René Hake

Raised in Schoonebeek, Drenthe, Hake began his football career at local amateur side SC Oranje where he played in the first team at the age of 17. He later played in the A-juniors (youth team) at Emmen, but was unable to make the step up to the first team. He then went on to study at the CIOS in Heerenveen, Friesland, an educational institution that provides vocational training in sports and physical education.

Emmen and Twente

After completing his studies, Hake spent eleven years working in the youth department at Emmen before moving to the joined youth academy Twente/Heracles Almelo. At the academy, he served as head of youth development and coach of the under-19 team. Hake was the coach of the under-19 team when they won the national championship and Super Cup for U19s in 2007. He also earned his coaching diploma during this period. In 2009, Hake was appointed head coach of the reserve team of Twente, succeeding Cees Lok. He was later appointed for the position of head coach at Emmen, and signed a contract until 2014 with the club in on 11 October 2010. Following his appointment, Emmen started achieving positive results, going nine games unbeaten after his debut as head coach.

PEC and return to Twente

Hake's contract with Emmen was terminated prematurely in April 2012, and he signed a two-year contract with PEC Zwolle as an assistant coach under Ron Jans in June of that year. He extended his contract with the club for two more years in March 2014. In June 2015, Hake returned to Twente as an assistant coach, signing a three-year contract. He became interim head coach of Twente on 30 August 2015, following the dismissal of Alfred Schreuder. A month and a half later, he was appointed head coach permanently. Although the team struggled due to financial problems, they finished in the 13th position in the 2015–16 campaign. In the second season, the team improved…