Ajax have a highly successful history in the beautiful game. Not only are they the most trophy-laden team in the Eredivisie, but the Amsterdam giants have also been champions of Europe on four occasions.
Unfortunately, it has now been close to 30 years since their last triumph in the Champions League, as Ajax recorded a 1-0 final win over Milan in Vienna. But where are some of the club’s key personnel from that team?
Louis van Gaal (Manager)
Van Gaal is regarded as one of the finest Dutch bosses ever. He guided Ajax to the final of the Champions League in the next campaign. He went on to win the Eredivisie with Ajax, as well as AZ in 2009. He also won the domestic title in Spain with Barcelona and Germany with Bayern Munich.
Aside from the 1995 triumph, one of the highlights of his career was likely guiding the Netherlands to a third-place finish at the 2014 World Cup.
Van Gaal’s last stint as a manager came with the Oranje, with his third period in the job ending in 2022 after a run of 20 games without defeat. In April 2022, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, but he recovered well and is seemingly enjoying his retirement.
Edwin van der Sar
The team’s goalkeeper enjoyed a long and successful career after the victory. He won two more Eredivisie titles, and he was an English champion on four occasions with Manchester United, while also winning the Champions League for the second time with United in 2008.
Van der Sar moved into a job behind the scenes at Ajax in 2012 after he hung up his playing boots. He remained a part of the club’s staff until he left his role as CEO in 2023.
In July 2023, Van der Sar suffered a brain haemorrhage. However, he was discharged two weeks later. The former Netherlands stopper is now believed to be fully recovered and admitted in an interview with Sky Sports in December 2024 that he thinks he will return to football in some capacity.
Danny Blind
The former Netherlands defender is an icon for both club and country. Among other trophies, he won two more Eredivisie titles after the Champions League win.
Due to his leadership skills on the pitch, it seemed almost inevitable that he would move into management when he hung up his boots. That’s precisely what happened, as Blind managed not only Ajax but also the Netherlands. Neither spell was considered particularly successful.
Blind returned to football in August 2021 as assistant to Louis van Gaal with the Netherlands. However, he left his position when Van Gaal departed.
In December 2023, Blind returned to Ajax as a board member, which is a position he currently holds at the Dutch giants.
Frank Rijkaard
The 1995 Champions League final saw the Dutch legend make his last ever appearance as a player. He certainly went out on a high.
Like many on our list, Rijkaard turned to coaching once he hung up his boots. He started as an assistant coach with the Netherlands before becoming the head coach in 1998.
He later managed Sparta Rotterdam, Barcelona, Galatasaray and the Saudi Arabia national team. Rijkaard won La Liga twice with Barcelona and the Champions League in 2006.
Rijkaard’s last coaching job was with the Saudi Arabian national team, which ended in January 2013. Later that year, he worked as an advisor at a prestigious Florida school. In December 2016, Rijkaard revealed that he no longer wanted to be considered for head coach roles.
Little is known about Rijkaard’s current exploits. However, he is believed to be living a quiet life in Amsterdam with his wife Stephanie and their children.
Clarence Seedorf
The former Netherlands midfielder will go down in the history of the beautiful game as one of the most successful players. After his success with Ajax in 1995, Seedorf became a European champion on three more occasions, one with Real Madrid and two with AC Milan.
When his playing days ended, Seedorf moved into coaching. He was the head coach of AC Milan, Shenzhen, Deportivo La Coruna, and the Cameroon national team. However, by July 2019, he had left his last managerial role with Cameroon and hasn’t been a head coach since.
Seedorf has worked as a pundit covering various leagues and owned a restaurant. Currently, he is reportedly living in Dubai. The former Ajax midfielder also worked for the New York Times as a travel blogger, as he travelled around the world looking to inspire youngsters.
Seedorf is also a big philanthropist. He is currently the Chairman of Black Impact Foundation and a member of the support committee of Fondazione Umberto Veronesi, which promotes scientific research.
Patrick Kluivert
Despite only starting the final, the former Netherlands international star made a big impact in the game, coming off the bench to grab the only goal in the 85th minute.
Some would say that Kluivert didn’t quite live up to the early hype of his career. However, he still won Eredivisie titles with Ajax and PSV Eindhoven, and a La Liga title with Barcelona.
Like many on this list, Kluivert moved into coaching when he retired from playing. His first job as a head coach came with the Curacao national team, which he started in March 2015, leaving the role in June 2016. Kluivert briefly returned to the role as an interim boss from May 2021 until October 2021.
In 2023, Kluivert had a short-lived spell as head coach of the Turkish club Adana Demirspor. He lasted until December of the same year.
After a slight hiatus, Kluivert returned to management in January 2025, this time taking on the role of head coach of the Indonesia national team. At the time of writing, he had taken charge of just two games, which produced a win and a loss.