AGOVV Apeldoorn

1913–54: Early years

The club was founded on 25 February 1913 – by the teetotalers singing club – as AGOSV, which stood for Apeldoornse Geheel Onthoudersvoetbalvereniging Steeds Voorwaarts Dutch pronunciation: [ˈaːpəlˌdoːr(ə)nsə ɣəˈɦeːl ˈɔntɦʌu̯dərsˌfudbɑlvəˌreːnəɣɪŋ ˈsteːts ˈfoːrˌʋaːrts], after having experienced firsthand the drinking abuse after sports matches on Sundays. The founders decided to play in a blue kit because the colour blue was a symbol of the temperance movement. When the club joined the football association of Gelderland, the club had to change its name, because there was another club called Steeds Voorwaarts. The name was changed to AGOVV, or Apeldoornse Geheel Onthouders Voetbalvereniging, which means Apeldoorn football club for teetotalers. The meaning of the abbreviation was altered in 1921 to its current name. AGOVV became Alleen Gezamenlijk Oefenen Voert Verder Dutch pronunciation: [ɑˈleːŋ ɣəˈzaːmə(n)lək ˈufənə(ɱ) ˈvurt ˈfɛrdər] (Only Practising Together Brings Us Further)..

In 1938, AGOVV reached the final of the KNVB Cup in which they lost to VSV. AGOVV achieved its best results in the 1941–42 and 1948–49 seasons, where they won the title in the Eerste Klasse East division and in the First Class Championship (today known as the Eredivisie), finished in third place.

1954–71: First professional era

AGOVV became a professional club in 1954; the same year as professionalism in football was legalised in the Netherlands. After having…

KNVB Beker Runners-up (1): 1938 Eerste Klasse Oost Champions (2): 1942, 1949

Results