Ajax

Also written as Ajax Amsterdam.

The club

Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax were founded on 18 March 1900 and play at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam, capacity 55,865. They wear white with a broad red vertical band. The club are known as de Godenzonen, the Sons of the Gods, and also as de Joden, the Jews, a name bound up with the club's long association with Jewish Amsterdam and one used both by supporters themselves and, abusively, by opposing crowds. "Lucky Ajax" is a third and older nickname.

Recent seasons

Ajax were Eredivisie champions in 2020/21 and 2021/22 and have won nothing since. They were third in 2022/23, a finish the club had not been as low as since 2008/09, and the same season lost 1-6 at home to Napoli in the Champions League, the heaviest European defeat in their history.

The 2025/26 season was worse still. Ajax finished fifth on 56 points from 34 matches, 14 wins, 14 draws and 6 defeats, 62 goals scored and 41 conceded, in a season PSV won at a canter. John Heitinga was dismissed on 6 November 2025 with Ajax fourth, Fred Grim took over on 21 November as caretaker, and Óscar García replaced him on 8 March 2026, also on a caretaker basis. The KNVB Cup ended in the round of 16 and included a 0-6 defeat away to AZ Alkmaar on 14 January 2026, the club's heaviest loss of the season. In the Champions League league phase Ajax won two of eight matches: 4-2 at Qarabağ on 10 December 2025 and 2-1 at Villarreal on 20 January 2026. They lost the other six, 0-2 at home to Inter Milan, 0-4 at Marseille, 1-5 at Chelsea, 0-3 at home to Galatasaray, 0-2 at home to Benfica and 1-2 at home to Olympiacos, finishing the phase with eight goals scored and twenty-one conceded.

European football for 2026/27 had to be earned through the Eredivisie play-offs. Ajax beat Groningen 2-0 on 21 May 2026, Klaassen and Mokio scoring, and drew the final with Utrecht 1-1 after extra time on 24 May, Klaassen scoring in the 96th minute and Gjivai Zechiël equalising in the 106th, before Ajax won the shoot-out. Both play-off matches were staged at the Kras Stadion in Volendam because Harry Styles' tour was occupying the Johan Cruyff Arena.

Honours and landmarks

Ajax have won the Dutch title 36 times, a national record, the KNVB Cup 20 times and the Johan Cruyff Shield nine times. They have won the European Cup four times, in 1971, 1972, 1973 and 1995, the UEFA Cup in 1992, the Cup Winners' Cup in 1987, the UEFA Super Cup in 1973 and 1995 and the Intercontinental Cup in 1972 and 1995. The 1994/95 side completed the Eredivisie season unbeaten, the only team ever to do so, and won the European Cup with a Patrick Kluivert goal against Milan.

Notable scorelines

The heaviest European defeat in the club's history is the 1-6 home loss to Napoli on 4 October 2022. No all-time record victory or record domestic defeat was confirmed from the sources read here. Of the recent past, the 0-6 at AZ on 14 January 2026 and the 1-5 at Chelsea in the 2025/26 Champions League are the results the club has had to answer for.

European record

Ajax are one of only three clubs to have won the European Cup three seasons running, with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, taking theirs in 1971, 1972 and 1973, and they took a fourth in 1995. They have also won the Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Cup, and are therefore among the small group of clubs to have won all three of the old European trophies.

The modern record is thinner. The 2025/26 Champions League league phase brought two wins from eight. In 2022/23 they went out of the group stage in a section with Liverpool, Napoli and Rangers, and were then knocked out of the Europa League by Union Berlin. Their most instructive historical defeat, given the company they keep in this season's draw, is the 1973/74 European Cup: holders of the trophy and reigning three-time champions, Ajax were eliminated in the first round by CSKA Sofia, 2-1 on aggregate.

The 2026/27 campaign began outside the Champions League altogether. In the Conference League second qualifying round Ajax won 4-1 at Vojvodina in Novi Sad on 23 July 2026, Klaassen scoring after three minutes and Berghuis, Gloukh and the 16-year-old Mohamed Abdalla adding to it, then won the return 4-1 at the Johan Cruyff Arena on 30 July, Gloukh scoring three, for an 8-2 aggregate.

Quotes

- "Míchel is an ambitious and demanding coach. I am convinced he will instil his vision and his intensive way of working within our squad." - Jordi Cruijff, technical director, on the Ajax club website, 2 June 2026. https://english.ajax.nl/articles/michel-appointed-new-ajax-head-coach

- "His approach fits Ajax. The fact that he has worked at the same club in La Liga for five seasons says a lot about both his qualities and his loyalty." - Jordi Cruijff, technical director, on the Ajax club website, 2 June 2026. https://english.ajax.nl/articles/michel-appointed-new-ajax-head-coach

- "It feels good to be here; I am proud to take this next step in my career." - Míchel, head coach, on the Ajax club website, 2 June 2026. https://english.ajax.nl/articles/michel-appointed-new-ajax-head-coach

- "Ajax is a big name in Europe, a club that has always produced young, talented players." - Míchel, head coach, on the Ajax club website, 2 June 2026. https://english.ajax.nl/articles/michel-appointed-new-ajax-head-coach

- "The aim is to get Ajax back to where it belongs, and I have every confidence that we will succeed." - Míchel, head coach, on the Ajax club website, 2 June 2026. https://english.ajax.nl/articles/michel-appointed-new-ajax-head-coach

Right now (2026/27)

Míchel, the Spaniard who took Girona to third in La Liga in 2023/24 and was relegated with them, was appointed head coach on 2 June 2026 on a contract to 30 June 2028. Jordi Cruijff is technical director and Menno Geelen chief executive.

The squad has been rebuilt around experience. Caio Henrique came from Monaco on 28 June 2026 for a reported €14m including add-ons, Daley Blind returned free from Girona on 8 July, Marcos Leonardo arrived from Al-Hilal for €19.9m on 17 July, and Julian Brandt joined free from Borussia Dortmund on 31 July. Tolu Arokodare came on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers on 29 July and Marc-André ter Stegen on loan from Barcelona on 4 August, two days before the first leg against Shelbourne. Out went Chuba Akpom to Ipswich Town for €9m, Sivert Mannsverk to Sparta Prague for €2.5m, Wout Weghorst free to Twente, Sean Steur to Newcastle United for €27m on 9 July and Kian Fitz-Jim to Torino on 31 July. Takehiro Tomiyasu, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Branco van den Boomen all left as free agents.

Ajax are in the Conference League third qualifying round against Shelbourne. They won the first leg 3-1 at the Johan Cruyff Arena on 6 August 2026 in front of 51,871: Mika Godts converted a penalty in the sixth minute, Owen Wijndal added a second before the half-hour, Kasper Dolberg made it three five minutes after the interval and Daniel Kelly pulled one back for Shelbourne late on. The second leg is at Tolka Park in Dublin on 13 August 2026. The winner meets the winner of Noah against Sion in the play-off round on 20 and 27 August.

The Eredivisie opened well. Ajax won 2-0 at PEC Zwolle on 9 August 2026, Jorthy Mokio scoring on 76 minutes and Julian Brandt in the fifth minute of stoppage time, against ten men after Sherel Floranus was sent off on 57 minutes. Oscar Gloukh is the season's leading scorer with four.

Sources

Researched and written for not4quarters. Where a fact could not be established from the sources read, this page says so rather than guessing.