What we’re about
We play casually competitive basketball and football (soccer) games at various locations in Amsterdam.
Our Rules
- Please always pay on the day of the game via bank transfer, Tikkie, PayPal or bitcoin. DO NOT WAIT DAYS OR WEEKS, AND DO NOT FORGET TO PAY.
- When you sign up for a game you are expected to show up or to cancel at least 24 hours in advance. Demand is almost always greater than supply so if you are on the list and can't make it but you don't cancel in time, somebody on the waiting list who could have gone in your place didn't get to go.
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Injuries
Please be aware that there is always a risk of injuring yourself. Especially if you haven't played in a while and/or if you're not 21 anymore, you may be underestimating the risk of injuring yourself when you start playing again. And you may also be underestimating what the consequences of an injury could be.
An Achilles' tendon rupture is a good example of both points: the main demographic for this injury is men in their 30s who start playing recreational sports after a period of relative inactivity; recovery can take anywhere from 6 months to a year, and it may not even be a full recovery. That's a high price to pay.
While it is impossible to eliminate the risk of an injury, there are several things you can do decrease it:
- arrive 10 minutes early so that you can warm up before the game (simply jogging / running a few laps is an excellent way to do this; the benefits of stretching before a game are, however, more questionable)
- start slowly: if you haven't played basketball or football for a while, don't immediately go all out, running for every ball, doing tricks etc. Take a couple of weeks to make sure your body gets used to this type of activity again.
- when you feel tired during a game, you may want to rest for a bit, as your chances of injuring yourself increase when you're tired
- don't overdo it: keep in mind that it's just a game, an enjoyable activity that you would like to continue to engage in. There is no point in pushing past your limits and risk damage to your body.
- eat enough protein, take gelatin and, most importantly, get enough rest and sleep so that your body recovers properly. A very useful book in this regard is Jeff Bercovici's Play On.
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More Games
Want to play more often?
- Weekday games in Bijlmer sportcentrum https://www.meetup.com/Amsterdam-Pick-up-Basketball-Meetup/
- More weekday games via https://www.meetup.com/Het-Marnix-Weekday-Basketball/
- Pickup games on Mondays and Wednesdays at the University of Amsterdam's gym https://usc.uva.nl/en/sports/basketball/
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Organize your own games
Because demand for indoor basketball and soccer games is greater than supply there is a good chance that if you want to organize your own games there will be enough others who would want to join you.
Organizing a game is pretty easy. Go to https://asp3.lvp.nl/amisweb/amsterdam/amis/amis.php?action=index (in Dutch), check when and where courts are available and book them online (you will need a Dutch bank account). You can also try to find and book courts outside of that reservation system.
Once you've booked a court, send me a message with the date, time and location and let me know how many players you are looking for. I'll then announce the game on the site so that people can sign up for it.
If you're organizing games on a regular basis, I can also give you access to our MeetUp system so that you can post them on the site yourself.
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If you have any questions or suggestions, contact organizer Koen Swinkels.
