Ajax Amsterdam F.C. Questionnaire
(QPR v Ajax 21-07-04)
Name- Ajax Supporters Group
Location- Amsterdam
In 1883 a couple of friends founded a football club and they called it Union, but changed the name to Footh-Ball Club Ajax in 1894. They played on a ground that was just outside the Amsterdam City borders at the time. Apart from that not much is known about the club's results, apart from the fact that they mostly played against teams made up of friends. Though it is documented that not long after they were founded they already wore the red and white colours and that 'fair play' was the most important thing for them. In 1896 Amsterdam expanded, Ajax's ground was confiscated and the ground would be used for building new houses. In 1900 the 3 men who founded the original club got together again and wrote a letter to the members asking them to form a new club. This happened in 1900 and the club was called Football Club (so spelled the right way this time) Ajax. The club rented a ground in the Northern parts of Amsterdam and in 1901 beat the Dutch national side 4-1 in a friendly. In 1907 they were again forced to move grounds and yet again due to city-plans for housing on their ground. In 1907 Ajax moved to the ground in the Eastern part of Amsterdam where they would celebrate so many successes and would stay until they moved to the 'Amsterdam Arena' in 1996. Oddly enough yet again houses were built on Ajax' ground after they left.
Well, we'von the World Club Cup in 1971 and 1995, the European Champions Cup in 1971, 1972, 1973, and 1995 so it's hard to say really. Apart from that we also won the European Cup Winners Cup in 1987 and the UEFA Cup in 1992. So we are one of the few clubs to have won all 3 European Cups and the World Cup Club.
Last season it was 48,996.
That must have been Johan Cruijff (not Cruyff according to his passport) who left for Barcelona in 1973 for the then incredible amount of 6,000.000 Dutch guilders.
There is always a few at Ajax really. At the moment no doubt Zlatan Ibrahimovic will be leaving us soon to play at a higher level. But there's always talent around, players like Sneijder, van der Vaart, Heijtinga and de Jong no doubt are players you will be hearing a lot more of in the future.
Feyenoord
Our manager is Ronald Koeman, ex-Dutch international and ex-player of FC Groningen, Ajax, PSV, Barcelona and Feyenoord. Winner of the European Championships with Holland in 1988, winner of the European Champions Cup with both PSV and Barcelona. As assistant he has Ruud Krol, who was runner up with Holland in the World Cups of 1974 and 1978 and won the European Champions Cup with Ajax in 1971, 1972 and 1973. Marco van Basten is manager of our under 21 side so you won't hear many fans complain about the stature of our coaching staff.
I guess every Championship is a success. Eventhough it wasn't done in spectacular style.
Well, the Champions League obviously, and hoping to do well in that with new young players coming in and establishing themselves at that level.
Ajax's strength must be the fact that every team in the entire club plays the same way, from youth level up to the first team. Meaning 2 wingers and a striker and attacking flowing football. And the fact that due to our excellent youth-policy new talents come through all the time. The weakness is that every time we do have success bigger clubs come in for the players and we have to start from scratch again.
Quite frankly there are no real problems at the moment. The coaching-staff is excellent; we have young talented players so the future looks bright really. That's unless Italian, English and Spanish clubs start throwing money around again and we lose most of our best players.
We like to think that every time people hear the name Ajax they think of young hungry players playing excellent attacking football.
The ambitions are always the same, win everything. So that means the Dutch League, the Dutch Cup and the Champions League.
That would be in Dutch but it goes like this:
'De herdertjes lagen bij nachte, zij lagen bij nacht in het veld, daar hoorden zij engelen zingen: AJAX! AJAX! AJAX!
Which translated means: 'the shepherds layed by night in a field, that’s where they heard angels sing AJAX! AJAX! AJAX!’
It's hard to say really. All the English football news and footage we get here is the Premiership. So if you get relegated from that you more or less get forgotten about. I know your ground as Fulham groundshared with you last season and it looks like a typical English football ground. Lots of atmosphere and close to the pitch. But apart from that and the fact you're from London we don't know much about QPR I'm afraid.
We'll have to find out when it happens.
Well, usually it's the teams that were relegated out of the Premiership the season before. So it's probably teams like Wolves and Leeds who will battle it out.
I'd be very surprised if we weren't Champions again come next may, or maybe even March.
We will tell you after the match. First see, then judge.
An easy 0-4 victory for Ajax, if we score early maybe more.