René Neelissen is chairman of the supervisory board of AZ. In daily life, he is an entrepreneur and, among other things, director of the family business Nelson Schoenen. He was also director/founder of Atlas Professionals, which was sold to HAL Investments in October 2020.
Text: Jaap de Groot
Image: John van Helvert
René Neelissen: "Actually quite a lot. It provides a compilation of fond and not so fond memories. Like 5-5-2005 is carved deep in my memory. The day we missed the UEFA Cup final at the last second against Sporting Lisbon. The team coached by Co Adriaanse played a great game, yet we were eliminated well into injury time. The same goes for the 3-2 lost championship match on April 29, 2007 against Excelsior. Such a great season and then still no reward. Then there is the cup win in 2013 with Gertjan Verbeek and the national championship in 2009 with Louis van Gaal. Unforgettable successes. So two beautiful and two painful moments. This is how sport should be. If you can't lose, then it's not fun either. That it is all still so deep is quite nice.
Then there's another thing. When I see that shirt, I also see that there is a vision behind it. To stay at the top, AZ has to do things differently. There is less money, so it comes down to more vision. That is what the shirt also symbolizes."
"The then owner Dirk Scheringa asked me as a board member. I had a business relationship with him and one thing led to another."
René Neelissen: "In my role, I have to be careful to be a supporter. After all, he is not responsible for the policy and I happen to be. You will never hear anything publicly from me about what I think of a game, player or trainer. Inside me, of course, that does play a role, but at the same time the manager in me switches off those emotions. In that I have to follow and control the vision AZ has determined. In that respect, a match is a snapshot in time, while my job is to safeguard the long term."
"That we keep a dot on the horizon. So always working on a new challenge. Now that is the top four and we are working on extending that ambition. Keeping up with the European top is part of that, but of course there is more. Like making new steps athletically, financially and commercially. Also in terms of media, we must ensure that our supporters not only come to our stadium, but can also follow AZ via social media. Wherever in the world."
"That was on June 1, 2010. The moment that, after the collapse of our main sponsor DSB, we said goodbye to the receiver and could continue on our own again. After months of everyone giving up on AZ. From mid-October until the end of December we worked day and night to achieve something that most people no longer believed in. A war of attrition and therefore the satisfaction was and is all the greater. That June 1st is therefore permanently a very precious moment."
© 2024 MASTERS EXPO. All rights reserved.
