Pierre van Hooijdonk leaves permanent NOS Sport analyst role

Pierre van Hooijdonk has stepped down from his position as a permanent analyst with NOS Sport, bringing an immediate end to his long-running role at the Dutch public broadcaster. NOS announced the departure on Tuesday, according to Voetbalzone.

The 56-year-old former striker had been a regular contributor since 2015. He appeared as a permanent guest on Studio Voetbal, the television programme which has since been discontinued, and was also a familiar analyst during matches involving the Netherlands men’s national team.

Van Hooijdonk kept his explanation brief in the announcement. “I’m busy with other nice things,” he said, as quoted by Voetbalzone. NOS Sport editor-in-chief Xander van der Wulp thanked him for the incisive way in which he had assessed matches over the years. Van der Wulp said Van Hooijdonk was willing to be critical whenever he believed it was necessary, regardless of how those within football responded.

The change does not mean a complete overhaul of NOS’s Oranje line-up. Rafael van der Vaart will continue as a regular analyst for Netherlands fixtures. The broadcaster plans to place a different guest analyst alongside Van der Vaart for each match rather than appointing another permanent partner immediately.