Sandor van der Heide

Sandor van der Heide
Personal information
Date of birth (1978-03-30) 30 March 1978
Place of birth Ysbrechtum, Netherlands
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position Midfielder
Youth career
1982–1988 LSC 1890
1988–1990 Sneek Wit Zwart
1990–1994 Heerenveen
1994–1997 Cambuur
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–2001 Cambuur 88 (24)
2001–2002 Waldhof Mannheim 0 (0)
2001–2002Cambuur (loan) 24 (7)
2002–2007 ONS Sneek (56)
2007–2012 Cambuur 130 (36)
2012–2014 ONS Sneek 40 (22)
Total 282 (145)
Managerial career
2012–2014 ONS Sneek (player-assistant)
2014–2015 Cambuur (assistant)
2015–2017 IJsselmeervogels
2017–2019 De Graafschap (assistant)
2019–2021 Cambuur (assistant)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Sandor van der Heide (born 30 March 1978) is a Dutch football manager and former player.

Playing career

Born in Ysbrechtum, Friesland, Van der Heide joined Cambuur, signing a professional contract in 1997.

He made his Cambuur debut in a 4–1 Eerste Divisie win over Telstar on 23 August 1997, coming on as a substitute for René van Rijswijk.[1]

Coaching career

In March 2012, it was announced that Van der Heide would retire from professional football and join ONS Sneek as a playing assistant manager.[2]

In May 2014, van der Heide returned to Cambuur as assistant manager to Henk de Jong, while also remaining active as an advisor at ONS Sneek.[3] On 10 November 2015, he stepped down as assistant manager at Cambuur and continued in a scouting and analysis role for the club.[4] A few days later, he left the club entirely and was appointed manager of IJsselmeervogels.[5]

On 23 January 2017, Van der Heide also accepted a part-time role as assistant manager to Henk de Jong at De Graafschap, as he was still managing IJsselmeervogels at the time.[6] However, on 17 August 2017, he decided to leave IJsselmeervogels with immediate effect, citing the difficulty of combining both roles.[7] He was subsequently appointed full-time assistant manager at De Graafschap.[8]

Ahead of the 2019–20 season, Van der Heide once again returned to Cambuur as assistant manager to Henk de Jong.[9] In the autumn of 2020, and again during the spring of 2021, he suffered from burn-out symptoms, which led to prolonged periods of absence during the 2020–21 season—a campaign in which Cambuur won the Eerste Divisie and secured promotion to the Eredivisie.[10][11]

Personal life

After stepping back from day-to-day football coaching after leaving Cambuur in 2021, Van der Heide became active as an entrepreneur. Outside football, he owns several escape rooms as well as a beach club.[12]

Honours

Cambuur

References

  1. ^ "Cambuur Leeuwarden - Telstar (23-08-1997)". Voetbal International. 23 August 1997. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  2. ^ Sandor van der Heide hâldt op, omropfryslan.nl, 19 March 2012
  3. ^ Sandor van der Heide weg bij ONS Boso Sneek, tweenul.nl, 26 May 2014
  4. ^ Van der Heide direct weg als assistent van SC Cambuur, ad.nl, 10 November 2015
  5. ^ Van der Heide tekent bij IJsselmeervogels, lc.nl, 17 November 2015
  6. ^ Sandor van der Heide per direct assistent van Henk de Jong bij De Graafschap, gelderlander.nl, 23 January 2017
  7. ^ Sandor van der Heide vertrekt per direct bij IJsselmeervogels, voetbal247.nl, 17 August 2017
  8. ^ Sandor van der Heide full-time at De Graafschap, degraafschap.nl, 18 August 2017
  9. ^ Henk de Jong and Sandor van der Heide return to SC Cambuur, cambuur.nl, 20 March 2019
  10. ^ "Van der Heide terug bij Cambuur: "Ik was compleet gesloopt"" [Van der Heide back at Cambuur: "I was completely worn out"]. Omrop Fryslân (in Dutch). 15 January 2021. Archived from the original on 2 February 2026. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  11. ^ a b "SC Cambuur kroont zich tot kampioen van de Keuken Kampioen Divisie 2020/2021!" [SC Cambuur are crowned champions of the Keuken Kampioen Divisie 2020–21!]. SC Cambuur (in Dutch). 23 April 2021. Archived from the original on 17 October 2025. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  12. ^ Willemsen, Raymond (7 March 2024). "Sandor van der Heide: van tactisch brein bij De Graafschap naar uitvinder escapekoffer" [Sandor van der Heide: from tactical mastermind at De Graafschap to escape-room inventor]. De Gelderlander (in Dutch). Retrieved 2 February 2026.