Former Netherlands national football team manager Hans Jorritsma died on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, at the age of 77 after a period of illness, the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) announced.
Jorritsma served as team manager for Oranje from December 1996 until his retirement at the end of 2017, spanning more than two decades.
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National coach Guus Hiddink initially brought Jorritsma into the KNVB to professionalize the backroom staff during a period of internal squad friction, despite successful early 1998 World Cup qualification victories.
Before transitioning to football administration, Jorritsma built his reputation in field hockey as an elite international player and successful national coach, leading both the Netherlands and Pakistan to world championships.
In 1978, he drew public attention by refusing to accept a silver medal from Argentine dictator Jorge Videla, documenting his experiences under a repressive regime in a diary for Vrij Nederland.
Reflecting on his personality in a 2006 interview, Jorritsma said, "I have always carried a kind of rebelliousness with me.
That can sometimes be difficult."
Prior to his KNVB tenure, Jorritsma assisted the sports federation NOC*NSF by managing logistics, housing, and environments for coaches and athletes at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
When asked about his contribution to the subsequent Olympic medal haul, he remained modest: "Mwah.
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Maybe, although it is difficult to say to what extent you have a share in that. I dealt with the logistical process."
