Now this is the final part on how ADO Den Haag have moved forward and made themselves one of the best family clubs in Holland. Finally how does the ADO Den Haag fans see their club and how it has changed and, most of all, would they welcome an influx of expat supporters to the club?

I arranged to meet Alberto van der Spiegel, the main behind the popular fan website www.groengeelhart.nl (Green and yellow Heart). Alberto is 54 years old and has been attending ADO games since he was 6 years old when he went with his father. He says he was instantly affected by the ADO Den Haag virus and now has green and yellow blood flowing through his veins.

As he reached his teen years Alberto moved from a position behind the goal with his father to be amongst friends standing on what was then the notorious Midden Noord. From there he openly admits to being involved in the hooligan element of Den Haag supporters. In the 80’s the fans called themselves the Hague City Firm. These supporters gained a terrible reputation for creating havoc everywhere they descended.

After a period of time, many of the fans began to take notice of the harm they were doing to their beloved club. Things slowly but surely began to change. Fans could see only bad reports in the news, both on television and in the printed press. Yet the fans on their travels showed a different side to their nature at times. On one occasion when ADO Den Haag were playing away at Telstar, one of the opposition players had been in the news as his child was suffering from a very serious illness. When this player came on to the pitch, the ADO supporters threw hundreds of cuddly toys on to the pitch for the players’ child and to give to the hospital where the child was being treated. What hurt the travelling fans that day was that there was no mention of that anywhere. This is only one of several examples, the fans may look tough but when something terrible happens they are always the first to show their affection, look back at incidents involving Schreuder, Ditewig, and Di Tomasso etc. In the eyes of the media, if the fans of the Hague club were not presenting bad news, then it was no news at all.

Alberto got sick of this and changed his way of supporting his heroes. Instead of harming the club he loved he began working hard to promote it. After twenty years of running around with the boys being over exuberant, he realised it was doing nobody any good what so ever. It was not only Alberto who saw that changes were needed. Many moved away from the terrace battles and in turn the percentage of trouble makers dropped. They basically became new supporters of the club, supporters the club could be proud of. As there was still a link between the rougher elements and those who had changed their ways, things began to calm down.

Alberto tells me now that all he has in his mind is the promotion of ADO Den Haag to the world. He works hard on the website, has close contacts within the club. The website now has lots of video clips that Alberto and his friend Alain Clement have produced; Alain is also the site administrator and is heavily involved with ensuring the ADO Den Haag image continues to grow in a positive manner. They go to the player signings and training sessions. Even the television channel Eredivisie live shows a four minute piece about the club filmed by the Groengeelhart, it can also be seen each week on ADO TV. These fans now also make special arrangements for surprises on some fans big days such as weddings and birthdays. This site is really helping to build a bond between the club and its community.

Then I asked Alberto the big question. “How would the supporters react to a large number of new breed expat supporters turning up to follow the club?” He was so enthusiastic in his response it was a real burst of energy. He said that the fans would love it. Everybody knows of the clubs financial predicament, so more fans would mean more money going in to the accounts. He said that twenty years ago, ADO Den Haag was for Haagenaars only, but now everybody is welcome to join the support; saying nobody would have anything to fear if they come along to support ADO Den Haag. In recent times there have been visits from Juventus and Swansea supporters to watch some matches and in turn reciprocated. Alberto is hoping the visit of Swansea in the pre season would bring a few more expats in to the stadium.

I then got some feed back from fans that are associated with the www.ADOfans.nl website.

Patrick, 42 years old and his 10 year old son are at every home game. They both enjoy the games and say "Expats should come to the ADO Den Haag home games because: Professional football is just top fun. It’s a distraction from the daily stresses at the office or school. A visit to an ADO Den Haag home match covers it all: entertainment, amusements, solidarity between fans and all of it in a safe child friendly, modern stadium with excellent facilities.

Edwin, 33 years old who has been going to ADO Den Haag since he was 12 say's: "Well I can mention 1000 reasons why Expats should visit a ADO Den Haag match. Ok, you don't have to expect always the best football in the world, but the atmosphere is great, it’s good entertainment and just fun for every one, man, children and women of all ages. There are very good facilities also for disable people who are in a wheel chair. Do you want to hear the other 986 reasons? Ha ha ha.

In 1979 Willem's father took him for the first time to the old Zuiderpark stadion since then he seldom missed a game. Now 38 years old and a father himself, Willem and his son visit all the ADO Den Haag games, home and away. Willem says "The atmosphere is great the stadium itself has all the facilities you need, good food, good drinks. You can get there by car of Randstad rail. Everybody likes it Children, Women, Elderly people. I think Expats will be surprised, in a positive way, how much fun a visit to the ADO Den Haag stadium is. So just come and see"

I have the last fan word from Ed who has the website www.northside.nl. When I asked him the same question, his response was I felt genuine and from the heart. “I am sure that they are safe in our stadium. They are of course most welcome to join us and support our heroes!”

One of the best signs of the clubs continuing work in providing a great environment in which to watch football is that the government is allowing the club to sell more day tickets each season. This shows huge confidence in the club from those also outside of football. This along side the drop in large numbers of the police presence is making ADO Den Haag a stand out example of how a good football club should look after and treat its supporters.

So all in all what have I discovered? Simple, ADO Den Haag is a club that has worked extremely hard to change its image to those outside of The Hague. In fact the club is still spending money on improving its facilities and on looking after the welfare of the supporters who enter the stadium. The stadium is already reputed to be one of the safest, if not the safest in the world. The fans want the large expat community to embrace the club; they want to see new faces enjoying what is a fantastic crowd of support. I for one know that my hairs stand on end each game as Liberte is blasted out through the sound system rocking the stands. It is a wonderful experience and an experience you can enjoy in total safety. Do it, just do it. Get on the tram and go to watch your local Premier League team play. You’ll love it!

By Neal McClimon
neal@thehagueonline.com
www.itpphotography.com
 

If you wish to comment or express an opinion about this article please e-mail the editor@TheHagueOnLine.com