On Wednesday, we welcome Dutch side AZ Alkmaar to the Stadium of Light for our Europa League opener, and ahead of the game, I’ve had a look at what our visitors are famous for – both in football terms and beyond!
In profile: Alkmaar
Alkmaar is a city located in the North Holland region of the Netherlands. It has a population of just under 100,000 people and, from Amsterdam, it can be reached by train in about half an hour.
In some ways, it’s like a mini version of the Dutch capital. You can take sightseeing cruises along
the scenic canals that line its streets, but there’s also a more laid-back feel compared to Amsterdam’s faster pace and more touristy feel.
Alkmaar became a symbol of Dutch resistance in the sixteenth century when its civilians helped to resist a Spanish siege despite being heavily outnumbered by opposition soldiers, and aside from its football team, it’s most famous for its cracker of a cheese market, which takes place every Friday morning from March to September.
Cheese trading has formed part of the city’s history since 1365, and the market itself dates back as far as 1593.
It’s taken place in the Waagplein (Alkmaar’s main square) ever since and now attracts thousands of cheese enthusiasts every year. There’s also a cheese museum to visit – Régis Le Bris, anyone? Too cheesy. Sorry.
The Netherlands also exports more beer than any other country in the world, and the Dutch National Beer Museum can be found in Alkmaar.
The museum is housed in a former brewery and visitors can learn about the process of brewing and see a vast collection of bottles and glasses. Visitors can sample beers and also visit the resident bar afterwards to put their new knowledge to the test.
AZ Alkmaar: A Brief History
AZ Alkmaar were founded in 1967 following the merging of Alkmaar ’54 and FC Zaanstreek. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, under the ownership of brothers Cees and Klaas Molenaar, AZ enjoyed a period of success which culminated in a league title in 1981 and multiple seasons in Europe.
On top of the league title (which was the first title won by a team other than Ajax, Feyenoord or PSV for nearly twenty years), AZ also won the Dutch Cup three times, in 1978, 1981 and 1982.
The 1980/1981 season also saw AZ come agonisingly close to a historic treble as they reached the final of the old UEFA Cup before losing 5-4 on aggregate to Bobby Robson’s Ipswich Town.
The AFAS Stadium
Since its opening in 2006, AZ have played at the AFAS Stadium. Located a couple of miles from the city centre, it has a capacity of just under 20,000. Plans had been put in place to increase its capacity to 30,000; however, this was not possible after a club sponsor went bankrupt.
Some supporters also refer to the stadium as the Victorie Stadion, in reference to the city’s victory against the Spanish.
Amid high winds, part of the stadium’s roof collapsed in 2019. There were no injuries, but the club had to redevelop the stadium’s whole roof structure to ensure this would not happen again. AZ played the rest of their games that season in The Hague.
AZ Alkmaar in Europe: Local interest and mixed results
AZ have played European ties against both Newcastle and Middlesbrough.
In November 2005, Middlesbrough visited an AZ side managed by Louis van Gaal in the group stage of the UEFA Cup. A 0-0 draw confirmed the Teessiders’ progression to the knockout stage, and they would eventually make it all the way to the final, where they lost against Sevilla in Eindhoven.
Newcastle played AZ in the round of sixteen in 2007. Although Newcastle won the first leg 4-2 at St James’ Park, it was the Dutch side that triumphed after a 2-0 win in the Netherlands saw them win on away goals.
AZ won the Dutch league for a second time in 2009 and have won the cup twice since, in 2013 and 2026. Former Sunderland striker Jozy Altidore scored AZ’s second goal in their triumphant 2013 final against a PSV Eindhoven team managed by Dick Advocaat. Ola Toivonen and Jeremain Lens also featured for PSV that day.
Alongside Advocaat and van Gaal, AZ have had a number of other big names at the helm, including three-time Ballon d’Or winner Marco van Basten and former Liverpool boss Arne Slot.
Nowadays, AZ are renowned for having one of the best youth academies in the Netherlands. Many of the current squad progressed through the setup, and other graduates include Tijjani Reijnders, Teun Koopmeiners and Ernest Poku.
The Sunderland connection
As touched on previously, Jozy Altidore played for both Sunderland and AZ while Dick Advocaat managed both clubs. Sunderland signed Altidore straight from AZ not long after he scored in their cup final victory, and he boasts an impressive record with the Dutch club, having scored fifty goals and registered eleven assists in just 90 games.
Advocaat managed a total of 62 games for AZ across two separate spells, with an overall win percentage of around 44% – I wonder whether their fans used flowers to convince his wife to go back.
As far as I can tell, there have been two more players who have played for both clubs.
The first was Loek Ursem, who played four games for Sunderland on loan from Stoke under Alan Durban. At the time, he was the first Dutch player to ever play for Sunderland, and the third and final player to play for both is Jeremain Lens, who started his career at AZ after coming through their youth academy.
He was part of the team that won the league in 2009 and moved to PSV, then Dinamo Kyiv, before joining Sunderland in 2015. He played 75 times for AZ but only managed 24 for Sunderland.
Additionally, Sunderland faced off against AZ in a friendly in 2005 under Mick McCarthy. Sunderland won 1-0 courtesy of Tommy Miller’s first goal for the club.
AZ Alkmaar squad profile: Academy graduates aplenty
Winning the Dutch Cup last season meant that AZ automatically qualified for this season’s Europa League league phase without having to play any qualifying matches. This victory came in the form of a convincing 5-1 win over NEC Nijmegen, and AZ also beat PSV 4-0 in the resultant Super Cup tie last month.
AZ followed their Super Cup triumph with five wins in their first five league games – they currently sit top of the league and are clearly a team high in confidence and in great form.
Their top goalscorer last season, Irishman Troy Parrott, was sold to Real Betis in August. However, Parrott’s ability off the shoulder is seemingly not being missed, given that AZ are averaging over three league goals a game so far.
Other players such as twenty-two-year-old academy graduate Ro-Zangelo Daal have stepped up. Daal, who plays on the left wing, has scored four goals in the five league games so far and is one to look out for at the Stadium of Light.
Calvin Stengs is another exciting winger.
He also came through the AZ academy; however, he left the club for Nice in 2021. He returned to AZ this summer following stints at Antwerp, Feyenoord and Pisa. He hasn’t yet started a game for the club since his return but has contributed a goal and two assists in just 173 minutes off the bench.
Twenty-year-old central midfielder Kees Smit is another key player who has progressed through the academy.
He’s already surpassed 80 appearances for the club and made his international debut for the Netherlands in May. Clubs such as Real Madrid, Liverpool, Barcelona and PSG have already been credited with interest in Smit, so he could be one to watch in the next few transfer windows.
What can Sunderland expect?
AZ’s squad have an average age of around twenty-four years old, so Sunderland can expect a challenging game against a youthful and energetic side that’ll be full of confidence following their start in the league.
Their away fans will almost certainly make a racket, and this, mixed with the energy of the team, should provide for an intriguing watch. The overall atmosphere should be incredible, given that this is our first game in Europe in over fifty years.
This will undoubtedly be a tough game, but I have faith that this Sunderland squad will be strong enough to overcome our opponents and get us off to a good start in the Europa League!
