Ajax unveiled the statue of Johan Cruijff at the main entrance of the ArenA on Friday. The life-size sculpture was created thanks to a fundraising campaign by supporters.
Initially, Ajax would reveal the statue at the end of April, in the run-up to the home game against Vitesse on Saturday, April 25 (Cruijff’s date of birth). Due to the corona crisis, that moment was postponed until further notice.
Jordi Cruijff got to see the image of his father who died in March 2016 months ago and was then full of praise. “It looks great. My father would have been proud of this. If you walk by, you see Johan Cruijff.”
Ajax supporters raised the required amount of 75,000 euros within three months. An online fundraising campaign was held and there was a collection on October 7, 2018 during Ajax’s home game against AZ.
The statue of Cruijff was made by Hans Jouta, who also made the statue of Ajax icon Bobby Haarms, who died in 2009. That sculpture has been at the ArenA since 2011.
Cruijff went through Ajax’s youth academy and played between 1964 and 1973 and between 1981 and 1983 in the main force of the team from Amsterdam, where he became a club icon. The legendary number fourteen, one of the best football players of all time, was also Ajax’s head coach from 1985 to 1988.
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