In 1893 a group of friends
centred around three individuals - Han Dade, Karel Reeser and Floris Stempel,
decided to start a football club. Mr. Dade was the proud owner of a
real leather football and Mr.Stempel would later become the first chairman
of the club when it became officially known as Ajax in 1900. At first
they called it "Union", in 1894 it became Ajax Football Club. They
played their first matches on a field on the Overtoom which in those days
lay just outside the city boundary - actually an 'extension' of the famous
Vondelpark, well known to many foreign visitors to present day
Amsterdam. There is little known about those first matches but the
'original' red and white strip was already in use and 'fairplay' was
regarded as an important element of the club's attitude. There is a
reference to it in a copy of the club rules dating back to 1893. The concept
of discipline was relatively unknown then and it was deemed necessary to
impose it by means of a code of conduct. This included penalties for
infringements such as absence without permission, use of improper language
or behaviour and inattention during play. In 1896 the city council went
ahead with its plans to extend the city boundaries and Ajax's pitch was
swallowed up by the new developments.
The club had to start
all over again and the original "Musketeers" Dade, Stempel and
Reeser sent out a letter to generate interest in beginning a new club. At
the time small clubs were shooting up all over Holland and at an historic
meeting on March 18th 1900, in the East-India Café at number 2 Kalverstraat,
the new Ajax came into being. The club joined the Amsterdam Football
Association and hired a pitch in Amsterdam North. During those first years
they were 2nd best in the local league, winning their first medal for best
goal average, and on April 8th 1901 they played their first 'away' match in
Haarlem, winning 4-1 against 'Oranje', the Dutch national team (as they are
still affectionately known today).
In 1902 Ajax were granted
admission to the Dutch Football Union (Nederlandse Voetbal Bond) and were
promptly promoted from the 3rd to the 2nd Class (Klasse). As recognition of
their quality footballing they were invited by the Amsterdam Football
Association to play for the Golden Cross (Gouden Kruis) which, although not
much more than an elaborate piece of gilded metal, reflected their new
ranking - only the top 8 clubs were allowed to take part in the tournament.
In 1907 Amsterdam was expanding again and the club was forced to look once
more for a new 'home' which was found on the Middenweg in the
Watergraafsmeer district of the city. They had no stand, no changing rooms
and no running water but there was enough room for practice pitches
alongside the main 'turf' and the players could get changed in the cafe
opposite. The new location had an inspiring effect on the team and in
1907/08 the club won the coveted Golden Cross.
The club's ambitions went
further than winning the 2nd Class championship but, in order to gain
promotion, a club had to take part in promotion and relegation knockouts. In
1908 it was decided to join forces with Holland (a club in the 3rd class
who, although being top of their Class 3 years running, never quite had
enough talent/luck to make it through the knockouts into the 2nd Class). The
new club's name remained Ajax but the addition of players such as the Pelser
brothers and Ton Kooy strengthened the team in preparation for their assault
on the summit of Holland's footballing top. In 1910 it was decided
that the time was ripe for the supreme effort and funds were raised in order
to try and persuade an English trainer to make the move to Holland. Football
had been a serious business in England since 1871 and was on a higher level.
As it turned out Ajax's first professional trainer would be an Irishman -
John Kirwan, an ex-international with a long and illustrious career at
Tottenham Hotspur behind him. He proved to be an extremely capable trainer
and so it was that Ajax won the 2nd class in 1911. Finally they could show
their worth in the knockout tournament and, in the deciding nailbiting match
against 't Zesde (a footballing Infantry regiment club) the final 0 -
0 was sufficient to grant them admission, on May 21st 1910, to the 1st
Class.
The promotion was celebrated
with the first wooden stand for the loyal fans and the original strip (with
its white shirt and red stripes) was changed for the famous white shirt and
single broad red stripe known all over the world today. This was necessary
to avoid confusion with other clubs, such as Sparta, who used a similar
strip and the club's name had already been changed to Amsterdam Ajax for the
same reason (the town of Leiden had its own Ajax). The club's rise to the
top was rewarded when midfielder GeFortgens became the first Ajax player
chosen to play for the national team, and on March 19th 1911 he took part in
their 3 - 1 victory over Belgium.
The delight in their 1911
promotion was short lived - 3 years later Ajax were relegated and
several disappointed players left for greener pastures. Out of the ruins the
new coach Jack Reynolds rebuilt the team which won the 2nd Class 3 years in
a row. He stayed with the club until 1947 making him the longest serving
trainer in the club's history. The team fared reasonably well under the
Englishman but it took a surprising decision by the Dutch FA (KNVB) to give
them back a place in the 1st Class. In 1917 eight 2nd Class clubs were
promoted without having to take part in the dreaded knockouts and Ajax, as
overall champion, found themselves back in the top division of Dutch
football. They didn't waste this golden opportunity and in 1918 (with their
new stars Henk Hordijk, Theo Brokmann, Wim Guppfert and Jan de Natris)
became League Champions without losing a single match! Their "enfant
terrible" Jan de Natris missed the championship game aginst
Willem II - he fell asleep in the train! It wasn't until 1995/96, when Ajax
won the League, the Champions League and the World Cup, that a team would
remain unbeaten during the course of a whole season.
Despite the club's expansion
in the years following this highpoint they couldn't repeat their success and
they ended the season mostly in mid-table. Star players, such as De Natris
and Guppfert, went missing through transfers or injury and trainer Reynolds
departed in 1925 for rival club Blauw Wit (Blue White). The club expanded
its activities to include athletics, in 1922 a baseball team was formed, in
1924 a cricket team and even a Yazz band (that's Jazz). The club managed to
throw away the chance of winning the League at the last moment in several of
those "swinging" 20's and things reached an all time low in 1930
when they were beaten 16 - 2 by Racing Vienna. A small consolation was Jack
Reynolds' return in 1928 as trainer and a new club emblem! ( to be
continued)
Until 1996 Ajax were based at
"De Meer" stadium, well known for its atmosphere ('close to the
pitch' ), while most important matches took place in the Olympic Stadium in
Amsterdam because of its greater capacity. Since 1996 they can be seen
playing in the Amsterdam Arena (capacity 51,400 seats ). Ajax have now won
the Dutch League title 28 times, the Dutch FA Cup 15 times, the Dutch Super
Cup 4 times, European Cup (nowadays known as the Champions League ) in
1971, 1972, 1973, and 1995, the European Cup 2 (the old Cup Winners Cup) in
1987, the European Cup 3 (now known as the UEFA Cup) in 1992 and the
European Super Cup in 1972, 1973 and 1995. In 1972 and 1995 they also won
the World Cup for clubs. They were the first Dutch club to 'go public'
issuing shares in 1998.
