# 2015–16 Eerste Divisie

The 2015–16 Eerste Divisie, known as Jupiler League for sponsorship reasons, is the sixtieth season of Eerste Divisie since its establishment in 1955. It began in August 2015 with the first matches of the season and ended in May 2016 with the finals of the promotion/relegation play-offs, also involving the 16th- and 17th-placed teams from the 2015–16 Eredivisie.
This season was the last where promotion and relegation was optional. No club was relegated to the new third-tier division Tweede Divisie (Second Division). This change in the league system was approved in a KNVB assembly in December 2014. Thus, the Topklasse and leagues below it were reduced by one level, and furthermore, promotion and relegation between the Eerste Divisie and Tweede Divisie became mandatory from 2016–17.

## Teams

A total of 19 teams took part in the league. 2014–15 Eerste Divisie champion NEC gained promotion to the Eredivisie, and was replaced by Dordrecht, which finished last in the 2014–15 Eredivisie. Roda JC Kerkrade and De Graafschap won the post-season playoff, and were replaced in the 2015–16 Eerste Divisie by NAC Breda and Go Ahead Eagles. No teams were relegated, but Jong FC Twente voluntarily withdrew from the league.
| Club | Location | Venue | Capacity |
| Achilles '29 | Groesbeek | Sportpark De Heikant | 4,500 |
| Jong Ajax | Amsterdam | Sportpark De Toekomst | 4,000 |
| Almere City | Almere | Mitsubishi Forklift Stadion | 3,000 |
| Den Bosch | 's-Hertogenbosch | De Vliert | 9,000 |
| Dordrecht | Dordrecht | GN Bouw Stadion | 4,088 |
| Eindhoven | Eindhoven | Jan Louwers Stadion | 4,600 |
| Emmen | Emmen | Univé Stadion | 8,600 |
| Fortuna Sittard | Sittard | Trendwork Arena | 12,500 |
| Go Ahead Eagles | Deventer | Adelaarshorst | 8,000 |
| Helmond Sport | Helmond | Stadion De Braak | 4,100 |
| MVV | Maastricht | De Geusselt | 10,000 |
| NAC Breda | Breda | Rat Verlegh Stadion | 19,000 |
| Oss | Oss | Heesen Yachts Stadion | 4,700 |
| Jong PSV | Eindhoven | De Herdgang | 2,500 |
| RKC Waalwijk | Waalwijk | Mandemakers Stadion | 7,508 |
| Sparta Rotterdam | Rotterdam | Het Kasteel | 11,026 |
| Telstar | Velsen | TATA Steel Stadion | 3,625 |
| Volendam | Volendam | Kras Stadion | 6,260 |
| VVV-Venlo | Venlo | De Koel | 8,000 |

### Personnel and kits

| Club | Manager | Kit manufacturer | Sponsors |
| Achilles '29 | Eric Meijers | Klupp | Van Helden Relatiegeschenken |
| Jong Ajax | Jaap Stam | Adidas | Ziggo |
| Almere City | Jack de Gier | Adidas | Van Wijnen |
| Den Bosch | René van Eck | Macron | Van Wanrooij |
| Dordrecht | Harry van den Ham | Macron | Riwal Hoogwerkers |
| Eindhoven | Mitchell van der Gaag | Joma | VDL Groep |
| Emmen | Gert Heerkes | Robey | Q&S Gartendeco |
| Fortuna Sittard | Ben van Dael | Macron | Fitland |
| Go Ahead Eagles | Hans de Koning | Hummel | Drukwerkdeal |
| Helmond Sport | Remond Strijbosch | Hummel | Vescom |
| MVV | Ron Elsen | Masita | Drink Water |
| NAC | Marinus Dijkhuizen | Legea | cm. Payments |
| Oss | Reinier Robbemond | Erima | NGSN |
| Jong PSV | Pascal Jansen | Umbro | Philips |
| RKC Waalwijk | Peter van den Berg | Hummel | Mandemakers Keukens |
| Sparta Rotterdam | Alex Pastoor | Robey | Axidus |
| Telstar | Michel Vonk | Hummel | MPM Oil |
| Volendam | Robert Molenaar | Jako | HSB |
| VVV-Venlo | Maurice Steijn | Masita | Seacon Logistics |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Sparta Rotterdam (C, P) | 36 | 24 | 7 | 5 | 83 | 40 | +43 | 79 | Promotion to the Eredivisie |
| 2 | VVV-Venlo | 36 | 23 | 6 | 7 | 84 | 39 | +45 | 75 | Qualification to promotion play-offs Second round |
| 3 | NAC Breda | 36 | 20 | 7 | 9 | 84 | 42 | +42 | 67 | Qualification to promotion play-offs Second round |
| 4 | Eindhoven | 36 | 19 | 6 | 11 | 55 | 44 | +11 | 63 | Qualification to promotion play-offs Second round |
| 5 | Go Ahead Eagles (P) | 36 | 18 | 7 | 11 | 61 | 41 | +20 | 61 | Qualification to promotion play-offs Second round |
| 6 | Volendam | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 54 | 40 | +14 | 52 | Qualification to promotion play-offs First round |
| 7 | Emmen | 36 | 15 | 6 | 15 | 58 | 57 | +1 | 51 | Qualification to promotion play-offs First round |
| 8 | Almere City | 36 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 68 | 66 | +2 | 50 | Qualification to promotion play-offs First round |
| 9 | Jong Ajax | 36 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 59 | 57 | +2 | 50 | |
| 10 | MVV | 36 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 52 | 60 | −8 | 50 | Qualification to promotion play-offs First round |
| 11 | Jong PSV | 36 | 13 | 9 | 14 | 51 | 71 | −20 | 48 | |
| 12 | Telstar | 36 | 12 | 8 | 16 | 57 | 64 | −7 | 44 | |
| 13 | Helmond Sport | 36 | 11 | 9 | 16 | 52 | 59 | −7 | 42 | |
| 14 | Dordrecht | 36 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 47 | 67 | −20 | 40 | |
| 15 | Achilles '29 | 36 | 10 | 9 | 17 | 43 | 61 | −18 | 39 | |
| 16 | Fortuna Sittard | 36 | 11 | 6 | 19 | 41 | 74 | −33 | 39 | |
| 17 | Den Bosch | 36 | 9 | 11 | 16 | 47 | 53 | −6 | 38 | |
| 18 | RKC Waalwijk | 36 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 41 | 66 | −25 | 32 | |
| 19 | Oss | 36 | 7 | 8 | 21 | 43 | 80 | −37 | 29 | |
* 1 2 3 Ten teams, two from the Eredivisie and eight from the Eerste Divisie, play for two spots in the 2016–17 Eredivisie, the remaining eight teams play in the 2016–17 Eerste Divisie. The season is subdivided in periods consisting of games 1–9, 10–18, 19–27 and 28–36. The top finisher in each period (that has not won a previous period) is a period winner and qualifies for the promotion play-offs first round even if they finish the season outside of the top nine.
* 1 2 Youth teams cannot be promoted and cannot participate in the promotion play-offs.

## Results

| Home \ Away | ACH | ALM | DBO | DOR | EIN | EMM | FOR | GAE | HEL | JAJ | JPS | MVV | NAC | OSS | RKC | SPA | TEL | VOL | VVV |
| Achilles '29 | | 1–3 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 1–3 |
| Almere City | 2–1 | | 1–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 0–3 | 3–4 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 7–0 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 3–3 |
| Den Bosch | 1–2 | 1–2 | | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 2–4 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 3–6 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 5–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 |
| Dordrecht | 3–3 | 3–1 | 1–2 | | 3–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 0–0 |
| Eindhoven | 0–1 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 |
| Emmen | 3–1 | 5–6 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 4–2 | | 1–2 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 6–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–4 |
| Fortuna Sittard | 2–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–5 | 2–1 | 2–2 | | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 0–6 | 0–5 |
| Go Ahead Eagles | 3–2 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–2 | | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 5–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 3–2 | 0–3 |
| Helmond Sport | 2–2 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 0–4 | | 2–3 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–2 | 1–4 |
| Jong Ajax | 3–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 |
| Jong PSV | 1–1 | 3–4 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 3–3 | | 2–0 | 0–3 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 0–3 | 4–3 | 2–2 | 1–5 |
| MVV | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–4 | 0–0 | 2–3 | | 1–1 | 4–2 | 6–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–3 |
| NAC Breda | 3–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 7–0 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 5–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 5–2 | 1–1 | | 5–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 |
| Oss | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 0–4 | 0–3 | 4–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 1–6 | | 0–0 | 1–2 | 3–3 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| RKC Waalwijk | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 3–5 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 3–2 | | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 |
| Sparta Rotterdam | 3–0 | 3–2 | 5–2 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 6–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 5–2 | | 2–1 | 3–1 | 3–1 |
| Telstar | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | | 1–1 | 2–2 |
| Volendam | 0–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | | 1–1 |
| VVV-Venlo | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 4–3 | 1–2 | 4–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 | |

## Play-offs
### Promotion/relegation play-offs

Ten teams, two from the Eredivisie and eight from the Eerste Divisie, play for two spots in the 2016–17 Eredivisie, the remaining eight teams play in the 2016–17 Eerste Divisie.
| First round | First round | First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Third round | Third round | Third round | Third round |
| MVV Maastricht | 2 | 2 | 4 | | | | |
| Volendam | 1 | 1 | 2 | | | | |
| Volendam | 1 | 1 | 2 | MVV Maastricht | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| | | | | De Graafschap | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | De Graafschap | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| | | | | | | | | Go Ahead Eagles* | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| | | | | Go Ahead Eagles | 1 | 2 | 3 | | | | |
| | | | | VVV-Venlo | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | |
| Almere City | 4 | 4 | 8 | | | | | | | | |
| Emmen | 1 | 1 | 2 | | | | | | | | |
| Emmen | 1 | 1 | 2 | Almere City | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | |
| | | | | Willem II | 1 | 5 | 6 | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | Willem II* | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | NAC Breda | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| | | | | Eindhoven | 1 | 0 | 1 | | | | |
| | | | | NAC Breda | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | |
Key: * = Play-off winners, (a) = Wins because of away goals rule, (e) = Wins after extra time in second leg, (p) = Wins after penalty shoot-out.