Minister Schippers receives the first tickets for the Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament

Minister Schippers: 'I am always very passionate' - Foto: KNVB Media

Minister Edith Schippers (Health, Welfare and Sport) received the first tickets for the Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament last Wednesday, the same day on which the ticket sale started. She received the tickets from KNVB’s manager of women’s football, and director of the tournament, Minke Booij. The first match of the ‘Oranjeleeuwinnen’ (Orange Lionesses) will be against Switzerland on Wednesday 2nd of March 2016 at 19.30 (CET) in the ‘Kyocera Stadion’, located in The Hague.

Minister Schippers: “I am always very passionate. The ‘Oranjeleeuwinnen’ won the last time when I attended their match, so maybe that will help. I will do my best to be there”. She then elaborated on how proud she was of the growth of women and girls football: “It is the fastest growing sport in the Netherlands and I couldn’t be any prouder.”

Booij: “We know Minister Schippers as a great sports fan, who is very fond of Dutch women’s football. We already saw that during the World Cup in Canada and with appointment of the UEFA Women’s EURO 2017. We are very pleased to hear that she will support the Oranjeleeuwinnen during the Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament”.

Unique opportunity to join the Olympics

The Netherlands national women’s football team has a unique opportunity to join the Olympics, because no other team has ever reached the Olympics. The Netherlands will face Switzerland, Norway and Sweden during the Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament and only the winner will move on to the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament, Rio 2016.

Home advantage

The creation of the home advantage was an important reason for the KNVB to get the Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament to the Netherlands. “The home advantage will only get bigger with more fans in the stands” says Booij. “It would be fantastic to see the ‘Kyocera Stadion’ and the ‘Sparta Stadion’ filled with fans, all of them dressed in orange”. However, getting the home advantage is not the sole reason. The qualifiers are also a warming up for both the KNVB and the fans, as the UEFA Women’s Euro 2017 will be held in the Netherlands.

Schedule

Wednesday 2nd of March

Switzerland – Netherlands (Kyocera Stadion, The Hague)
Norway – Sweden (Stadion Woudestein, Rotterdam)

Saturday 5th of March

Norway – Netherlands (Sparta Stadion, Rotterdam)
Sweden – Switzerland (Stadion Woudestein, Rotterdam)

Wednesday 9th of March

Switzerland – Norway (Stadion Woudestein, Rotterdam)
Netherlands – Sweden (Sparta Stadion, Rotterdam)

All matches will start at 19.30 CET.

Tickets on sale for as little as six euro

The price of a ticket for a single match will be €10,-. However, fans who wish to attend all three of the matches can receive a discount via the ‘Follow Your Team’ principle. Whoever buys the tickets for all three matches at once, will receive a discount and will pay €24,- instead of €30,-. Note: You will have to buy a separate ticket per match. The discount will be applied directly during the checkout. The ‘Follow Your Team’ principle is also possible if you wish to watch two matches. In this case, you will pay €16,- instead of €20,-.

Furthermore, groups from ten or more people will receive a discount and will pay €6, - per person for a match. Families have the option to choose for a special area in the stadium. Children below the age of 14 and with supervision of an adult will only have to pay €6, - for a match.

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