The Men's Hoofdklasse Hockey, currently known as the Tulp Hoofdklasse Men for sponsorship reasons,[1] is the men's top division of field hockey in the Netherlands. The league ranks first in the European league ranking table.[2] The league was established in 1973, and before the league existed the champions of the several district played in a championship pool to determine the national champion.
| Most recent season or competition: 2025–26 Men's Hoofdklasse Hockey | |
| Sport | Field hockey |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1973 |
| First season | 1973–74 |
| Administrator | KNHB |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Confederation | EHF (Europe) |
Most recent champion | Rotterdam (2nd title) (2025–26) |
| Most titles | Amsterdam, Bloemendaal (22 each) |
| Broadcasters | Viaplay NOS |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Promotieklasse |
| Domestic cup | Gold Cup |
| International cup | Euro Hockey League |
Rotterdam are the current champions, having won the 2025–26 season by defeating Amsterdam in the championship final. Amsterdam and Bloemendaal have the most titles with 22 each.
Format
editThe season starts in August or September each year and is interrupted by the indoor hockey season from November to February. The outdoor season resumes from March. The league is played by twelve teams who play each other twice, competing for four spots in the championship play-offs. The number one and four and the number two and three play each other in the semi-finals and the winners qualify for the final where the winner will be crowned champion. Each semi-final and the final consist of two-leg matches, with the winner determined by the highest aggregate score over both home and away games. The last placed team is relegated to the second division, the Promotieklasse.[3] The eleventh-placed team plays in a relegation play-off against the runners-up of the Promotieklasse and the tenth-placed team plays a relegation play-off against the third-placed from the Promotieklasse.[3] The winners of these matches will play the next season in the Hoofdklasse.[3]
Teams
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Accommodation and locations
edit| Team | Location | Province | Accommodation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amsterdam | Amstelveen |  North Holland | Wagener Stadium |
| Bloemendaal | Bloemendaal | North Holland | Sportpark 't Kopje |
| Den Bosch | 's-Hertogenbosch |  North Brabant | Sportpark Oosterplas |
| HDM | The Hague |  South Holland | Sportpark Duinzigt |
| Hurley | Amstelveen | North Holland | Amsterdamse Bos |
| Kampong | Utrecht |  Utrecht | De Klapperboom |
| Klein Zwitserland | The Hague | South Holland | Sportpark Klein Zwitserland |
| Nijmegen | Nijmegen |  Gelderland | Radboud Sportcentrum |
| Oranje-Rood | Eindhoven | North Brabant | Sportpark Aalsterweg |
| Pinoké | Amstelveen | North Holland | Amsterdamse Bos |
| Rotterdam | Rotterdam | South Holland | Hazelaarweg Stadion |
| SCHC | Bilthoven | Utrecht | Sportpark Kees Broekelaan |
List of champions
editNational champions (1897–1973)
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Hoofdklasse era (1973–present)
edit
Champions
editBy club
edit| Club | Championships | Runners-up | Seasons won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amsterdam | 22 | 16 | 1924–25, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1931–32, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1936–37, 1961–62, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1965–66, 1974–75, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1996–97, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2024–25 |
| Bloemendaal | 13 | 1918–19, 1919–20, 1920–21, 1921–22, 1922–23, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22 | |
| Kampong | 9 | 10 | 1967–68, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1975–76, 1984–85, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2023-24 |
| Venlo | 8 | 10 | 1938–39, 1941–42, 1942–43, 1945–46, 1949–50, 1952–53, 1954–55, 1966–67 |
| HDM | 5 | 1923–24, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1940–41, 1941–42, 1991–92 | |
| Klein Zwitserland | 2 | 1976–77, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84 | |
| TOGO | 7 | 2 | 1912–13, 1913–14, 1915–16, 1916–17, 1917–18, 1953–54, 1956–57 |
| Oranje Zwart | 4 | 4 | 2004–05, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16 |
| HHIJC | 4 | 1947–48, 1948–49, 1950–51, 1951–52 | |
| Haarlemsche HBC | 3 | 3 | 1899–1900, 1902–03, 1904–05 |
| Laren | 1 | 1955–56, 1960–61, 1968–69 | |
| De Musschen | 1 | 1909–10, 1910–11, 1911–12 | |
| HGC | 2 | 10 | 1989–90, 1995–96 |
| HHV | 3 | 1906–07, 1908–09 | |
| Rotterdam | 3 | 2012–13, 2025–26 | |
| Den Bosch | 2 | 1997–98, 2000–01 | |
| HMHC | 2 | 1903–04, 1905–06 | |
| Haagsche HBC | 1 | 1898–99, 1900–01 | |
| Tilburg | 0 | 1959–60, 1969–70 | |
| HTCC | 1 | 5 | 1970–71 |
| Hilversum | 1 | 1943–44 | |
| Pinoké | 1 | 2022–23 | |
| SCHC | 0 | 1958–59 | |
| DSHC | 0 | 1957–58 | |
| BMHC | 0 | 1937–38 | |
| ODIS | 0 | 1907–08 | |
| Deventer | 0 | 7 | |
| PW | 5 | ||
| Breda | 3 | ||
| HOC | 2 | ||
| DKS | 1 | ||
| EMHC | 1 | ||
| Gooi | 1 | ||
| Hattem | 1 |
By province
edit| Province | Championships | Runners-up | Winning clubs |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Holland | 56 | 38 | Bloemendaal (22), Amsterdam (22), Haarlemsche HBC (3), Laren (3), De Musschen (3), Hilversum (1), Pinoké (1), BMHC (1) |
| South Holland | 39 | 34 | HDM (8), Klein Zwitserland (8), TOGO (7), HHIJC (4), HGC (2), HHV (2), HMHC (2), Haagsche HBC (2), Rotterdam (2), DSHC (1), ODIS (1) |
| Utrecht | 10 | 10 | Kampong (9), SCHC (1) |
| North Brabant | 9 | 15 | Oranje Zwart (4), Den Bosch (2), Tilburg (2), HTCC (1) |
 Limburg | 8 | 10 | Venlo (8) |
 Overijssel | 0 | 13 | |
| Gelderland | 1 |
Media coverage
editSince 2015, almost every Sunday, one match from either the men's or the women's league is broadcast live by either Ziggo Sport or the NOS.[6]
The 2025 finals were streamed live on the Tulp Hoofdklasse YouTube channel.
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Tulp hoofdsponsor en naamgever Hoofdklasse Heren". hockey.nl (in Dutch). 27 August 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
- ↑ "ENGLAND'S MEN THE BIG WINNERS IN EHL RANKING TABLE". ehlhockey.tv. Euro Hockey League. 5 April 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- 1 2 3 "Promotie-/degradatieregeling Bondscompetitie 2018-2019" (PDF). www.knhb.nl (in Dutch). Royal Dutch Hockey Association. 23 August 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- ↑ "Field hockey - Men's Dutch National Championship - Prize list". www.the-sports.org. TheSports.org. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
- ↑ "Hockeybond schrapt alle competities, geen promotie of degradatie". nos.nl (in Dutch). Nederlandse Omroep Stichting. 21 April 2020. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
- ↑ Scholte, Jolien (11 November 2015). "Ziggo Sport zendt wedstrijden Hoofdklasse live uit op zondagen". hockey.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 May 2019.