AFI has extensive experience working with the Dutch community in Australia.
We are now looking forward to bringing Footy 9s to the Netherlands!
Footy 9s is played on rectangular fields, allowing the sport to be played on any soccer or rugby field.
There are 3 great formats to choose from – Men’s Footy, Women’s Footy and Touch Footy.
Get Involved
If you are keen to be involved with the development of the sport in the Netherlands, we would love to hear from you. Please contact us via info@aflinternational.com.
AUSTRALIA & THE NETHERLANDS
Captain Willem Janszoon, a Dutch seafarer, was the first European to land on Australian soil in 1606. Abel Tasman was the first to circumnavigate the continent in 1642-3. He established that the land was not the gigantic legendary southern continent that included the South Pole and he named it New Holland. Tasmania which Tasman had named Van Diemens Land and the Tasman Sea were eventually named after him.
During the 1950s, Australia was the destination of 30 per cent of Dutch emigrants and the Netherlands-born became numerically the second largest non-British group in Australia. The 2016 census recorded 70,172 residents of Australia born in the Netherlands and 339,549 Australians claim Dutch ancestry.
AFL PLAYERS
Robbert Klomp | Paul van der Haar | David Hale | Richard Vandenberg | Jay van Berlo | Nathan van Berlo | Matthew Kreuzer | Daniel Pearce | Ben Rutten | Billie Smedts | Andrew Swallow | David Swallow | Nick Vlastuin
TEAM NETHERLANDS
Team Netherlands, also known as the Dutch Lions, are regular participants in AFI tournaments, including the World 9s and Touch Footy World Cup.
SBS Interview – Footy voor Dutchies
Major Results
2023 Touch Footy World Cup – Division 2 Champions
2026 World 9s – Touch Footy Division 2 Champions
Matt Courtney
Dutch Lions
Due to travel restrictions a lot of our Dutch players had to return home, so I ended up recruiting my mother and sister to play. Both really enjoyed the experience and scored at least one goal each – showing that you can succeed and have fun no matter what your skill level is! I look forward to growing the game within the Dutch community. Hup Holland Hup!
The Kingdom of the Netherlands is located in northwest Europe. It borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and share maritime borders with Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. The capital is Amsterdam and the seat of government is The Hague.
The Netherlands is often referred to as Holland, although North and South Holland are actually only two of its 12 provinces. The word Dutch is used to refer to the people, the language, and anything pertaining to the Netherlands.
The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying country, with about 20% of its area and 21% of its population located below sea level, with 50% of its land lying less than one metre above sea level. Significant land area has been gained through land reclamation and preserved through an elaborate system of polders and dikes. Most of the country is very flat.
Now a constitutional monarchy, the country began its independent life as a republic in the 16th century, when the foundations were laid for it to become one of the world’s foremost maritime trading nations.
