PSV, based in the southern city of Eindhoven, has long been one of the most successful clubs in the Netherlands.
Along with Ajax and Feyenoord, PSV is part of the traditional "big three" of the Dutch Eredivisie. The club celebrates its 107th birthday today, August 31, 2020.
Founded in 1913 as a club for employees of Dutch electronics company Philips, PSV has gone on to win 24 league championship titles (21 in the Eredivisie era). Only Ajax has won more, with 34 to its name. The club's most recent domestic triumph came in the 2017-18 season when former club captain Philip Cocu led the side to the title, four points above Ajax.
PSV has also won the KNVB Cup nine times, third most behind Ajax (19) and Feyenoord (13). Twice in its history the club has won four consecutive Eredivisie titles: from 1985 to 1989 and again from 2005 to 2008. PSV won its first European trophy, the UEFA Cup, in 1977-78 under manager Kees Rijvers. It next tasted success in Europe under Guus Hiddink, who, in his first of two spells in charge of the club, secured the 1987-88 European Cup.
Hiddink was succeeded by legendary English player and coach Bobby Robson, who also enjoyed two spells as manager. Robson led PSV to two domestic championships in his first two-year tenure, from 1990-1992, before returning in July 1998 and adding that season's Johan Cruyff shield to the club trophy cabinet.
Cocu, who first departed as manger in June 2012 after a three-month spell as caretaker, returned in July of the following year. He would go on to lead the team to the Eredivisie title in 2014-15 and 2015-16, as well as its most recent victory in 2018.
Some of the Netherlands' most high-profile players have represented the Eindhoven club throughout its history. Ruud Gullit wore the colors of PSV from 1985-1987, winning back-to-back league titles. Gullit then moved from PSV to Milan, where he was a star player in the dominant side that claimed three Serie A titles and two European Cups during his tenure.
Ronald Koeman caused controversy in the Netherlands when he moved from Ajax to PSV in 1986, winning three league titles and the European Cup before enjoying a trophy-laden tenure at Barcelona.
Arjen Robben played 56 league games for PSV, helping the side to the 2003 championship before departing for Chelsea. Robben has gone on to win two league titles in England, one in Spain with Real Madrid and eight with Bayern Munich in Germany, where he also won the 2012-13 Champions League.
Memphis Depay, with 51 international caps to his name and 19 goals, came through the PSV youth academy. He won the 2014-15 league title with PSV before moving on to Manchester United and is currently one of the most feared players in Ligue 1, with 57 goals and 43 assists for Lyon in 139 appearances.
In addition to Robben and Depay, Georginio Wijnaldum played 154 times for PSV, scoring 56 goals and providing 24 assists. Like Depay, he was a crucial member of the 2014-15 side which won the league, scoring 14 goals in the Eredivisie.
He would leave for Newcastle the following season and has since gone on to establish himself as a pivotal member of Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, making 47 appearances apiece during both the club's Champions League-winning 2018-19 campaign and last season's Premier League triumph.
German coach Roger Schmidt, who led RB Salzburg's victorious 2013-14 Austrian Bundesliga campaign before taking over as Bayer Leverkusen manager, was hired as PSV boss on March 11 of this year to take over from the beginning of the upcoming campaign.
