23 |
| 8 | Jan Derks | 1991–1994 | 19 |
| 9 | Mark Parsons | 2021–2022 | 18 |
| 10 | Arjan van der Laan | 2015–2016 | 16 |
| 11 | Piet Buter | 1987–1989 | 15 |
| 12 | Ruud de Groot | 1977–1978 | 8 |
- As of 13 August 2023
- 1.^ Includes 70 matches main coach (period 2017-2021), 1 match against Belarus - 8:0 as Interim coach (17.09.2015), 15 matches assistant coach (29.11.2015 - first match and 29.11.2016 - last match). Onsoranje.nl includes 8 matches from 15, coached Sarina by main coach instead assistant, Therefore, it turns out 79 (70+1+8). Main coach - 70 matches + 1 match in 2015.
Records edit
- As of 12 August 2023, after the match against Spain.
- Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.
Most caps edit
| Most goals edit
|
Competitive record edit
FIFA Women's World Cup edit
On 27 November 2014, the Netherlands national football team qualified to the final tournament of the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time.[31] In 2019, they reached the Final and lost to the United States team.[32]
| FIFA Women's World Cup record | Qualification record | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host nation and year | Result | Pos | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
| 1991 | Did not qualify | UEFA Euro 1991 | |||||||||||||
| 1995 | UEFA Euro 1995 | ||||||||||||||
| 1999 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 10 | |||||||||
| 2003 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 16 | |||||||||
| 2007 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 15 | 7 | |||||||||
| 2011 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 30 | 7 | |||||||||
| 2015 | Round of 16 | 13th | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 14 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 50 | 9 | |
| 2019 | Runners-up | 2nd | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 5 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 30 | 4 | |
| 2023 | Quarter-finals | 7th | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 3 | |
| 2027 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
| Total | 3/10 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 26 | 12 | 62 | 39 | 10 | 13 | 166 | 56 | ||
- Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
Olympic Games edit
Since the inception of women's Olympic football, UEFA has designated the World Cup as its qualifying tournament for the succeeding Olympic tournament. Because the Netherlands failed to qualify to the World Cup until 2015, the Netherlands women automatically failed to qualify for the Olympics up to 2012. In 2015 Netherlands made it to their first World Cup. Their round of 16 exit was good enough for a post World Cup mini tournament to decide UEFA's last spot at the Olympics. Sweden won that tournament and the Netherlands were eliminated. In 2019 the Netherlands reached the World Cup final and qualified for the Olympics for the first time.
| Summer Olympics record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host nation and year | Round | Pos | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA |
| 1996 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| 2000 | ||||||||
| 2004 | ||||||||
| 2008 | ||||||||
| 2012 | ||||||||
| 2016 | ||||||||
| 2020 | Quarter-finals | 5th | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 10 |
| 2024 | To be determined | |||||||
| 2028 | ||||||||
| 2032 | ||||||||
| Total | 1/8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 10 | |
UEFA European Women's Championship edit
The Dutch failed to qualify for the final tournament of the UEFA Women's Championship from 1984 to 2005. In 2009, the Netherlands women's team qualified and reached third place.[33] In 2013, they qualified again, but did not advance beyond the group stage.[34] The Dutch women booked a major victory at the 2017 tournament: after a 4–2 victory over Denmark in the final they were the new European champion. Furthermore, Lieke Martens was named the best player of the tournament.[35] In 2022 they were knocked out in the quarter final.
| UEFA European Women's Championship record | Qualifying record | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host nation(s) and year | Result | Pos | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
| 1984** | Did not qualify | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 9 | ||||||||
| 1987 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 6 | |||||||||
| 1989 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 5 | |||||||||
| 1991 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 1 | |||||||||
| 1993 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 7 | |||||||||
| 1995 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 3 | |||||||||
| 1997 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 9 | |||||||||
| 2001 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 10 | |||||||||
| 2005 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 13 | |||||||||
| 2009 | Semi-finals | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 12 | |
| 2013 | Group stage | 12th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 2 | |
| 2017 | Champions | 1st | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | Qualified as Host | ||||||
| 2022 | Quarter-finals | 5th | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 3 | |
| 2025 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
| Total | 4/13 | 7th | 18 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 27 | 15 | 86 | 45 | 17 | 24 | 169 | 80 | |
- * Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
- ** Missing flag indicates no host country.
Nations League edit
| UEFA Nations League record | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| League phase | Finals | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | P/R | RK | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Squad | |||||
| 2023–24 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 6 | 4th | To be determined | |||||||||||||
- * Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
Competitive results edit
- All results list the Netherlands goal tally first.
- Goal scorers are sorted alphabetically.
- Colors gold, silver, and bronze indicate first-, second-, and third-place finishes.
| Abbreviation Key table | |
|---|---|
| EC | European Championship |
| WC | World Cup |
| OG | Olympic Games |
| NL | Nations League |
| QS | Qualification stage/tournament |
note:a=Scotland withdrew during the 1989 qualification, their played results were voided.