The lifeblood of any football club is its ability to constantly regenerate its fanbase. Page 30 of the March 2014 matchday programme is a dedicated recruitment drive for the FC Groningen Junior Club and the Green White Bengels. “Are you totally crazy about football club FC Groningen and are you not older than 12 years?” the page asks, offering welcome gifts, discounts, and the ultimate prize: a chance to walk onto the pitch.
To prove that these aren’t empty promises, the programme meticulously lists the names of the children who were selected to participate in the matchday rituals for this specific fixture against SC Cambuur. It is a printed guarantee of a childhood dream fulfilled.
The 14 children who proudly walked out of the tunnel for the Line-up were: Dominique Sikkema, Sjoerd Nienhuis, Milan Didier Franken, Mike Kruimink, Demi Klinkhamer, Jordi Koopmans, Julian Zwart, Kevin Tiebackx, Niek Bos, Robin Pettinga, Vinn Saffier, Naut Balster, Pepijn Kroeze, and M.D. Sissing. During the halftime break, the pitch was handed over to Tonnes Popken, Sven Addens, Martijn Eitens, Djen Bakker, and Henk Boers for the Gasunie Shoot-Out.
A Look into the Future
By 2026, the children whose names are immortalized on this page are young adults. The €15 membership fee their parents paid back in 2014 was an investment that yielded a lifetime of loyalty. Those kids who stood on the grass of the Euroborg that afternoon are now the ones buying season tickets, buying the new kits, and perhaps even signing their own children up for the Junior Club. It is the beautiful, endless cycle of football fandom, printed in black and white.