FC Emmen

The amateur club Emmen was formed on 21 August 1925 as NEC (Noordbarge Emmen Combinatie). It was quickly changed to VV Emmen due to confusion with NEC Nijmegen.^[1][2] When the Dutch professional league was formed in 1954, VV Emmen opted to maintain its amateur club status instead.^[2][3]

In 1985, VV Emmen finally joined the professional ranks.^[2] In 1988 the club was split into an amateur and a professional section. The latter was mostly called BVO Emmen (Betaald Voetbal Organisatie, professional football organisation). In 2005, the professional club BVO Emmen changed its name into FC Emmen, as it was hoped that the new name would better reflect the club's history, and because many misunderstandings had arisen, among people who had grown to believe that BVO was an abbreviation similar to for instance PSV, RBC or ADO.^[2]

FC Emmen has reached the Eerste Divisie play-offs eleven times and on 20 May 2018, they managed to clinch promotion to the Dutch Eredivisie for the first time in their history after beating Sparta Rotterdam 3–1 in the promotion/relegation play-off finals.^[4][5]

They played their first Eredivisie match on 12 August 2018 away against ADO Den Haag, and won 2–1. Glenn Bijl scored the first goal for FC Emmen in the top flight.^[6] FC Emmen finished 14th in their first Eredivisie season and secured their spot in the Eredivisie for the 2019–20 season.

Despite a very poor start to the 2020–21 season (six points in the first 22 matches), FC Emmen bounced back with an 8-match unbeaten run (five wins, three draws) from February to April, and ended the season with two wins to finish with 30 points.^[7] However, they could not achieve automatic safety, as they had a worse goal differential than 15th-placed RKC Waalwijk. This meant that FC Emmen would have to win the playoffs to avoid relegation, but they lost on penalties following a 1–1 draw vs. NAC Breda.^[8] As a result of this loss, FC Emmen were relegated to the Eerste Divisie following three seasons in the top tier.^[9] However, they were promoted on the first attempt the next year.^[10] In the 2022–23 season, they finished 16th, having to win the playoffs to avoid relegation again. This time, they became the first 16th-place team in the Eredivisie to even reach the playoff final under the new format, but they were relegated again after losing to Almere City in the playoff final.^[11]

FC Emmen's previous JenS Vesting, more popularly known as De Meerdijk, now as de Oude Meerdijk was the scene of several matches of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship. It was built in 1977.^[12]

• Eerste Divisie
  • Winner: 2021–22
• Sunday amateur football title
  • Winner: 1974–75
• Sunday Hoofdklasse C
  • Winner: 1974–75

• Rob Groener
• Gerard Somer