Editing De Graafschap (section)

===Foundation===
[[File:De Graafschap gepromoveerd naar eredivisie door met 4-2 te winnen van PEC Zwolle, Bestanddeelnr 926-4889.jpg|thumb|220px|Under the leadership of [[Piet de Visser (football manager)|Piet de Visser]], the club was promoted to the [[Eredivisie]] for the first time in 1973.]]
[[File:Ajax tegen Volendam 5-0 Volendamtrainer Simon Kistemaker (r), Bestanddeelnr 932-8569.jpg|thumb|220px|In the [[1990–91 Eerste Divisie|1990–91 season]], the club, under the management of [[Simon Kistemaker (football manager)|Simon Kistemaker]] (right), became undefeated champions of the [[Eerste Divisie]].]]
[[File:20110731 CS55035 (5996163882).jpg|thumb|220px|Between 1995 and 2003, De Graafschap enjoyed its longest uninterrupted spell in the Eredivisie.]]
[[File:20110731 CS54948 (5995523185).jpg|thumb|220px|In 2015, [[Jan Vreman]], affectionately known as "Mister De Graafschap," assumed the role as the club's manager.]]
Following the ''Watersnoodwedstrijd'' (Flood Disaster Match), a benefit game featuring Dutch foreign professionals, held at the [[Parc des Princes]] in front of 40,000 spectators against France one month after the devastating [[North Sea flood of 1953]], the [[Royal Dutch Football Association]] (KNVB)'s rejection of professional football prompted the establishment of the ''wilde bond'' (wild federation) [[Nederlandse Beroeps Voetbal Bond]] (NBVB) to advocate for its introduction.<ref>{{cite news |title=Watersnoodwedstrijd leidt profvoetbal in |url=https://www.knvb.nl/nieuws/oranje/nederlands-elftal/17384/watersnoodwedstrijd-leidt-profvoetbal |access-date=10 February 2024 |work=[[Royal Dutch Football Association]] (KNVB) |date=22 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231012003353/https://www.knvb.nl/nieuws/oranje/nederlands-elftal/17384/watersnoodwedstrijd-leidt-profvoetbal |archive-date=12 October 2023 |language=nl}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Vooren |first1=Jurryt van de |title=De Watersnoodwedstrijd van Cor van der Hart |url=http://www.sportgeschiedenis.nl/2006/12/13/de-watersnoodwedstrijd-van-cor-van-der-hart.aspx |website=Sportgeschiedenis.nl |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071021030600/http://www.sportgeschiedenis.nl/2006/12/13/de-watersnoodwedstrijd-van-cor-van-der-hart.aspx |archive-date=21 October 2007 |language=nl |date=13 December 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> New clubs were founded to support this initiative. Under the guidance of [[Amsterdam]] native Johan Roodbergen, the professional football club De Graafschap was established in [[Doetinchem]] on 1 February 1954.<ref name="dg1">{{cite news |title=Oprichter zag De Graafschap nooit spelen |url=https://www.gelderlander.nl/de-graafschap/oprichter-zag-de-graafschap-nooit-spelen~aaea8fb5/ |access-date=10 February 2024 |work=De Gelderlander |date=10 October 2007 |language=nl}}</ref> The name was chosen to represent the [[Achterhoek|Oost-Gelderland]] region known as De Graafschap, which encompasses Doetinchem, formerly known as ''Graafschap Zutphen'' ([[County of Zutphen]]; until 1795 known as the Quarter of Zutphen), and now recognised as the [[Achterhoek]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kuile |first1=E.H. ter |title=Zutfen, Het kwartier van Zutfen |date=1958 |publisher=Staatsdrukkerij- en Uitgeverijbedrijf |location=The Hague |url=https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/kuil005kwar01_01/kuil005kwar01_01_0034.php#660T |language=nl}}</ref> The club adopted a uniform featuring horizontally striped blue and white shirts, white shorts, and horizontally striped blue and white socks.

Prior to this initiative, professional football had never been played in Doetinchem. Following the merger of the NBVB and KNVB, De Graafschap joined the professional league. To facilitate this transition, the club merged with VV Oosseld (founded in 1922, abbreviated as VVO) to establish the professional association De Graafschap after initial discussions about merging all clubs around Doetinchem fell through. The clubs completed the [[1954–55 Netherlands Football League Championship|1954–55 season]] independently, after which the merger was formalised, with Oosseld becoming the amateur department of De Graafschap.<ref name="historie" /> Despite attempts to involve VV Doetinchem in the merger, the Doetinchem members rejected the proposal.<ref name="historie" /> De Graafschap played their first competitive match on 4 September 1954, drawing 1–1 with [[Fortuna Sittard|Fortuna '54]] featuring players such as [[Frans de Munck]], [[Cor van der Hart]] en [[Jan Notermans]].<ref name="historie">{{cite web |title=Historie |url=https://www.degraafschap.nl/club/historie |website=De Graafschap |access-date=10 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230930164403/https://www.degraafschap.nl/club/historie |archive-date=30 September 2023 |language=nl}}</ref>

De Graafschap stands as the only team from the NBVB that persists as an independent professional club. Founder Roodbergen, after whom a grandstand was named, never witnessed 'his' De Graafschap play due to his severe visual impairment.<ref name="dg1" /> The team's home matches were held at the newly constructed stadium [[De Vijverberg]].