The weekly game of walking football, drinking coffee together and chatting in the locker room is in danger of disappearing for dozens of elderly people in Breda and the surrounding area. Due to the cancellation of subsidies by the municipality of Breda, several NAC Maatschappelijk projects are in jeopardy. “If this disappears, there will be a void for me,” says 71-year-old Joost Verhaeren of the NAC OldStars.
They are still very fanatic, the players of NAC OldStars from the Etten-Leur department. Every Wednesday morning the over-60s kick a ball. And although it may not always go so smoothly, the sparks still fly.
“Play that ball!”, someone shouts while gesticulating. “I’ve been free for half an hour already!” The response quickly follows: “Calm down, it’s happening anyway walking football.” There is laughter.
“Walking football takes people out of their isolation.”
But behind the laughter lies unrest. Because due to the loss of almost 36,000 euros in subsidy from the municipality, the NAC OldStars project of the social branch of the Breda football club is in danger of disappearing after July 1.
“If that happens, the oil goes out of the machine,” thinks Joost Verhaeren (71) as he briefly leaves the final training match. “We may continue for a while, but then everything will slowly come to a standstill.”
Fellow player Ton Luijten (74) is also very concerned. “Socially, what we do here is really important,” he says. “You see each other, drink coffee and chat with each other. And when it’s someone’s birthday, he treats him to cake. Even at Christmas we all go to lunch together. That seems small, but for many people it is extremely important. That all disappears when this stops. It’s more than just playing football.”
Because perhaps even more importantly: exercising together prevents people from becoming isolated. Especially at an older age, when work disappears and social circles become smaller, such a permanent group is invaluable.
“We also have someone here who came to the Netherlands as a refugee,” says Ton. “We don’t know whether he has a social network, but he belongs here.” Joost also sees how important this social function is. “It takes the elderly one hundred percent out of their isolation,” he says. “Some people would otherwise hardly see anyone.”
“The government talks a lot about prevention and exercise and then you turn off the subsidy tap.”
In addition to the weekly training sessions, NAC Maatschappelijk (see box) also organizes competitions, tournaments and meetings for older football players from Breda and the surrounding area. Both Ton and Joost do not understand why cuts are being made to these projects.
“The government talks a lot about prevention and exercise,” says Ton. “And this is a very nice form of it. And then you turn off the subsidy tap. That’s a shame.” Joost calls it painful. “I think the amount is limited if you look at the total budget. But for us it’s a real shame. If this disappears, it will create a void for me and many others.” Ton is even more certain: “If this disappears, it will be a real tragedy.”
Social branch of football club
NAC Maatschappelijk is the social branch of football club NAC Breda, which uses the connecting power of football and the club name for a socially stronger society in Breda and the surrounding area. They focus on themes such as health, education and participation by organizing projects.
Not just it walking football of the NAC OldStars is in doubt, but also NAC Football Memories for people with dementia. The subsidy for these projects has formally stopped on January 1, 2026, because the municipality of Breda works with calendar years. In practice, the projects mainly notice this from July 1, when the new football season starts.
NAC Maatschappelijk has only objected to the rejection of the subsidy for the OldStars.
