Hoofdklasse — Honkbal Hoofdklasse (Netherlands)

⚡ When to Watch Hoofdklasse from the US

Netherlands is UTC+2 (CEST) in the summer — 6 hours ahead of US Eastern. Hoofdklasse games typically start at 19:30 CEST = 1:30 PM ET. That's perfect lunch-hour baseball for US fans. Saturday afternoons and Sunday day games (14:00 CEST = 8:00 AM ET) are the weekend pattern.

1:30 PM ET

Weeknight 19:30 CEST

8:00 AM ET

Sunday 14:00 CEST

10:30 AM PT

West Coast weeknight

Apr–Aug

Regular season

Sept

Holland Series

Sat 14:00

Best day window

Where to Watch Hoofdklasse

Verified Apr 2026

Primary · Per Club

KNBSB · Federation Stream

Free / per-tournament

Dutch federation (KNBSB) operates streaming for top matchups, Holland Series, and European Champions Cup. Federation-level streaming; coverage varies by week. Check knbsb.nl schedule.

knbsb.nl →

Free · Select

Team YouTube Channels

FREE

Neptunus and Curaçao Neptunus both maintain active YouTube channels streaming select home games free. L&D Amsterdam Pirates and Quick Amersfoort also upload content. Search team name + "honkbal".

International Events

GameTime (WBSC)

Per-tournament pass

European Champions Cup (the continental club tournament featuring Hoofdklasse teams vs. Italian Serie A) streams on WBSC's GameTime platform.

gametime.sport →

Domestic

Ziggo Sport

Dutch cable

Ziggo carries select Holland Series and high-profile regular season broadcasts. Geoblocked outside the Netherlands.

WBC Only

FOX / FS1

Cable · WBC coverage

Team Netherlands' WBC 2026 games were carried on FOX in the US. Kingdom of the Netherlands roster included Jurickson Profar, Xander Bogaerts, and Didi Gregorius — mixed with Hoofdklasse vets.

2026 Season Key Dates

Apr 17

Opening Weekend

All 8 teams begin · 42-game regular season.

May

European Champions Cup

Top Hoofdklasse clubs face Italian Serie A and other continental opponents.

Jul

Haarlem Baseball Week

International tournament · national teams visit Pim Mulier Stadion.

Aug

Regular Season Ends

Top 4 teams advance to playoff round.

Sept

Holland Series

Best-of-7 championship · Dutch title at stake.

The 8 Teams

Hoofdklasse · 2026

Hoofdklasse · 8 Clubs

Neptunus Rotterdam — Rotterdam · Familiestadion · 2025 Defending Champs · Most titles (18)

Curaçao Neptunus — Rotterdam-based Curaçao affiliate · Perennial power

L&D Amsterdam Pirates — Amsterdam · 2024 Runner-up · Dutch royalty

Hoofddorp Pioniers — Hoofddorp · Near Schiphol · Longtime contender

Quick Amersfoort — Amersfoort · Utrecht region

HCAW — Bussum · Amsterdam region

UVV Baseball — Utrecht · University club · Returning force

DSS Kinheim — Haarlem · Host of Haarlem Baseball Week

The Fact

The Hoofdklasse Pipeline Put Xander Bogaerts on the Field at Fenway

The Dutch-Caribbean baseball ecosystem is the most productive MLB pipeline on Earth outside Latin America and East Asia. Hoofdklasse and its Curaçao-affiliated feeder system have produced Xander Bogaerts, Jurickson Profar, Kenley Jansen, Didi Gregorius, Jonathan Schoop, Ozzie Albies, Andruw Jones, and dozens more. The reason: Curaçao and Aruba are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which means Dutch youth development programs operate in the Caribbean with full funding and structure. A 14-year-old prospect in Willemstad is developed inside the same system that runs Hoofdklasse. Team Kingdom of the Netherlands has reached the WBC semifinals twice (2009, 2013) using this exact pipeline. When you watch a Neptunus Rotterdam game on a Saturday afternoon, you're watching the most efficient small-country scouting operation in baseball.

⚡ Hoofdklasse This Week

See every Hoofdklasse game this week — times in NYC/ET, streaming links — in the Official Viewer's Guide.

Open This Week's Guide →