Zuiderparkstadion (,

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 ...

for ''Southern Park Stadium'') was an 11,000-seat

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. It was the home of

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club

ADO Den Haag Alles Door Oefening Den Haag (), commonly known by the abbreviated name ADO Den Haag (), is a Dutch association football club from the city of The Hague. They play in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football, following relegation f ...

. For many years after the club's inauguration in 1905, they played football in many different temporary venues, eventually settling in the 'Zuiderpark' in 1925. The stadium was temporarily abandoned on 21 February 1945, near the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The War left the club lacking funds with which to maintain the ground. Reportedly,

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...

s were allowed to graze on the abandoned field. The cold winter conditions of 1946-47 left the stadium in a deplorable state, with the covered tribune the only stand left in a serviceable condition. Nevertheless, plans were afoot to renovate the stadium and to expand its capacity; these were completed in 1949 and the first game played was on 9 August 1949 between

and

Feyenoord Rotterdam Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after it ...

. In 1957, the capacity of the renovated stadium was expanded still further to 25,000 spectators. Later, on 8 March 1973, the stadium entered its modern age with a new club building housing a restaurant, among several other modern amenities catering to the players and club members. On 3 April 1982, hooligans of the club burned down the South Tribune. The fire was set after a 4–0 loss to

HFC Haarlem HFC Haarlem was a Dutch football club from the city of Haarlem, established in 1889 and dissolved in 2010. The club won the Eredivisie in 1946 and reached five Cup finals, winning in 1902 and 1912. Haarlem reached the second round of the 1982 ...

. It damaged the ground's oldest stand dating back to 1928 and caused $500,000 in damages. The damaged part was rebuilt and opened in 1986. On 7 November 1993, the North Tribune was renamed 'Aad Mansveldtribune', after

Aad Mansveld Adriaan Mansveld (14 July 1944 – 5 December 1991) was a Dutch footballer who played as a libero. Career Born in The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast fac ...

. In 1994, the municipality of

decided to develop the 'Zuiderpark' as a 'football theatre' and the West Tribune 'Jan Knijnenburg Gezinstribune' was inaugurated at around this time. It was renamed the 'Hyundaitribune' in 2001. On 22 April 2007 ADO played their last home game in the Zuiderpark Stadium. The following season they moved to the

Den Haag Stadion The ADO Den Haag Stadium (known as the Bingoal Stadion for sponsorship reasons) is a multi-use stadium in The Hague, Netherlands, designed by Zwarts & Jansma Architects. Completed in 2007, the stadium is used mostly for football and field hockey. ...

References

Defunct football venues in the Netherlands Sports venues in The Hague ADO Den Haag {{Netherlands-sports-venue-stub