Center (left to right): Jari Bosch (assistant coach), Owen van der Meer, Angelo Kamperveen, Yu Wai Ming, Rik Suur, Anton Shamin, Benjamin Mrkalj, Timo Borrie, Egeron Gorisson, Andy Lopes (assistant coach)
Bottom (left to right): Dylan Chigharoe, Ayoni Santos, Dain van der Meer, Guy Ramos (assistant coach), Tim Vincken (head coach) Dylan van Rooden (assistant coach), Jedemy Laveist, Djimiro Pietersz, Ayoub Oufkir
Sparta Rotterdam was founded in 1888, making it the oldest club in Dutch professional football. Only eleven amateur football clubs in the Netherlands are older than Sparta. Sparta became champion of the Netherlands six times and won the KNVB Cup three times. Internationally, the Rotterdam team played in the European Cup I and II, UEFA Cup, Intertoto Cup and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.
The team participating in this tournament was relegated from the eight-team Division 1 in the autumn round and plats therefore in Division 2 after the winter break, which also consists of eight teams. Sparta is one of the favorites for promotion and therefore return to Division 1.
Three players from the team, Giovanni Mulumba, Giannino Vianello and Ayoub Oufkir, have now made their debut in Jong Sparta, which plays in the Second Division.
After an absence of five years, Sparta Rotterdam is participating for the eighth time. Sparta reached the final four times, of which one was won. In 2017, Halmstads BK was defeated.
