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Previous World Cup appearances: 11
Best performance: Runners-up (1974, 1978, 2010)
First appearance: 1934 (Italy)
Top goal scorer: Johnny Rep (7)
Most appearances: Wesley Sneijder, Robin van Persie (17)
Player to watch: Tijjani Reijnders
FIFA world ranking: 7
The Netherlands have never fulfilled their potential at the World Cup – they lost all three finals they reached (1974, 1978, 2010). The 1988 Euro winning cohort did not even come close to replicating their European success on the global stage.
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But while previous golden generations repeatedly fell short, this more unheralded side should not be discounted too hastily.
The Dutch were unbeaten across their eight qualifiers, although Poland held them to draws.
With commanding defenders, a midfield of genuine class, and enough attacking options to cause problems for any defence, this Netherlands side have a outside chance of lifting the trophy for the first time.
Reijnders: the midfield heartbeat
Man City’s Tijjani Reijnders has steadily established himself as one of the finest midfielders in Europe over the last few seasons season and arrives at this tournament in fine fettle.
After two outstanding years at AC Milan, where he was named Serie A Best Midfielder of the season, he joined City in 2025 and has adapted well to life under Pep Guardiola, even if he is not always in the starting XI.
While he has grabbed five goals and two assists across 28 Premier League appearances this season, these relatively modest headline numbers do not tell the full story of his influence – especially at the international level.
Reijnders is the Netherlands’s all-action man – he gets forward and links defence and attack, breaks up opponents’ attacks, and is a classy, assured presence on the ball.
Generally, when he plays well, so do the Netherlands.
A solid core
Liverpool legend Virgil van Dijk may not quite be the force he was a few years ago, but he remains a world-class, richly experienced centre back.
He leads a talented defence that also features the likes of Micky van de Ven, Jurrien Timber and Jan Paul van Hecke.
Ahead of them, Ryan Gravenberch, outstanding for Liverpool over the last couple of seasons, shields the defence and is also capable of mounting dangerous forays forward.
His teammate Cody Gakpo offers a significant threat out wide and in front of goal, and has been one of Liverpool’s better performers in a poor season for the 2024/25 Premier League champions.
Injury worries
The Netherlands received a huge blow in April when playmaker Xavi Simons ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament playing for Tottenham. Arguably the most important creative Dutch player, he will be on the sidelines for months and has no chance of making the tournament.
Memphis Depay, now his nation’s all-time leading scorer with 55 goals in 108 caps, usually provides the focal point up front, although his inconsistency has been a source of frustration for clubs and country alike.
He was named in the squad, despite only two substitute appearances for his Brazilian club Corinthians over the past two months, as he has struggled to recover from a hamstring injury.
“I selected Memphis because of who he still is. I don’t see anyone else in that position who can do it. I believe he can be an asset, but he does have to get through the coming period well,” coach Ronald Koeman said.
Arsenal defender Timber is also a concern as a groin injury has kept him on the sidelines since March, and he will certainly need time to get match-sharp.
“We have Ian Maatsen and Lutsharel Geertruida on the standby list for Timber. The situation with him is that he was supposed to train with Arsenal today, to assess for the weekend. They have the Champions League final on Saturday. It remains to be seen whether he will be fit for that match,” Koeman said.
Depay, left, in action for Corinthians with Santos’s Christian Oliva [File: Thiago Bernardes/Reuters]Koeman’s second chance
This is Koeman’s second stint in charge of the national team, having previously managed them from 2018 to 2020.
After the Dutch failed to reach Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup, Koeman secured qualification for Euro 2020, but left before the tournament to manage Barcelona.
After struggling in his recent club roles, Koeman returns to take the reins again. He was a popular figure with the players during his last stint and commands respect as a legend of Dutch football, and he will face a tough task to balance his world-class talent with a squad that is patchy in places.
He will be hoping at least to not have to deal with the fractious egos and strong personalities that undermined very strong Dutch sides in the past. This current squad does not outwardly appear to be as combustible as previous iterations.
Koeman gives instructions to Frenkie de Jong during a qualifier against Poland [File: Rafal Oleksiewicz/Getty Images]How does their group look?
Group F should offer the Netherlands a relatively comfortable route to the last 32.
The toughest game is likely to be the opener against Japan, themselves a talented side considered to be dark horses, who recently defeated England at Wembley in a friendly.
Sweden had a terrible qualifying campaign but qualified through the playoffs via the Nations League, and nevertheless have plenty of dangerous players, such as Victor Gyokeres and Anthony Elanga.
The final group game against Tunisia should be more straightforward, as the North Africans lack real star quality – although they tend to be obdurate opponents that are hard to break down in major tournaments.
Netherlands’ group stage matches
⚽ June 14: Netherlands vs Japan (Dallas, United States), 4pm ET (20:00 GMT)
⚽ June 20: Netherlands vs Sweden (Houston, United States) 1pm ET (17:00 GMT)
⚽ June 24: Tunisia vs Netherlands (Kansas City, United States), 7pm ET (23:00 GMT)
Al Jazeera’s prediction
Last 16.
While the Dutch boast undoubted talent, it does not elite enough or cohere enough into a team that is bigger than the sum of its parts.
Netherlands World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Bart Verbruggen (Brighton), Robin Roefs (Sunderland), Mark Flekken (Bayer Leverkusen).
Defenders: Jurrien Timber (Arsenal), Micky van de Ven (Tottenham), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Nathan Ake (Manchester City), Jorrel Hato (Chelsea), Denzel Dumfries (Inter), Jan Paul van Hecke (Brighton).
Midfielders: Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool), Tijjani Reijnders (Manchester City), Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona), Teun Koopmeiners (Juventus), Marten de Roon (Atalanta), Quinten Timber (Marseille), Guus Til (PSV Eindhoven), Mats Wieffer (Brighton).
Forwards: Brian Brobbey (Sunderland), Memphis Depay (Corinthians), Cody Gakpo (Liverpool), Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth), Noa Lang (Galatasaray), Donyell Malen (Roma), Crysencio Summerville (West Ham), Wout Weghorst (Ajax).
