In this article, I’d like to extend my sincerest congratulations to Feyenoord: the league champions. You deserved it. Truly, you did. Because this was a long time in the making, unbelievable. You know, I wasn’t even alive the last time you won that thing, but I heard that was deserved as well. Just like you deserve pretty much all the good things that come your way, Feyenoord-fans. I’ve watched enough talkshows to understand that you’re just so damn sympathetic. God, I like you more and more each day.
Those celebrations were amazing as well. I, for one, had to spend my Monday-morning at university, but I guess that wasn’t really a problem for the one hundred thousand of you. One hundred thousand. You had your own little presidential inauguration in the heart of Rotterdam. That is just one of these things the world loves about you. As I mentioned, I missed the live broadcasting of the event on the biggest television channel of the Netherlands, but there were so many live videos coming my way. There was no escaping it. Great!
But above all, you just deserved it. As you always say: ‘being a Feyenoord-supporter is suffering’. I always misunderstood that. You see, I always thought it was suffering to be a supporter of – I don’t know – FC Emmen. That didn’t seem like much fun at all. But I was wrong. It’s being a Feyenoord-supporter that’s the real torture. That has nothing to do with misguided expectations you create yourself, it just is. After all, you are the biggest club of the country!
Except PSV of course.
And Ajax. But who wants to talk about them, am I right?
And also, your supporters. Wow. Tears in my eyes. That stadium just keeps being entirely full, in the good and the bad times. I mean, so do the stadiums of Excelsior, FC Groningen, Cambuur and PEC Zwolle (who all had higher attendance rates than you guys), and they will always win way less than you, but in your case, it’s just mighty impressive. So passionate. I always thought trashing a Roman landmark was vandalism, but it’s not. It’s passion. You’re a role model for Dutchies abroad. Champions League is going to be fun.
And last, but surely not least: congratulations Dirk Kuyt. It was not humanly possible to escape your face the last 72 hours. I always wonder why that is. For a guy so outspokenly humble, you pretty much forced yourself in the spotlight. It’s like you forgot that the only reason you played last Sunday was a suspension of another player. It’s almost like you forgot Brad Jones, Nicolai Jörgensen, Tonny Vilhena, Eric Botteghin, Jan-Arie van der Heijden, Terence Kongolo, Eljero Elia, Rick Karsdorp, Jens Toornstra, Karim El Ahmadi and god knows even Steven Berghuis had more to do with this title, and you kept acting like it was yours, completely denying them the spotlight they honestly deserved.
So, all in all, congratulations Feyenoord. Thoroughly deserved league title. May the next one last another eighteen years.