If you want to understand the true, unvarnished character of a region, look at the local advertisements in its football programmes. Page 20 of this 2013 FC Groningen booklet is a masterpiece of editorial eclecticism, blending the heavy, pragmatic industry of the north with deeply personal, existential services.
On the left, we see the industrial muscle of the province. Meeuwes Groep Eemshaven celebrates 110 years of business, advertising telehandlers and cranes for the booming port area of Eemshaven. Above them, ads for concrete workers and stucco specialists cater to the region’s builders. But nestled right in the middle of this blue-collar grid is something entirely unexpected: an advertisement for a book titled “Dit wil ik als ik er niet meer ben” (This is what I want when I’m no longer here).
The ad promotes a workbook designed to help people document their final wishes and life lessons before they die, aiming to “take the taboo out of death.” Finding an advertisement for end-of-life legacy planning right next to an ad for renting a rotating forklift is jarring, yet profoundly human. It proves that the matchday programme was viewed as a genuine community bulletin board—a place to reach local families not just for their commercial needs, but for the most intimate aspects of their lives.
A Look into the Future
The industrial landscape advertised here would undergo massive changes. The Eemshaven port, referenced by the Meeuwes Groep, would transform over the next decade into a critical European hub for offshore wind energy and massive data centers (including Google’s). Meanwhile, the direct, pragmatic approach to difficult subjects—like the book about death—remains a staple of the down-to-earth northern Dutch mentality. This single page perfectly encapsulates the duality of Groningen: a region building the heavy infrastructure of the future, while remaining deeply grounded in the realities of human life.