A Delft touch: Elascon stand and grand dreams at DHC

Words: Han Balk

Images: Han Balk

Sportpark Brasserskade takes you back in time. In fact, not much has changed since the 1970s, apart from the addition of an artificial pitch.

It was completed in 1960 with a capacity of a whopping 18,000 spectators, and its occupant DHC had grand plans in the early days of Dutch professional football.

DHC or Delfia Hollandia Combinatie played professional football from 1955 and even briefly played in the Dutch Eredivisie, the highest level. However, things took a different turn in Delft, halfway between The Hague and Rotterdam.

The split between amateurs and professionals and the forced merger with Xerxes were not successful. In 1968, the professional adventure came to a definitive end.

Ever since, the terraces have sunk, and some crash barriers are askew. Weeds thrive, and mosses abound. One could say that Sportpark Brasserskade is the greenest sports park in the Netherlands.

©Han Balk/ Terrace Edition. Delfia Hollandia Combinatie.

But what perhaps catches the eye the most is the grand main stand. It's not just any stand; it's an Elascon. In fact, it's the largest Elascon stand still in existence, a Dutch design from Leiden. Elascon, or Electra LAS Combination Netherlands, designed revolutionary stands without support columns, providing spectators an unobstructed view of the field.

In the Netherlands, there are still about a dozen of them, and they can also be found in Belgium and Germany. The most well-known is probably Wattenscheid's Lohrheidestadion in the heart of the German Ruhr area.

Elascon, by the way, didn't only design stands. The same concept was also used for petrol stations and covered storage for armored vehicles, tanks, and other equipment on Dutch and German military bases.

Nowadays, DHC plays at the 7th level and faces Sportclub Monster. The club is not named after a dangerous creature or an energy drink, but after the coastal village of Monster, located between The Hague and Hoek van Holland.

On this cold and drizzly Saturday afternoon, Monster walks away with the points. Not a monstrous score, it ended 1-3.