about amsterdam netball
Amsterdam Netball started when two Netball-loving ladies, Delle and Nadine, decided to set up a Netball team in Amsterdam in the spring of 2014. Before starting what’s now known as Amsterdam Netball, they used to travel to The Hague to play in a small team of expats. After playing there for two years, they felt it was time to give netball a go closer to home. That’s when they decided to start Netball in Amsterdam, and haven’t looked back since! Amsterdam Netball now counts over 30 regular members and in addition to just playing Netball once a week, the club also strives to develop players skills with focused trainings. Since the launch in 2014, Amsterdam Netball has competed in five international tournaments with like-minded clubs all over Europe! Always finishing in the top three, the club has been able to distinguish themselves as a stellar competitive team in the amateur European Netball scene.
Going forward Amsterdam Netball strives to:
- First and foremost, offer a safe and familiar environment to her members
- Encourage members to grow and evolve their Netball skills
- Develop Netball in The Netherlands by setting up a National Dutch League
- Unite fellow amateur European Netball Clubs by hosting annual tournaments and encouraging the development of Netball in Europe
- Have as much fun as humanly possible
Our goals
encourage
Netball is a prominent woman's sport (although we love having men in our club!) and we want to motivate women of all shapes and sizes, to lead a more active life by playing Netball.
Wanting to join our club doesn't mean you have to have years of Netball experience though. We encourage anyone: expats, Dutch natives and everything in between to join our club!
Getting people up and moving is our biggest goal, and hopefully we can inspire others to do so as well!
develop
Looking forward, we are eternal optimists and envision a the glorious Netballing Nation of The Netherlands, matching the likes of Australia and New Zealand.
Keeping it a bit more realistic though, we are dead set on developing a National Dutch Netball League. This will enable us to attend major international competitions and even get a place on the World ranking!
Our goal is to send a National Dutch team to the European Championship within 5 years. Fingers crossed!
unite
It's not easy setting up an entirely unknown sport...in a foreign country! But more and more grassroots Netball teams all over Europe keep sprouting up.
We want to unite these teams and establish a supportive community for club leaders. One of the ways we want to do this is by hosting an annual tournament in Amsterdam.
This not only encourages friendly competition and development, but it's also a great starting block for clubs to connect and share experiences
We are also affiliated with the following organizations:
MEET THE BOARD
DELLE BENTON
PRESIDENT
Originally from New Zealand, Delle lives in Amsterdam with her Dutch husband and little girl. She has been playing netball since she was 5 and played at a competitive level until university.
What Delle loves most about Amsterdam Netball is how it has grown into a serious club which celebrates various skill levels. She enjoys seeing how trainings pay off and watching the development of members, both individually and as a team. Being a place that allows members to explore their full potential in the sport is important to her, and she hopes to be able to stimulate more of this in the future, with many opportunities for skills trainings and also competitive, international matches.
Five years from now, she sees Amsterdam Netball being a club that hosts both social and competitive leagues around the city, leading to a nationwide competition and maybe even a Dutch national team!
NADINE VAN DER WIELEN
SECRETARY
Originally from South Africa, Nadine lives in Purmerend with her Dutch boyfriend and 2 cats. She has been playing netball since she was 10 and played all the way through school.
What Nadine loves most about Amsterdam Netball is the feeling of belonging to a club of like-minded people. It's not always easy to make friends and meet people in a foreign country, but the fact that everybody at Amsterdam Netball have been going through the same struggles, there's a bond and unity between all the members! That, and sometimes you just got to work off all those Dutch chips.
Five years from now, Nadine sees Amsterdam Netball as the starting block for Netball in Netherlands. A big, fun club open to all levels, with a great competitive team and social teams. A real safe haven for expats and Dutch people alike!
TANIA HUDIG
TREASURER
Originally from New Zealand, and born to 2 Dutch parents, Tania lives in Hoofddorp with her South African husband and two daughters. She has always had a love for sports and fitness, and has been playing Netball since her primary school days.
What Tania loves most about Amsterdam Netball is being able to meet so many people from different countries and backgrounds. Netball, as a common interest, can connect younger and older members and help them become friends (where they wouldn't have been under different circumstances). She also loves seeing members improve their Netball skills.
Five years from now, Tania hopes to see Netball in the Netherlands growing as a great social sport to play for all ages and would love the sport to be recognized in the Netherlands. She would also love to send a team to the European Netball League!