If you’re wondering what sports are popular in the Netherlands, you’ve come to the right place. In this blog post, we’ll go over some of the most popular sports played in the Netherlands, including football, hockey, and more.
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Football
Football is the most popular sport in the Netherlands. Over two million people play football in the Netherlands, which is almost 8% of the population. The Dutch national football team is one of the most successful in Europe and has reached the finals of the World Cup and European Championship several times. The Netherlands has also produced some of the world’s greatest footballers, including Johan Cruyff, Marco van Basten and Ruud Gullit.
Field hockey
Field hockey is a popular sport in the Netherlands, with both men’s and women’s teams competing at the national level. The sport is governed by the Royal Dutch Hockey Federation, which was founded in 1873. The Netherlands men’s national team has won the Hockey World Cup three times (in 1973, 1990, and 1998), and the women’s team has won the World Cup twice (in 1974 and 2006).
Tennis
Tennis is a relatively popular sport in the Netherlands, with around 230,000 people playing regularly according to a 2019 study. The country has produced some successful players in recent years, including Richel Hogenkamp and Arantxa Rus. The Dutch national team won the Davis Cup (the men’s international tennis tournament) in 2018.
While tennis is not typically thought of as a “Dutch” sport, the Netherlands does have a strong tennis tradition. The first Dutch tennis championship was held in 1887, and the first Wimbledon champion from the Netherlands was winnner Gerald Patterson in 1905.
Volleyball
Volleyball is a popular sport in the Netherlands, with the Dutch national team having won several international championships. Volleyball is typically played indoors, but there are also outdoor variants such as beach volleyball. The sport is governed by the Dutch Volleyball Association, which organizes nationwide competitions.
Cycling
Cycling is a very popular sport in the Netherlands and many people use bicycles as their main form of transportation. The country has produced some of the world’s most successful cyclists, including Johan Cruijff, Marianne Vos, and Tom Dumoulin. Cycling is so popular in the Netherlands that there are special lanes on the roads just for bikes!
Boxing
Boxing is a popular sport in the Netherlands, and the Dutch have produced many world champions in the discipline. One of the most famous is Rob Kaman, who was a nine-time world champion in kickboxing and also held championships in Muay Thai and boxing.
Swimming
Swimming is a popular sport in the Netherlands and there are many different types of swimming that you can take part in. There are also several different competitions that you can compete in, such as the Dutch Swimming Championships and the Dutch Open Water Championships.
Darts
Darts is a sport in which small missiles are thrown at a circular target (dartboard) fixed to a wall. The game is played by two or more people. The standard dartboard is divided into 20 equal sectors, with each sector scoring a different number of points.
Rugby
The sport of rugby is not as popular in the Netherlands as it is in some other countries, but there is still a significant rugby presence in the country. The Dutch national rugby team has competed in several Rugby World Cups, and there are a number of rugby clubs throughout the Netherlands. These clubs compete in the Dutch domestic rugby competition, which is called the Eerste Klasse.
Water polo
Water polo is a team sport played in the water. The game consists of two teams of seven players each, six field players and one goalkeeper. The objective of the game is to score goals by throwing the ball into the other team’s net.
Water polo is a physically demanding sport and players must be in good physical condition. The game is played in a pool that is 30 meters long by 20 meters wide. The pool is surrounded by a deck, on which there are two goals, one at each end of the pool.
The game is divided into four quarters, each lasting eight minutes. There is a two-minute break between the first and second quarters, and a five-minute break at halftime. The clock is stopped whenever the ball goes out of bounds or there is a stoppage in play (foul, purposeful delay of game, etc.).
Players can score goals from anywhere in the pool, but most often they score from inside the five-meter line, which is closest to the goal. Players can shoot at goal from anywhere inside this line, but they cannot touch the bottom of the pool or else it will be called a foul.
Water polo is a fast-paced and exciting sport that requires split-second decisions and quick reflexes. Players must be able to swim well and have good stamina in order to keep up with the pace of the game.
