Feyenoord fever: why you shouldn’t take the train to Rotterdam on these upcoming days

If you’re planning to go to Rotterdam on Monday for reasons that aren’t Feyenoord related, you might not want to take the train. The city is going to be buzzing on both Sunday and Monday. So, what the hell is going on? 

Feye-what?? In case you’re super new here, Feyenoord is the beloved football club of Rotterdam-South, and they stand to win the Dutch league this Sunday. 

If Feyenoord wins — and Roterdammers strongly believe they will — the NS expects train carriages on Sunday and Monday to become more packed than tuna in a can due to large crowds of Feyenoord fans heading to Rotterdam by train.

Sunday and Monday will be affected

First, Feyenoord should and is expected to become the national champion in the match against Go Ahead Eagles on Sunday, reports AD — and considering how intense Rotterdam supporters are, it’s best to be prepared. 

This will then be followed by the ‘huldiging’ on Monday, which will celebrate the win on Rotterdam’s main street, the Coolsingel, at 12 PM.

Ok, when can I expect the chaos to start?

Technically, the match on Sunday kicks off at 4:45 PM. However, the gates of De Kuip will open at 2 PM so supporters can start amping themselves up for the match. 

This means you might want to be an early bird if you have plans in Rotterdam. You can expect the city to be in a “jolly” mood the whole day.

If the beloved Rotterdam team win, don’t be surprised to see supporters taking a dip in the Holfplein fountain at the Coolsingel as is tradition — and many more shenanigans.

photo-happy-feyenoord-fans-taking-a-dip-in-hofplein-fountain-rotterdam-2017
Can’t compete with these Feyenoord frenzy vibes. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen/Supplied

If previous years of Feyenoord fever are anything to go by, pre-celebrations will probably start earlier on Sunday, with the city centre filling up with celebratory hopefuls and, most likely, drinking fans. 

Although the match is on Sunday, if the Rotterdam team wins, the celebrations will then stretch to Monday, where the team will be honoured in front of Rotterdam City Hall.  

And they’re going to be BIG, the city is expecting more than 100K people to rock up for some classic football hooliganism — we mean celebration.

Rotterdam transport is prepping for a Feyenoord frenzy

To prepare for the hectic Monday in Rotterdam, more metros will be running in the city between 9 AM and 4 PM. 

Given that the team will be celebrated on the Coolsingel, the centre of the city will be closed to traffic. So if you’re travelling, you should treat yourself to a caffeinated drink before your commute and take detours and large crowds into consideration.

Yes, the municipality of Rotterdam is expecting many thousands of supporters in the city centre. But geen probleem! If you’re nervous of football fans, you can still rest easy. 

The city is prepared, with police deploying hundreds of people on Sunday and Monday to ensure that everyone has the best possible time celebrating. 

In 2017, when Feyenoord also won the league, the celebrations were ecstatic but also relatively peaceful.

Are you a Feyenoord fan? Well then, enjoy folks, the weather forecast is looking good and it’s been a long time coming. Tell us about your experience in the comments!  

Feature Image: Wouter Engler/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 4.0

Simone Jacobs
Simone Jacobs
Originally from South Africa, Simone is having fun navigating the Dutch language, steep stairs, and bicycles (which she still manages to fall off of with her short, non-Dutch legs). An animal lover at heart, Simone can typically be found under her (growing?) mound of cats, where she uses the opportunity to read, write, and watch video compilations of creatures.

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