AZ Alkmaar

This article is about the men's association football team. For the women's team, see AZ Alkmaar (women).

AZ

Full name	Alkmaar Zaanstreek
Nickname(s)	De Kaasboeren (The Cheese Farmers)
Short name	AZ
Founded	10 May 1967 (1967-05-10)
Ground	AFAS Stadion
Capacity	19,478
Executive director Technical director	Merijn Zeeman Max Huiberts
Chairman	René Neelissen
Head coach	Maarten Martens
League	Eredivisie
2023–24	Eredivisie, 4th of 18
Website	https://www.az.nl
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Alkmaar Zaanstreek (Dutch: [ˈɑl(ə)kmaːr ˈzaːnstreːk]), better known internationally as AZ Alkmaar, or simply and most commonly as AZ (pronounced [aːˈzɛt]) in the Netherlands, is a Dutch professional football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan district. The club plays in the Eredivisie, the highest professional football league in the Netherlands.

AZ won the Eredivisie in 1980–81 and 2008–09. In the same season as their first league title, they also reached the UEFA Cup Final, which they lost to Ipswich Town. The team has won the KNVB Cup on four occasions, and one Johan Cruyff Shield.

History

1910–1972: Foundation and first years

AZ was founded on 10 May 1967 as AZ '67, the result of a merger of Alkmaar '54 and FC Zaanstreek. Alkmaar '54 was founded as a professional team in April 1954 to play in the 10-team NBVB league, created because the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) refused to organize a professional league (the KNVB took over in 1955). Alkmaar '54, and by extension AZ, played the first professional match in the Netherlands: on 14 August 1954, they won 3–0 at home against Venlo '54, with Klaas Smit scoring the first and third goal. After winning the Eerste Divisie in 1960–61, it played one year in the Eredivisie.

FC Zaanstreek had been playing since 1910 as the Kooger Football Club (KFC). KFC had nearly become national champion in 1934 through a narrow loss to Ajax in the finals. The team became professional in 1955. In 1964 the professional part of KFC was renamed FC Zaanstreek, while the amateurs played on as KFC.

Also in 1964, the brothers Cees and Klaas Molenaar, former players and trainers for KFC and owners of a growing appliance store chain, sought to create a powerful football team in Zaanstreek by merging the two local professional teams: KFC and Zaanlandsche Football Club. After the ZFC leadership thwarted this attempt, the Molenaars successfully merged FC Zaanstreek with Alkmaar '54 in 1967. FC Zaanstreek had finished 7th and Alkmaar '54 12th in 1966–67 Eerste Divisie. The team would be based in Alkmaar, though the second team originally trained and played in Koog aan de Zaan.

1972–1985: Molenaar years

Partially through the hiring of expensive foreign players, the new club soon acquired large debts. In 1972, the Molenaar brothers bailed it out and invested heavily in the club, to the point that AZ '67 were successful in the late 1970s and early '80s, regularly playing European football from 1977 to 1982 while also winning three KNVB Cups over that period.

After four close league campaigns, AZ finally became Dutch champions in 1981, becoming the only team other than the "big three" of Ajax, Feyenoord and PSV to do so in a 44-year period spanning from 1965 to 2009 (when AZ once again won the league title). They won the title with overwhelming power, winning 27 of 34 matches and only losing once, while scoring a club record 101 goals and conceding just 30. That same season, AZ reached the final of the UEFA Cup, losing 5–4 on aggregate to Ipswich Town. The next year, in the European Cup, they lost in the second round 3–2 on aggregate to Liverpool.

Georg Keßler was AZ's manager over most of these years (1978–82), while star players included: Kees Kist, the club's highest ever goalscorer with 212 goals and the first ever Dutchman to win the European Golden Boot in 1979 when he scored 34 goals in a season; Jan Peters, who played 120 matches for AZ during this period scoring 30 goals from midfield; and Hugo Hovenkamp, who played 239 matches in defence for AZ from 1975 to 1983, as well as receiving 31 caps for the Netherlands national team from 1977 to 1983 and playing each match in UEFA Euro 1980 while an AZ player. Additional stars included John Metgod, who spent six years at AZ playing 195 matches as a defender, scoring 26 goals including a goal against Ipswich Town in the final of the UEFA Cup. Like Hovenkamp, Metgod was also included in the Dutch squad for Euro 1980. Meanwhile, Danish forward Kristen Nygaard spent ten years at AZ, scoring 104 goals in 363 matches between 1972 and 1982.

1985–1993: Interim years

Co-owner Cees Molenaar died in 1979. AZ's fortunes deteriorated after his brother, Klaas Molenaar, left the club in 1985. After several mid-table finishes in previous seasons, AZ was relegated in 1988 from the Eredivisie, ending the season on 28 points from 34 matches and falling to the Eerste Divisie due to the superior goal difference of Roda JC. This relegation was significant since it occurred just seven years after the club's historic domestic double and marked the end of AZ's first period of success in Dutch football. Following this, AZ spent much of the next decade in the second tier, struggling to find a return to the top flight.

1993–2009: Scheringa years

The involvement of businessman Dirk Scheringa in the mid-1990s marked the revival of the club as AZ returned to the Eredivisie, winning the 1997-98 Eerste Divisie title. The club achieved consecutive finishes around the middle positions in the league until ending up in third place in the 2004-05 Eredivisie season, AZ's highest position for 23 years. In the summer of 2006, the club moved to a new 17,000 capacity stadium, AZ Stadion.

Despite playing strongly for the majority of the 2006–07 season, AZ's season ended in disappointment. First, entering the last matchday of the 2006–07 Eredivisie season, AZ led PSV and Ajax on goal difference at the top of the league table, but ended up third after losing their last match against 16th placed team Excelsior, AZ played with ten men for 80 minutes. Additionally, AZ then lost the KNVB Cup final to Ajax 8–7 after a penalty shoot-out, while also falling to Ajax over two play-off matches for participation in the Champions League. After the season, key players like Tim de Cler, Danny Koevermans and Shota Arveladze left the team.

AZ versus Larissa in a 2007–08 UEFA Cup match

A remarkable run ended in the 2007–08 season: after AZ lost a group stage match against Everton (3–2) in the UEFA Cup, the club's unbeaten run of 32 home matches in European competitions – lasting from 1977 to 2007 – ended. AZ had a poor season, suffering elimination in the first round of the KNVB Cup and the group stage of the UEFA Cup, as well as finishing the 2007–08 Eredivisie in a disappointing 11th place. Towards the latter stages of the season, in March 2008, AZ manager Louis van Gaal had initially tendered his resignation, but after protests the players and directors, he rescinded his resignation.

The 2008–09 season had an unpromising start after two opening defeats against NAC Breda and ADO Den Haag. However, starting with a 1–0 victory over defending league champions PSV, AZ did not lose a match in its next 28 matches, including a run of 11-straight matches where AZ did not concede an opposition goal. Three weeks before the end of the season, AZ became Eredivisie champions, edging nearest title rivals Twente and Ajax comfortably. This was a historic achievement for the club as this was the first title-winning season for 28 years, and it also meant a return to the UEFA Champions League.

Being league champions, AZ qualified for the Champions League for only the second time. It was drawn into a group alongside Arsenal FC, Standard Liège and Olympiacos but only took four points from six matches and finished bottom of their group.

2009–2014: Advocaat–Verbeek years

For the 2009–10 season, Ronald Koeman succeeded Louis van Gaal, who had departed to manage Bayern Munich after leading AZ to the championship. Koeman was officially hired on 17 May 2009, but on 5 December, AZ announced he was no longer in charge of the club after losing 7 of his first 16 matches. Former Rangers and Zenit Saint Petersburg manager Dick Advocaat took over for the remainder of the season. Under Advocaat, AZ achieved solid results and secured European football for the next season.

For the 2010–11 season, AZ appointed Gertjan Verbeek as its new manager. They finished the 2010–11 Eredivisie in fourth place, thus securing Europa League football for the next season, while in the KNVB Cup, AZ reached the last eight, where they were beaten by rivals Ajax by a 1–0 scoreline. AZ also finished third in their Europa League group, thus failing to qualifying for the competition's knockout round.

In the 2011–12 season, AZ finished fourth in the Eredivisie, though performed significantly better in cup competitions, reaching the semi-finals in the KNVB Cup (losing to Heracles after extra time) and the quarter-finals in the Europa League. In the latter, the club ultimately lost to Valencia after having defeated Udinese, Anderlecht, Malmö FF, Austria Wien, Metalist Kharkiv, Aalesund and Baumit Jablonec to reach that stage.

On 21 December 2011, during the quarter-finals of the 2011–12 KNVB Cup, a 19-year-old Ajax fan invaded the Amsterdam Arena pitch in the 36th minute with Ajax winning 1–0, attacking AZ goalkeeper Esteban Alvarado. The fan slipped and Alvarado kicked the fan twice, prompting the referee to issue the goalkeeper a red card. Following this, AZ manager Gertjan Verbeek ordered his players to leave the pitch for the dressing room in protest. The match was later played on 19 January 2012, with Alvarado's red card rescinded; AZ won 3–2.

The 2012–13 season started in the Europa League with a qualifying play-off round against Guus Hiddink's Anzhi Makhachkala. AZ was hammered 6–0 on aggregate. Disappointingly, AZ finished tenth in the 2012–13 Eredivisie, although the club won the 2012–13 KNVB Cup after defeating PSV 2–1 in the final. As cup winners, AZ automatically qualified for the 2013–14 Europa League.

In September 2013, just one day after emphatically beating PSV, at the time the league leaders, Verbeek was dismissed as first team manager by the club due to "a lack of chemistry" between management and players. He was replaced by Dick Advocaat for the remainder of the season until a permanent replacement could be found. Advocaat took AZ to the semi-finals of the KNVB Cup, the quarter-finals of the Europa League and eighth in the league, ultimately losing to Groningen in the Europa League play-off final round (their 58th match of the season, a club record).

2014–2019: Van den Brom years

The 2014–15 season began with a new manager, former Heerenveen manager and Ajax great Marco van Basten. However, after just three matches into the season, Van Basten resigned as manager to become assistant manager under Alex Pastoor, citing heavy stress as the main reason. Pastoor was the interim manager during two matches under Van Basten's absence and received the official title on 16 September, but contract negotiations failed and he left the club just two days later. A week later, John van den Brom was appointed manager. Under Van den Brom, AZ quickly rose up to the sub-top, eventually finished the season in third place, surpassing Feyenoord on the final season's matchday and qualifying for the 2015–16 Europa League.

The 2015–16 Eredivisie started with AZ selling most of its first-team players from the previous season during the summer transfer period. As a response, AZ bought players from other Dutch clubs, notably Vincent Janssen from Almere City, Alireza Jahanbakhsh from NEC and Ben Rienstra from PEC Zwolle. In December, it was announced free agent Ron Vlaar signed a contract until the end of the season after training with the club for a few weeks prior. Vlaar quickly became team captain and helped lift AZ from tenth place to a fourth-place finish in the league. Along this rise, new signing Vincent Janssen scored 27 goals for the club, earning him the Eredivisie top goalscorer title. In the 2015–16 KNVB Cup, AZ made it to the semi-finals, losing 3–1 to Feyenoord. AZ won the first two qualification rounds to qualify for the 2015–16 Europa League group stage, but finished last in their group.

At the start of the 2016–17 Eredivisie, AZ sold last season's performer Vincent Janssen to Tottenham Hotspur and long-time midfielder Markus Henriksen to Hull City. In the 2016–17 Europa League, AZ finished second in Group D, surviving the group stage for the third time in five seasons.

Since 2019: Slot–Jansen years

After an excellent 2019/20 season in which AZ beat league leaders Ajax home and away, aided by consistent performances from youth academy talents such as Teun Koopmeiners, Myron Boadu, Calvin Stengs and Owen Wijndal, the season was forced to end early due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Joint on points with Ajax at the top of the table, AZ were given second place on goal difference, and subsequently earned Qualification to the Champions League second qualifying round.

A poor start to their 2020/21 Eredivisie campaign saw AZ draw five games in a row, before eventually picking up a victory against RKC Waalwijk on 1 November 2020.

AZ also struggled in European competitions this season. Despite a strong start, with a 3–1 extra time come back against Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League qualifiers, the club lost 2–0 to Dynamo Kyiv several weeks later, seeing them fall back into the Europa League. After victory against Napoli and Rijeka early in the pool stages, AZ was on track to advance, though lost to Real Sociedad away, obtained a 0–0 draw in the reverse fixture, and also drew 1–1 with Napoli. Following these results, AZ needed to defeat Rijeka away to advance. However, the departure the week before the game of manager Arne Slot saw an unorganised team lose 2–1 to Rijeka, ending their European dream.

In 2022–2023, AZ stepped up their performance in Europa Conference League play, winning five out of six Group E matches against SC Dnipro-1, Apollon Limassol and Vaduz, then beating Lazio 4–2 on aggregate. However, their run was ended by defeats to West Ham United, with AZ's home leg marred by supporter violence.

Coaching staff

Statistic from January 2024

Position	Staff
Head coach	Maarten Martens
Assistant coach	Robert Franssen Kenneth Goudmijn Jan Sierksma
Goalkeeper coach	Nick van Aart
Fitness coach	Niels Kok
Chief Scout	Carlos Aalbers
Scout	Arthur Numan Koen Veenstra Lars Engel Hugo Hovenkamp
Head of Medical	Rob Tamminga
Club doctor	Ingrid Paul
Physiotherapist	Martin Cruijff Frank Renzenbrink
Team Manager	Ari Menmi
Technical director	Max Huiberts

Players

Current squad

As of 26 September 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	NED	Rome-Jayden Owusu-Oduro
3	DF	NED	Wouter Goes
4	DF	NED	Bruno Martins Indi (captain)
5	DF	POR	Alexandre Penetra
6	MF	NED	Peer Koopmeiners
7	FW	NED	Ruben van Bommel
8	MF	NED	Jordy Clasie (vice-captain)
9	FW	IRL	Troy Parrott
10	MF	NED	Sven Mijnans
11	FW	GHA	Ibrahim Sadiq
12	GK	NED	Hobie Verhulst
13	GK	NED	Sem Westerveld
14	MF	SRB	Kristijan Belić
16	DF	JPN	Seiya Maikuma
17	FW	NED	Jayden Addai

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
18	DF	NOR	David Møller Wolfe
21	FW	NED	Ernest Poku
22	DF	NED	Maxim Dekker
23	FW	SWE	Mayckel Lahdo
24	MF	NED	Lewis Schouten
25	FW	NED	Lequincio Zeefuik
26	MF	NED	Kees Smit
28	MF	NED	Zico Buurmeester
30	DF	NED	Denso Kasius
31	GK	NED	Daniël Virginio Deen
33	MF	NED	Dave Kwakman
34	DF	NED	Mees de Wit
35	FW	NED	Mexx Meerdink
41	GK	NED	Jeroen Zoet

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	FW	NED	Myron van Brederode (at Fortuna Düsseldorf until 30 June 2025)

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	DF	NED	Finn Stam (at Groningen until 30 June 2025)

Jong AZ

For the reserve squad of AZ, see Jong AZ.

Participating in the Eerste Divisie, the reserve squad of AZ trains and plays their home games in Zaanstad.

Former players

Further information: Category:AZ Alkmaar players

National team players

The following players were called up to represent their national teams in international football and received caps during their tenure with AZ Alkmaar:

• Argentina

  • Sergio Romero (2007–2011)

  Australia

  • James Holland (2009–2012)
  • Brett Holman (2008–2012)
  • Mathew Ryan (2023–2024)

  Austria

  • Kurt Welzl (1978–1981)

  Belgium

  • Stein Huysegems (2003–2006)
  • Maarten Martens (2006–2014)
  • Sébastien Pocognoli (2007–2010)
  • Gill Swerts (2008–2011)

  Cameroon

  • Willie Overtoom (2013–2014)

  Costa Rica

  • Esteban Alvarado (2010–2015)

  Denmark

  • Henrik Eigenbrod (1982–1984)
  • Kristen Nygaard (1972–1982)
  • Kenneth Perez (2000–2006)
  • Simon Poulsen (2008–2012; 2014–2015)

  Estonia

  • Ragnar Klavan (2009–2012)

  Finland

  • Niki Mäenpää (2011–2012)
  • Niklas Moisander (2008–2012)
  • Juha Reini (2002–2006)

  Georgia

  • Shota Arveladze (2005–2007)

  Ghana

  • Kamal Sowah (2022)

  Greece

  • Pantelis Chatzidiakos (2015–2023)
  • Vangelis Pavlidis (2021–2024)

  Hungary

  • Milos Kerkez (2022–2023)

  Iceland

  • Joey Guðjónsson (2006–2007)
  • Albert Guðmundsson (2018–2022)
  • Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson (2009–2014)
  • Kolbeinn Sigþórsson (2010–2011)
  • Grétar Steinsson (2006–2008)

  Iran

  • Alireza Jahanbakhsh (2015–2018)

• Japan

  • Yukinari Sugawara (2020–2024)

  Mexico

  • Héctor Moreno (2008–2011)

  Morocco

  • Zakaria Aboukhlal (2019–2022)
  • Nourdin Boukhari (2007)
  • Ali Elkhattabi (2001–2006)
  • Abdelkrim El Hadrioui (1998–2002)
  • Mounir El Hamdaoui (2007–2010; 2015–2016)
  • Oussama Idrissi (2018–2020)
  • Adil Ramzi (2004–2006)
  • Tarik Sektioui (2004–2006)

  Netherlands

  • Peter Arntz (1976–1985)
  • Roy Beerens (2011–2014)
  • Marco Bizot (2017–2021)
  • Myron Boadu (2017–2021)
  • Dries Boussatta (1998–2002)
  • Tim de Cler (2002–2007)
  • Barry van Galen (1997–2006)
  • Willem van Hanegem (1976–1979)
  • Hugo Hovenkamp (1975–1983)
  • Kew Jaliens (2004–2011)
  • Vincent Janssen (2015–2016)
  • Jos Jonker (1980–1983)
  • Danny Koevermans (2005–2007)
  • Kees Kist (1972–1982; 1984–1985)
  • Teun Koopmeiners (2017–2021)
  • Jan Kromkamp (2000–2005)
  • Denny Landzaat (2003–2006)
  • Adam Maher (2010–2013; 2018–2019)
  • Dirk Marcellis (2010–2015)
  • Bruno Martins Indi (2020–present)
  • Joris Mathijsen (2004–2006)
  • Martijn Meerdink (2002–2007)
  • David Mendes da Silva (2006–2010)
  • John Metgod (1976–1982)
  • Oscar Moens (1996–2003)
  • Barry Opdam (1996–2008)
  • Jan Peters (1977–1982)
  • Henk van Rijnsoever (1974–1982)
  • Stijn Schaars (2005–2011)
  • Ronald Spelbos (1974–1982)
  • Calvin Stengs (2017–2021)
  • Guus Til (2016–2019)
  • Henk Timmer (2000–2006)
  • Pier Tol (1978–1988)

• Netherlands (continued)
  • Nick Viergever (2010–2014)
  • Ron Vlaar (2004–2006; 2015–2021)
  • Bobby Vosmaer (1974–1978)
  • Wout Weghorst (2016–2018)
  • Owen Wijndal (2017–2022)
  • Demy de Zeeuw (2005–2009)

  Norway

  • Håkon Evjen (2020–2023)
  • Markus Henriksen (2012–2017)
  • Bjørn Maars Johnsen (2018–2020)
  • Fredrik Midtsjø (2017–2022)
  • Jonas Svensson (2017–2021)
  • David Møller Wolfe (2023–present)

  Paraguay

  • Celso Ortiz (2010–2016)

  Republic of Ireland

  • Troy Parrott (2024–present)

  Romania

  • Dorin Rotariu (2018–2019)

  Serbia

  • Kristijan Belić (2024–present)
  • Nemanja Gudelj (2013–2015)

  Suriname

  • Ramon Leeuwin (2020–2021)

  Sweden

  • Rasmus Elm (2009–2012)
  • Mattias Johansson (2012–2017)
  • Jesper Karlsson (2020–2023)
  • Muamer Tanković (2014–2017)
  • Pontus Wernbloom (2009–2012)

  Trinidad & Tobago

  • Levi García (2015–2018)

  United States

  • Jozy Altidore (2011–2013)
  • Aron Jóhannsson (2013–2015)
  • Djordje Mihailovic (2023–2024)

• Players in bold actively play for AZ Alkmaar and for their respective national teams. Years in brackets indicate careerspan with AZ.

National team players by Confederation

Member associations are listed in order of most to least amount of current and former AZ players represented Internationally

Total national team players by confederation

Confederation	Total	(Nation) Association
AFC	5	Australia (3), Iran (1), Japan (1)
CAF	10	Morocco (8), Cameroon (1), Ghana (1)
CONCACAF	7	United States (3), Costa Rica (1), Mexico (1), Suriname (1), Trinidad & Tobago (1)
CONMEBOL	2	Argentina (1), Paraguay (1)
OFC	0
UEFA	73	Netherlands (40), Norway (6), Iceland (5), Sweden (5), Belgium (4), Denmark (4), Finland (3), Greece (2), Serbia (2), Austria (1), Estonia (1), Georgia (1), Hungary (1), Ireland (1), Romania (1)

Players in international tournaments

The following is a list of AZ players who have competed in international tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup, UEFA European Championship, AFC Asian Cup, Africa Cup of Nations, CONCACAF Gold Cup and the Copa América. To this date no AZ players have participated in the FIFA Confederations Cup or the OFC Nations Cup while playing for AZ Alkmaar.

Cup	Players
UEFA Euro 1976	Hugo Hovenkamp Kees Kist John Metgod
1978 FIFA World Cup	Hugo Hovenkamp
UEFA Euro 1980	Hugo Hovenkamp Kees Kist
2000 Africa Cup of Nations	Abdelkarim El Hadrioui
UEFA Euro 2004	Kenneth Perez
2006 FIFA World Cup	Tim de Cler Kew Jaliens Denny Landzaat Joris Mathijsen Henk Timmer
UEFA Euro 2008	Demy de Zeeuw
2010 FIFA World Cup	Brett Holman Héctor Moreno Simon Poulsen Sergio Romero Stijn Schaars
2011 AFC Asian Cup	Brett Holman
2011 Copa América	Sergio Romero
2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup	Héctor Moreno
UEFA Euro 2012	Rasmus Elm Simon Poulsen
2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup	Esteban Alvarado Aron Jóhannsson
2016 Copa América	Celso Ortiz
2018 FIFA World Cup	Alireza Jahanbakhsh
2019 Africa Cup of Nations	Oussama Idrissi
UEFA Euro 2020	Marco Bizot Teun Koopmeiners Owen Wijndal
2021 Africa Cup of Nations	Zakaria Aboukhlal
2023 AFC Asian Cup	Mathew Ryan Yukinari Sugawara
2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup	Djordje Mihailovic

Stadium and sponsor

Stadium

See also: AFAS Stadion

AFAS Stadion, AZ's home venue in Alkmaar. Photo includes the old roof and the old name, 'DSB Stadion'.

AZ play its home matches at the AFAS Stadion, located in the southern part of the city of Alkmaar. The stadium, which is directly owned by the club, was opened in 2006 and replaced the old Alkmaarderhout venue as the DSB Stadion. The stadium currently has a capacity of 17,023. During its design stages, the name Victorie Stadion was frequently used, referring to the Dutch War of Independence, the phrase "In Alkmaar begint de victorie" (Victory begins in Alkmaar) in particular. Until now, this name has not been officially in use, the board instead opting for sponsorship deals because of financial motives. However, to this day, the name maintains a good share of support among the fans.

To further increase revenue, AZ's board of directors decided to expand the capacity of the new stadium to at least 30,000 somewhere in the future. The extension will be realised by constructing a second tier to three of the four stands. The main stand with all technical areas, VIP and sponsor and media facilities will remain in place. These plans, however, were put on hold after the DSB bankruptcy and there are no current plans to increase the capacity.

In October 2009, sponsor DSB Bank was declared bankrupt. The stadium name temporarily changed from DSB Stadion to AZ Stadion, as it was considered undesirable that the stadium was linked with a non-existent bank. In February 2010, a new main sponsor was found in construction works service provider BUKO, based in Beverwijk.

A year later, in the 2010–11 season, AFAS Software took over as official stadium sponsor. The current external name of the ground is the AFAS Stadion.

On 10 August 2019, the roof of the stadium partially collapsed. No people were injured during the incident. As the result AZ spent the rest of the year playing home matches at the Cars Jeans Stadion in The Hague whilst the damaged roof was being removed, before returning to the stadium on 15 December 2019, beating Ajax 1–0 in their first match back. AZ played the rest of the 2019/20 season, until the COVID-19 pandemic cut it short, without a roof. During the 2020/21 season, a new roof was installed, held up by 20 crane-like arms on three sides and a so-called mega truss on the main stand. The renewed stadium, which also included a capacity upgrade of nearly 2,500 seats for a new total capacity of 19,500, was officially opened on 11 September 2021, before the home game against PSV.

Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors

Period	Kit manufacturer	Shirt sponsor
1977–1982	Adidas
1982–1986		Sony
1986–1988	Lotto	Electrolux
1988–1989		Swingbo
1989–1990	Reebok	Reebok
1990–1993	Hi-Tec	Frisia
1993–1998	Hummel
1998–1999	Kappa
1999–2001	none
2001–2002	Umbro
2002–2004		Actus Notarissen
2004–2005		Frisia
2005–2006		DSB
2006–2008	Quick
2008–2009	Canterbury
2009–2010	Quick	BUKO
2010–2011		AFAS Software
2011–2015	Macron
2015–2019	Under Armour
2020–	Nike
2022–2024	Nike	Kansino

Honours

Historical chart of league performance

Type	Competition	Titles	Seasons
Domestic	Eredivisie	2	1980–81, 2008–09
	Eerste Divisie	3	1959–601, 1995–96, 1997–98
	Tweede Divisie	1	1955–562
	KNVB Cup	4	1977–78, 1980–81, 1981–82, 2012–13
	Johan Cruyff Shield	1	2009

European record

Main article: AZ Alkmaar in European football

Matches

Season	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Aggregate
1977–78	UEFA Cup	First round	Red Boys Differdange	11–1	5–0	16–1
		Second round	Barcelona	1–1	1–1	1–1 (4–5 p)
1978–79	European Cup Winners' Cup	First round	Ipswich Town	0–0	0–2	0–2
1980–81	UEFA Cup	First round	Red Boys Differdange	6–0	4–0	10–0
		Second round	Levski Sofia	5–0	1–1	6–1
		Third round	Radnički Niš	5–0	2–2	7–2
		Quarter-finals	Lokeren	2–0	0–1	2–1
		Semi-finals	Sochaux	3–2	1–1	4–3
		Final	Ipswich Town	4–2	0–3	4–5
1981–82	European Cup	First round	Start	3–1	1–0	4–1
		Round of 16	Liverpool	2–2	2–3	4–5
1982–83	European Cup Winners' Cup	First round	Limerick	1–0	1–1	2–1
		Second round	Inter Milan	1–0	0–2	1–2
2004–05	UEFA Cup	Group F	Auxerre	2–0	N/A	1st
			Amica Wronki	N/A	3–1
			Rangers	1–0	N/A
			Grazer AK	N/A	0–2
		Round of 32	Alemannia Aachen	2–1	0–0	2–1
		Round of 16	Shakhtar Donetsk	2–1	3–1	5–2
		Quarter-finals	Villarreal	1–1	2–1	3–2
		Semi-finals	Sporting CP	3–2	1–2	4–4 (a)
2005–06	UEFA Cup	Group D	Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk	N/A	2–1	2nd
			Middlesbrough	0–0	N/A
			Litex Lovech	N/A	2–0
			Grasshoppers	1–0	N/A
		Round of 32	Real Betis	2–1	0–2	2–3
2006–07	UEFA Cup	Group C	Braga	3–0	N/A	1st
			Grasshoppers	N/A	5–2
			Slovan Liberec	2–2	N/A
			Sevilla	N/A	2–1
		Round of 32	Fenerbahçe	2–2	3–3	5–5 (a)
		Round of 16	Newcastle United	2–0	2–4	4–4 (a)
		Quarter-finals	Werder Bremen	0–0	1–4	1–4
2007–08	UEFA Cup	Group A	Zenit Saint Petersburg	N/A	1–1	4th
			Larissa	1–0	N/A
			1. FC Nürnberg	N/A	1–2
			Everton	2–3	N/A
2009–10	UEFA Champions League	Group H	Olympiacos	0–0	0–1	4th
			Standard Liège	1–1	1–1
			Arsenal	1–1	1–4
2010–11	UEFA Europa League	Group E	Sheriff Tiraspol	2–1	1–1	3rd
			BATE Borisov	3–0	1–4
			Dynamo Kyiv	1–2	0–2
2011–12	UEFA Europa League	Group G	Malmö FF	4–1	0–0	2nd
			Metalist Kharkiv	1–1	1–1
			Austria Wien	2–2	2–2
		Round of 32	Anderlecht	1–0	1–0	2–0
		Round of 16	Udinese	2–0	1–2	3–2
		Quarter-finals	Valencia	2–1	0–4	2–5
2012–13	UEFA Europa League	Play-off round	Anzhi Makhachkala	0–5	0–1	0–6
2013–14	UEFA Europa League	Play-off round	Atromitos	2–0	3–1	5–1
		Group L	Maccabi Haifa	2–0	1–0	1st
			PAOK	1–1	2–2
			Shakhter Karagandy	1–0	1–1
		Round of 32	Slovan Liberec	1–1	1–0	2–1
		Round of 16	Anzhi Makhachkala	1–0	0–0	1–0
		Quarter-finals	Benfica	0–1	0–2	0–3
2015–16	UEFA Europa League	Third qualifying round	İstanbul Başakşehir	2–0	2–1	4–1
		Play-off round	Astra Giurgiu	2–0	2–3	4–3
		Group L	Partizan	1–2	2–3	4th
			Athletic Bilbao	2–1	2–2
			FC Augsburg	0–1	1–4
2016–17	UEFA Europa League	Third qualifying round	PAS Giannina	1–0	2–1	3–1
		Play-off round	Vojvodina	0–0	3–0	3–0
		Group D	Dundalk	1–1	1–0	2nd
			Zenit Saint Petersburg	3–2	0–5
			Maccabi Tel Aviv	1–2	0–0
		Round of 32	Lyon	1–4	1–7	2–11
2018–19	UEFA Europa League	Second qualifying round	Kairat	2–1	0–2	2–3
2019–20	UEFA Europa League	Second qualifying round	BK Häcken	0–0	3–0	3–0
		Third qualifying round	Mariupol	4–0	0–0	4–0
		Play-off round	Antwerp	1–1	4–1	5–2
		Group L	Partizan	2–2	2–2	2nd
			Manchester United	0–0	0–4
			Astana	6–0	5–0
		Round of 32	LASK	1–1	0–2	1–3
2020–21	UEFA Champions League	Second qualifying round	FC Viktoria Plzeň	3–1	N/A	3–1
		Third qualifying round	FC Dynamo Kyiv	N/A	0–2	0-2
2020–21	UEFA Europa League	Group F	Napoli	1–1	1–0	3rd
			Rijeka	4–1	1–2
			Real Sociedad	0–0	0–1
2021–22	UEFA Europa Conference League	Group D	Randers	1–0	2–2	1st
			Jablonec	1–0	1–1
			CFR Cluj	2–0	1–0
		Round of 16	Bodø/Glimt	2–2	1–2	3–4
2022–23	UEFA Europa Conference League	Second qualifying round	Tuzla City	1–0	4–0	5–0
		Third qualifying round	Dundee United	7–0	0–1	7–1
		Play-off round	Gil Vicente	4–0	2–1	6–1
		Group E	Dnipro-1	2–1	1–0	1st
			Vaduz	4–1	2–1
			Apollon Limassol	3–2	0–1
		Round of 16	Lazio	2–1	2–1	4–2
		Quarter-finals	Anderlecht	2–0	0–2	2–2 (4–1 p.)
		Semi-finals	West Ham United	0–1	1–2	1–3
2023–24	UEFA Europa Conference League	Third qualifying round	FC Santa Coloma	2–0	1–0	3–0
		Play-off round	Brann	1–1	3–3	4–4 (6–5 p.)
		Group E	Zrinjski Mostar	1–0	3–4	3rd
			Legia Warsaw	1–0	0–2
			Aston Villa	1–4	1–2

UEFA coefficient ranking

As of 24 August 2023

Rank	Team	Points
36	West Ham United	50.000
37	Milan	50.000
38	AZ	47.500
39	Rennes	44.000
40	Braga	44.000

Domestic results

Below is a table with AZ's domestic results since the introduction of professional football in 1956.

Domestic results since 1956
Domestic league	League result	Qualification to	KNVB Cup season	Cup result
1956–57 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	2nd (group A)	–	1956–57	Third round
1957–58 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	9th (group A)	–	1957–58	Third round
1958–59 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	4th (group A)	–	1958–59	Third round
1959–60 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	1st (group B)	Eredivisie (promotion)	not held	not held
1960–61 Eredivisie (as Alkmaar '54)	17th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1960–61	First round
1961–62 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	12th (group A)	Tweede Divisie (relegation)	1961–62	Second round
1962–63 Tweede Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	4th (group A)	–	1962–63	Semi-finals
1963–64 Tweede Divisie (as Alkmaar '54)	1st (group A); 2nd overall losing play-off	Eerste Divisie (winning promotion tournament)	1963–64	First round
1964–65 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54) 1964–65 Tweede Divisie (as FC Zaanstreek)	11th 6th (group A)	–	1964–65	First round First round
1965–66 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar'54) 1965–66 Tweede Divisie (as FC Zaanstreek)	4th 3rd (group A)	– Eerste Divisie (promotion)	1965–66	Group stage Group stage
1966–67 Eerste Divisie (as Alkmaar '54 and FC Zaanstreek)	12th 7th	–	1966–67	First round First round
1967–68 Eerste Divisie	2nd	Eredivisie (promotion)	1967–68	Group stage
1968–69 Eredivisie	16th	– (after surviving relegation play-offs)	1968–69	Second round
1969–70 Eredivisie	12th	–	1969–70	Quarter-finals
1970–71 Eredivisie	17th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1970–71	Second round
1971–72 Eerste Divisie	2nd	Eredivisie (promotion)	1971–72	First round
1972–73 Eredivisie	15th	–	1972–73	Semi-finals
1973–74 Eredivisie	7th	–	1973–74	Quarter-finals
1974–75 Eredivisie	5th	–	1974–75	Quarter-finals
1975–76 Eredivisie	5th	–	1975–76	Quarter-finals
1976–77 Eredivisie	3rd	UEFA Cup	1976–77	Semi-finals
1977–78 Eredivisie	3rd	Cup Winners' Cup	1977–78	Winner
1978–79 Eredivisie	4th	–	1978–79	Quarter-finals
1979–80 Eredivisie	2nd	UEFA Cup	1979–80	Quarter-finals
1980–81 Eredivisie	1st	European Cup	1980–81	Winner
1981–82 Eredivisie	3rd	Cup Winners' Cup	1981–82	Winner
1982–83 Eredivisie	11th	–	1982–83	Second round
1983–84 Eredivisie	6th	–	1983–84	Quarter-finals
1984–85 Eredivisie	13th	–	1984–85	First round
1985–86 Eredivisie	9th	–	1985–86	Second round
1986–87 Eredivisie	15th	–	1986–87	Second round
1987–88 Eredivisie	16th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1987–88	First round
1988–89 Eerste Divisie	5th	–	1988–89	Quarter-finals
1989–90 Eerste Divisie	12th	–	1989–90	First round
1990–91 Eerste Divisie	4th	promotion/relegation play-off: no promotion	1990–91	First round
1991–92 Eerste Divisie	13th	–	1991–92	Second round
1992–93 Eerste Divisie	10th	–	1992–93	Third round
1993–94 Eerste Divisie	3rd	promotion/relegation play-off: no promotion	1993–94	Round of 16
1994–95 Eerste Divisie	5th	promotion/relegation play-off: no promotion	1994–95	Round of 16
1995–96 Eerste Divisie	1st	Eredivisie (promotion)	1995–96	Round of 16
1996–97 Eredivisie	18th	Eerste Divisie (relegation)	1996–97	Quarter-finals
1997–98 Eerste Divisie	1st	Eredivisie (promotion)	1997–98	First round (knock-out stage)
1998–99 Eredivisie	9th	–	1998–99	Round of 16
1999–2000 Eredivisie	7th	–	1999–00	Semi-finals
2000–01 Eredivisie	13th	–	2000–01	Quarter-finals
2001–02 Eredivisie	10th	–	2001–02	Second round (knock-out stage)
2002–03 Eredivisie	10th	–	2002–03	Second round (knock-out stage)
2003–04 Eredivisie	5th	UEFA Cup	2003–04	Second round
2004–05 Eredivisie	3rd	UEFA Cup	2004–05	Round of 16
2005–06 Eredivisie	2nd	UEFA Cup (after losing Champions League play-offs)	2005–06	Semi-finals
2006–07 Eredivisie	3rd	UEFA Cup (after losing Champions League play-offs)	2006–07	Final
2007–08 Eredivisie	11th	–	2007–08	Second round
2008–09 Eredivisie	1st	Champions League	2008–09	Quarter-finals
2009–10 Eredivisie	5th	Europa League (Q3)	2009–10	Round of 16
2010–11 Eredivisie	4th	Europa League (Q3)	2010–11	Round of 16
2011–12 Eredivisie	4th	Europa League (Q4)	2011–12	Semi-finals
2012–13 Eredivisie	10th	Europa League	2012–13	Winner
2013–14 Eredivisie	8th	–	2013–14	Semi-finals
2014–15 Eredivisie	3rd	Europa League (Q3)	2014–15	Quarter-finals
2015–16 Eredivisie	4th	Europa League (Q3)	2015–16	Semi-finals
2016–17 Eredivisie	6th	–	2016–17	Final
2017–18 Eredivisie	3rd	Europa League (Q3)	2017–18	Final
2018–19 Eredivisie	4th	Europa League (Q2)	2018–19	Semi-finals
2019–20 Eredivisie	2nd	Champions League (Q2)	2019–20	Quarter-finals
2020–21 Eredivisie	3rd	Europa League (Q4)	2020–21	Round of 16
2021–22 Eredivisie	5th	Europa Conference League (Q2)	2021–22	Semi-finals
2022–23 Eredivisie	4th	Europa Conference League (Q3)	2022–23	Round of 16
2023–24 Eredivisie	4th	Europa League	2023–24	Quarter-finals

Coaches

Alkmaar '54

• Gerrit van Wijhe (1954–1956)
• Kick Smit (1956–1958)
• Ludwig Veg (1 July 1958 – 30 June 1960)
• Piet de Wolf (1960–1961)
• Bonnie Bult (1961–1962)
• Arie Rentenaar (1962–1963)
• Ludwig Veg (1 July 1963 – 30 June 1965)
• Barry Hughes (1 July 1965 – 30 June 1967)

KFC / FC Zaanstreek

• Bob Kelly (1955–1956)
• Wim Blokland (1956–1958)
• Klaas Molenaar (1958–1960)
• Toon Bruins Slot (1960–1963)
• Joop de Kubber (1963–1964)
• Piet de Wolf (1964–1965)
• Toon van den Enden (1965–1966)

AZ '67

• Lesley Talbot (1 July 1967 – 30 June 1968)
• Wim Blokland (1968–1969)
• Robert Heinz (1969–1971)
• Cor van der Hart (1 July 1971 – 30 June 1973)
• Joop Brand (1 July 1973 – 30 June 1976)
• Hans Kraay Sr. (1 July 1976 – 30 June 1977)
• Jan Notermans (1977)
• Cor van der Hart (1 July 1977 – 30 June 1978)
• Georg Keßler (1 July 1978 – 30 June 1982)
• Hans Eijkenbroek (1 July 1982 – 30 June 1983)
• Piet de Visser (1 July 1983 – 30 June 1985)
• Joop Brand (1 July 1985 – 30 June 1986)
• Han Berger (1 July 1986 – 31 December 1986)

AZ

• Hans Eijkenbroek (1987 – 30 June 1989)
• Hans van Doorneveld (1 July 1989 – 30 June 1990)
• Henk Wullems (1 July 1990 – 30 June 1993)
• Piet Schrijvers (1 July 1993 – 30 June 1994)
• Theo Vonk (1 July 1994 – 28 February 1997)
• Hans de Koning (interim) (28 February 1997 – 30 June 1997)
• Willem van Hanegem (1 July 1997 – 30 June 1999)
• Gerard van der Lem (1 July 1999 – 30 March 2000)
• Henk van Stee (31 March 2000 – 30 October 2002)
• Co Adriaanse (30 October 2002 – 30 June 2005)
• Louis van Gaal (1 July 2005 – 30 June 2009)
• Ronald Koeman (1 July 2009 – 5 December 2009)
• Martin Haar (interim) (5 December 2009 – 10 December 2009)
• Dick Advocaat (10 December 2009 – 30 June 2010)
• Gertjan Verbeek (1 July 2010 – 29 September 2013)
• Martin Haar (interim) (29 September 2013 – 15 October 2013)
• Dick Advocaat (15 October 2013 – 30 June 2014)
• Marco van Basten (30 June 2014 – 16 September 2014)
• John van den Brom (29 September 2014 – 30 June 2019)
• Arne Slot (1 July 2019  – 5 December 2020)
• Pascal Jansen (5 December 2020 – 17 January 2024)
• Maarten Martens (17 January 2024 – present)

External links

• Official website