Kirsten van de Ven will stop as manager of women’s football at the KNVB after five years, it was announced on Tuesday. The driver herself has decided to quit her job. She is succeeded by Lucienne Reichardt.
37-year-old Van de Ven moves with her family to Sweden and for that reason stops at the football association. Her last day in Zeist is on July 31, the day of the European Championship final at Wembley.
Reichardt was active as a football player for ADO Den Haag, Ajax and West Ham United. After her playing career, she started working as a board member at ADO Den Haag women. She is currently a statistical researcher at Statistics Netherlands (CBS).
“We are very pleased with Lucienne’s arrival as Kirsten’s successor,” said KNVB director Jan Dirk van der Zee. “When we knew that Kirsten was going to leave, we started looking for someone who could take women’s football one step further.”
“We were looking for someone who has played at the top, knows the women’s football landscape well and has managerial experience. Lucienne fits this profile and in our conversations she convinced us that she is the right person to take over from Kirsten.”
Lucienne Reichardt is the new manager of women’s football.
Lucienne Reichardt is the new manager of women’s football.
Photo: Our orange
‘Dream to contribute to further growth’
The now 31-year-old Reichardt was active in her youth for various national youth teams. The Hague player played in the teams under 15, under 17 and under 19, where she played football with Lieke Martens, among others.
“My passion lies in women’s football. It is an incredibly nice challenge to be able to use the experiences I have gained both on and off the field for women’s football”, says Reichardt in a first reaction.
“Continuing on the upward trend that has now started, we want to develop a strategy with a focus on more women in football and an even stronger Women’s Eredivisie. It is a dream to be able to contribute to the further growth of the girls’ and women’s football in the Netherlands.”
