The Dutch Eerste Divisie

Eerste Divisie

The Eerste Divisie is the second-highest division of football in the Netherlands. It is linked with the top-level Eredivisie via a promotion/relegation system. It is also known as the Jupiler League due to sponsorship, which is the same name as the top league in Belgium...

(First Division) in the 1971/1972 season was contested by 21 teams, five more than in the previous year. Due to the disbandment of the Tweede Divisie

Tweede Divisie

The Tweede Divisie was the lowest professional football league in the Netherlands. It was established in 1956, together with the Eredivisie and the Eerste Divisie. Between 1956 and 1960 and between 1962 and 1966, the league consisted of two divisions, Tweede Divisie A and Tweede Divisie B. The...

, six teams were promoted to the Eerste Divisie; the rest of the teams returned to amateur football. As a result of the disbandment, teams no longer could relegate to lower leagues. HFC Haarlem

HFC Haarlem

HFC Haarlem was a Dutch football club from the city of Haarlem, established in 1889. The club won the Dutch national title in 1946 and reached five Cup finals, winning in 1902 and 1912...

 won the championship.

New entrants

Promoted from the Tweede Divisie 1970–71

Tweede Divisie 1970–71

The Dutch Tweede Divisie in the 1970/1971 season was contested by 17 teams. The competition would be disbaned after this season, so eleven teams returned to amateur football...

:

• FC Eindhoven
  FC Eindhoven
  FC Eindhoven is a Dutch football club based in Eindhoven, North Brabant. They current play in the Eerste Divisie , and are one of two professional clubs which are based in the city of Eindhoven, the other one being PSV Eindhoven....
  
  
• Fortuna Vlaardingen
  Fortuna Vlaardingen
  Fortuna Vlaardingen was a Dutch football club which was founded in 1904 in Vlaardingen. The club played its matches in the Floreslaan stadium....
  
  
• PEC Zwolle
  FC Zwolle
  FC Zwolle is a Dutch football club based in Zwolle, currently playing in the Eerste Divisie, the country's second level of professional club football. The club was founded in 1990 after the bankruptcy of PEC. They have played in the Eredivisie, the highest tier of Dutch football, for a total of...
  
  
• Roda JC
• De Volewijckers
• FC VVV

Relegated from the Eredivisie 1970-71

Eredivisie 1970-71

The Dutch Eredivisie in the 1970/1971 season was contested by 18 teams. Feijenoord won the championship.-League standings:1 Ajax won the KNVB Cup, but they already qualified for the European Cup. Therefore, finalists Sparta would participate in the Cup Winners' Cup. 2 At the end of the season, ADO...

:

• AZ'67
• HFC Haarlem
  HFC Haarlem
  HFC Haarlem was a Dutch football club from the city of Haarlem, established in 1889. The club won the Dutch national title in 1946 and reached five Cup finals, winning in 1902 and 1912...
  
  

League standings

Pos	Club	P	W	D	L	Pts	GF	GA
1	HFC Haarlem HFC Haarlem HFC Haarlem was a Dutch football club from the city of Haarlem, established in 1889. The club won the Dutch national title in 1946 and reached five Cup finals, winning in 1902 and 1912...	40	26	10	4	62	74	23	Promotion to Eredivisie Eredivisie 1972-73 The Eredivisie is a football league in the Netherlands. In the 1972/1973 season it was contested by 18 teams. Ajax won the championship.-League standings:1 Winners KNVB Cup. 2 Clubs participating in the Intertoto Cup 1973....
2	AZ'67	40	22	11	7	55	68	31
3	sc Heerenveen	40	19	13	8	51	53	33
4	Roda JC	40	20	9	11	49	53	42
5	FC Eindhoven FC Eindhoven FC Eindhoven is a Dutch football club based in Eindhoven, North Brabant. They current play in the Eerste Divisie , and are one of two professional clubs which are based in the city of Eindhoven, the other one being PSV Eindhoven....	40	16	14	10	46	50	47
6	FC Wageningen FC Wageningen FC Wageningen was a Dutch football club which was founded on August 27, 1911. The club played its matches in the Wageningse Berg stadium ....	40	17	12	11	46	54	51
7	PEC Zwolle FC Zwolle FC Zwolle is a Dutch football club based in Zwolle, currently playing in the Eerste Divisie, the country's second level of professional club football. The club was founded in 1990 after the bankruptcy of PEC. They have played in the Eredivisie, the highest tier of Dutch football, for a total of...	40	17	9	14	43	58	56
8	SC Cambuur	40	15	12	13	42	48	40
9	HVC SC Amersfoort Sportclub Amersfoort was a Dutch football club which was founded on July 30, 1973, and played in the Dutch second league of professional football, Eerste Divisie.Due to financial problems the club based in Amersfoort, Utrecht, folded on June 30, 1982....	40	14	13	13	41	43	48
10	Veendam BV Veendam SC Veendam is a Dutch football club based in Veendam, Groningen province, playing in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of football in the Netherlands. The club's official colours are black and yellow.- History :...	40	14	12	14	40	48	55
11	De Graafschap De Graafschap De Graafschap is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the "De Vijverberg" stadium. Their current home ground stands on where the old pitch used to be located and was opened on 12 August 2000...	40	13	12	15	38	49	48
12	Blauw Wit	40	14	10	16	38	37	44	1
13	Fortuna SC Fortuna Sittard Fortuna Sittard is a football club in Sittard, Netherlands. The club currently plays its football in the 12,500 capacity Trendwork Arena and features in the Dutch Eerste Divisie. The club was a merger of former clubs 'Fortuna 54' and 'Sittardia' to merge as the Fortuna Sittard Combinatie on July 1,...	40	11	14	15	36	48	46
14	Heracles Heracles Almelo Heracles Almelo is a football club from Almelo, Netherlands.Heracles Almelo were founded on May 3, 1903 as Heracles, after the demigod son of Zeus. They changed their name on July 1, 1974 to SC Heracles '74 and finally settled on the current name in 1998. The club has won the Dutch national title...	40	13	9	18	35	46	45
15	Willem II	40	12	11	17	35	46	54
16	FC VVV	40	11	12	17	34	42	50
17	SVV Schiedamse Voetbal Vereniging Schiedamse Voetbal Vereniging was a Dutch professional football club from Schiedam. Founded in 1904, the club won the Dutch national football title in 1949. In 1991, SVV and neighbouring Dordrecht'90 merged to form FC Dordrecht.-History:...	40	12	10	18	34	44	54
18	De Volewijckers	40	8	16	16	32	35	49
19	Fortuna Vlaardingen Fortuna Vlaardingen Fortuna Vlaardingen was a Dutch football club which was founded in 1904 in Vlaardingen. The club played its matches in the Floreslaan stadium....	40	8	14	18	30	36	53
20	Helmond Sport Helmond Sport Helmond Sport is a Dutch football club, playing in the Dutch Eerste Divisie and located in Helmond, Noord-Brabant. The club was founded on July 27, 1967, as a breakaway from the local professional club Helmondia '55, which had gone bankrupt.-History:...	40	9	12	19	30	39	63
21	DFC FC Dordrecht FC Dordrecht is a football club from the city of Dordrecht in the Netherlands, currently playing in the Eerste Divisie.- History :Founded on 16 August 1883 as Dordrechtsche Football Club , it became a professional club in 1954 upon the introduction of professional football to the Netherlands...	40	7	9	24	23	31	70

¹ Blauw-Wit would merge with eredivisie-club Door Wilskracht Sterk

Door Wilskracht Sterk

AFC Door Wilskracht Sterk is a Dutch football club from Amsterdam.-History:AFC Door Wilskracht Sterk was founded on 11 October 1907, by the trio of Robert Beijerbacht, Theo Beijerbacht and Jansen van Galen under the name of Fortuna which was soon changed to Hercules. The team played in a blue and...

 (DWS) to form FC Amsterdam

FC Amsterdam

FC Amsterdam was a Dutch football club which was founded on June 20, 1972, from the merger of the Amsterdam football clubs Blauw Wit and DWS. The club Volewijckers joined the side for the 1973-1974 season...

.