Two Neighbouring Countries and a Football Pitch

Abstract

This article argues that Dutch popular reactions to football matches against Germany give keen insights into the relationship between the two countries. The starting point is the celebration of the victory of the Dutch national side on the night of 21 June 1988. The intensity of the emotion aroused by the defeat of the German team is explained by Dutch-German football history, the World Championship of 1974 in particular, and by the wider history of the troubled Dutch-German relationship, the most important aspect of which is naturally the Occupation, which seems to have a permanent significance in Dutch political and cultural life.