The ('Third Class') is the eighth tier of

football in the Netherlands Football is the most popular sport in the Netherlands. Football was introduced to the Netherlands by Pim Mulier in the 19th century when in 1879, at the age of 14, he founded Haarlemsche Football Club. Over the next 30 years, football gained ...

and the sixth tier of

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

amateur football Amateur sports are sports in which participants engage largely or entirely without remuneration. The distinction is made between amateur sporting participants and professional sporting participants, who are paid for the time they spend competing ...

. The league is divided into 44 divisions, 20 played on Saturday and 24 on Sunday. Each division consists of 14 teams. The champions are promoted to the

Tweede Klasse The Tweede Klasse ( en, Second Class) is the seventh tier of football in the Netherlands and the fifth tier of Dutch amateur football. The league is divided into 22 divisions, 10 played on Saturday and 12 on Sunday. Each division consists of 14 t ...

, the teams finishing 13th and 14th are relegated to the

Vierde Klasse The Vierde Klasse ( en, Fourth Class) is the ninth tier of football in the Netherlands and the seventh tier of Dutch amateur football. This is the lowest league in the West II region. The league is divided into 64 divisions, 32 played on Saturday a ...

. Each season is divided into a number of periods ( nl, periodes). The winner of these periods qualify for promotion playoffs, provided they finish in the top nine overall in the season. The teams finishing 12th in the final rankings play relegation playoffs.

Derde Klasse divisions

{{Dutch football competitions 8