Historic medal harvests such as those achieved by the Netherlands at the past two Olympic Games (Paris 2024, 34 medals, fifteen gold; Milan-Cortina 2026, twenty medals, ten gold) will become less likely in the future if the financial position of top athletes in the Netherlands does not improve. This is stated by the athletes’ committee of the sports umbrella organization NOC-NSF and interest group NL Sporter, based on research into the income of Dutch top athletes.
They assess their income position as particularly vulnerable, according to a survey conducted among more than seven hundred athletes in the Netherlands who have a so-called ‘top sports status’ and therefore receive a monthly stipend or expense allowance from NOC-NSF. More than half of the athletes (59 percent) who participated in the study indicated that they regularly experienced stress due to the fear of losing top sports status and associated funding. This performance pressure has a negative effect on their performance for three in ten respondents (34 percent), they indicate.
The two interest groups argue for a change to the current stipend system, says Josine Koning, hockey international and chairman of the NOC-NSF athletes’ committee: “We want a broader, more stable and fairer system, which does justice to the profession of top athlete and where top athletes have more security for the future. The football players who earn a lot of money are the exception, not the rule.”
The footballers who earn a lot of money are the exception, not the rule.
The research shows that more than half of top athletes (56 percent) in the Netherlands have a financial buffer of up to three months. Only three in ten respondents (27 percent) are building up a pension, and seven in ten top athletes (68 percent) do not have disability insurance.
Top athletes lack many (financial) facilities that the rest of society takes for granted, notes chairman Douwe de Vries of NL Sporter. He summarizes: “A permanent appointment, dismissal protection, a transition payment in the event of dismissal, pension accrual, disability insurance, but also matters such as parental leave or continued payment in the event of illness. All very normal, but not for top athletes.”
No mortgage for Olympic champions
De Vries, himself a former top skater, saw that there was a lot of attention for top sport this winter thanks to the successful Winter Games in Italy. “You notice that things are really happening in the Netherlands and that is very nice to see. But top athletes there hardly see anything in return financially. There are Olympic champions who cannot buy a house because they cannot get a mortgage.”
If nothing changes, says De Vries, he fears that top sports life will become “unsustainable”. “Young talents will start to wonder: why should I still choose the uncertain path of a top sports career? Then the number of top athletes will become smaller, and the performance at the Games will also decrease across the board.”
There are Olympians for whom it would be financially more attractive to sit behind the cash register than to continue exercising.
The results of the study are no surprise in light of other recently published studies. Last year the annual Top sport in the Netherlands-research from the Mulier Institute that four in ten Dutch top athletes do not have enough monthly income to support their livelihood and practice their sport.
Another major study into top sports culture in the Netherlands that was published in 2025 concluded that the financial dependence of top athletes on an income via an A status can cause extra stress and performance pressure. In addition, it turned out that not all top athletes could make ends meet or finance their sport with a stipend.
“This is a message that the sports world has been conveying for some time,” agrees De Vries of NL Sporter. “But with the successful Winter Games fresh in our minds, we now want to reinforce them with data from our own ranks.” The fact that the response among the expelled top athletes was not very high at 27 percent (189 out of 709) happens more often, says Koning. “Top athletes are mainly concerned with their sport.”
Bad day? Income gone
In the current system, top athletes who are among the top 8 in the world are eligible for A status. This includes a monthly stipend, which, depending on the age of the athlete, can amount to 140 percent of the minimum wage; approximately 41,000 euros annually. Top athletes with a lot of potential can receive High Potential status and are then eligible for a comparable allowance. In addition, sports associations can decide for themselves whether they grant selection status to athletes; they will then receive an expense allowance that is much lower than the NOC-NSF stipend.
Flag bearer Jens van t Wout with the Dutch team at the opening of the 2026 Winter Games.
Photo Matthias Hangst/Getty Images
About seven in ten top athletes (73 percent) are largely dependent on this one source of income, the research shows. This creates extra (negative) pressure when athletes have to secure their A status at a World Cup or Olympic Games. “If you have a bad day, your income immediately disappears. There is no safety net,” says Koning.
Tapping into other sources of income is difficult because NOC-NSF has set a limit on what athletes can earn with a stipend – a maximum of 18,000 euros. Anything above that limit will be deducted from the stipend. It seems like a nice amount, but the research also shows that seven in ten top athletes (70 percent) incur costs of up to 10,000 euros per year that are not reimbursed.
One of the recommendations of the two interest groups is to scrap this ‘additional income limit’. De Vries: “Then you can offer top athletes a facility that allows them to fully focus on their sport, but at the same time, if the opportunity arises, to earn something on the side.” The organizations also believe that the requirement that athletes must perform one or two times a year (a World Cup or Games) for A status should make way for a broader regulation. And they believe that more top athletes – not only those who belong to the global top 8 in their sport – should be eligible for a decent income provision from NOC-NSF and sports associations.
Sports association NOC-NSF agrees with the conclusions of the report. “The current stipend no longer fits in with the responsible organization of Dutch top sport,” says director of Top Sport André Cats in a response. “We are working with the athletes committee and NL Sporter on a solid proposal for a different reward system. We are discussing financing with the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport.” In 2024, the sports association calculated that there will be: 20 million euros extra per year must be freed up to maintain the current top level of sports; the current top sports budget of NOC-NSF is 68.1 million euros in 2026.
Not that Dutch top athletes are pathetic, say the interest groups, but according to De Vries they currently benefit too little from the good performances they achieve. “There are Olympians for whom it would be financially more attractive to sit behind the cash register than to continue exercising. Believe me: top sport is not a big deal.”
