Erik ten Hag Childhood Story Plus Untold Biography Facts

Our Erik ten Hag Biography tells you Facts about his Childhood Story, Early Life, Parents – Father (Hennie ten Hag), Mother (Joke ten Hag), Family Background, Brothers (Michel ten Hag, Rico ten Hag), etc.

Again, we’ll break down info on Erik ten Hag’s Wife, Son, Daughters, Lifestyle, Net Worth, Personal Life, etc.

Also, Erik ten Hag’s father’s company. Finally, we’ll give deep insights into his rich family members, persons who have a voracious appetite for real-estate business.

In a nutshell, this Biography breaks down the Full History of Erik ten Hag. We’ll give the story of a stubborn Tukker who had an average playing career.

People call him the stubborn snot from Haaksbergen, a man who became the best in his country after bringing Ajax to the top.

As a child, Erik was often the smallest with the loudest mouth. Unlike his brothers, he was never interested in joining his family’s business.

Rather, Erik decided to follow his football dreams. He was once a mediocre altar boy who became very wise after his average career.

Preamble:

Our version of Erik ten Hag’s Bio begins by telling you notable events of his Early Life and Family Background.

Thereafter, we’ll proceed to give you a summarized view of his playing career and early coaching years. Finally, we’ll tell how he became successful as a coach.

We hope to stimulate your autobiography appetite while you read Erik ten Hag’s Biography.

To begin, LifeBogger presents you with this gallery of the Dutch manager’s Early Life and Rise.

Behold the childhood years and rise of a manager with a great footballing philosophy.

Yes, everyone (maybe you) knows about Erik’s aggressive pressing tactics.

Also, the fact that football pundits widely considered him as one of the rising managerial celebrities in the beautiful game.

No wonder Man United’s CEO, Richard Arnold, fought to have his signature.

Despite the many praises to his name, LifeBogger notices a knowledge gap. We found that not many football fans have read an in-depth version of Erik ten Hag’s Biography.

Because of that, we have made this memoir of the Dutch. So, without further ado, let’s begin.

Erik ten Hag Childhood Story:

For Biography starters, he holds the Aquarius zodiac sign and the nickname “De Kleine Generaal”.

Erik ten Hag was born on the 2nd day of February 1970 to his Mother, Joke ten Hag and Father, Hennie ten Hag, in Haaksbergen, Netherlands.

Ten Hag came to the world as the second child among three boys (no sister).

Both he and his siblings were born to the blissful marital union between their Father (Hennie ten Hag) and Mother (Joke).

Now, let’s introduce you to one of Erik ten Hag’s parents – his Daddy.

Growing-Up:

Erik ten Hag was raised in his family’s hometown of Oldenzaal. This town is just a 30-minute drive to Haaksbergen, where Erik ten Hag’s mother had him.

Oldenzaal is a small town about seven or eight miles outside Enschede, close to the Dutch-German border.

The Dutch manager grew up alongside two male siblings (brothers) and no sister. Michel ten Hag is Erik ten Hag’s brother, the oldest in the family.

Erik ten Hag is the middle-born child. Finally, Rico ten Hag (his immediate younger brother) is the family’s youngest.

Erik ten Hag’s parents raised all of their children in a catholic way. He and his brothers were more than just churchgoers.

They belonged to associations in the church. For Erik, he was an altar boy at the HH Bonifatius en Gezellen church – where his family attended.

Erik ten Hag’s Early Life:

As a kid, they call him a mediocre altar boy. This is simply because Erik was too playful and often gets distracted by one particular habit.

That childhood habit is the act of picking up football cards. Oliver Skipp (the English footballer) also did that – as written in his Bio.

Back then, where Erik ten Hag’s family lived, has close proximity to Leusink’s supermarket.

This supermarket boasts of football cards for Dutch Legends, among which is Johan Cruyff, who is Erik ten Hag’s idol.

Yes, Johan Cruyff was a football GOAT in the mid-1960s and 70s.

In the mid-1970s, Leusink supermarket was famous for having the football cards of Cruyff. Erik ten Hag’s card collection hobby helped him bond with his one and only soccer hero.

As a child, he found it so exciting to collect several freshman cards of his number one player.

Aside from card collection, playing soccer was also a distracting hobby. Ten Hag’s brothers (Michel and Rico) also joined him to play football every day.

As an eight-year-old, during the 1978 World Cup, Erik, together with his brothers and friends, formed their own club.

This new club, named Veldmaatse Voetbal Vereniging was named after the area where the boys lived. In the quest to have more fun, they grew their childhood club.

Did you know?… Little Erik ten Hag and one of his childhood best friends (Leon) were the club’s treasurers.

Erik ten Hag Family Background:

When you ask about one of the closest-knitted households in Oldenzaal, that of Hennie and Joke comes first.

Erik ten Hag’s family isn’t just close to one another, but real business people. Did you know?… his Dad is the proud founder of ten Hag, a real estate enterprise.

Find below Erik, his Dad (Hennie), and older brother (Michel) standing at the front of their family’s wealth.

Ten Hag real estate, brokers, and financial service group is in Enschede, OVERIJSSEL, Netherlands. The company is also called Ten Hag Assurantieadviseurs B.V.

Hennie ten Hag started the business at the young age of 23. At that time, ten Hag (the business name) existed as a broker and an insurance company.

Now with more than 100 employees and nine branches, the company has grown into a major real estate player.

Erik ten Hag Family Origin:

Regarding his nationality, the manager is a Dutch citizen. Where Erik ten Hag’s family come from (Haaksbergen), is a town in the eastern Netherlands.

This town is in the province of Overijssel, in the country’s Twente region. Here is a map that shows Erik ten Hag’s origin.

Erik ten Hag’s Ethnicity:

In the area of ethnic class, we classify the manager under the Dutch People. This is the major ethnic group in the Netherlands, comprising 74.8% of the country’s population.

Minor ethnic groups include other Europeans (6.3%), Turks (2.4%), Surinamese 2.1%, etc.

Erik ten Hag’s Mother Origin:

Earlier, we used Haaksbergen to identify his Dad’s origin. It is pertinent to note that Erik ten Hag’s Mum (Joke ten Hag) is not from the same place as his Dad (Hennie ten Hag).

According to research, she is from Lemselo, a hamlet in the Dutch province of Overijssel.

Erik ten Hag Education:

The Estate agent’s son, as they called him back then, is a product of Ludgerus School.

For Erik, going to school wasn’t all about reading books but also playing football at the schoolyard. Ludgerus School has been in existence for ages – before Erik ten Hag was born.

Did you know?… Ludgerus School’s sixth-grade class of 1974 held its first reunion on the 7th of April 2011.

Six grades are 11 to 12-year-old kids, and by implication, the Ludgerus School had existed way before 1970, which is the year Erik ten Hag’s parents had him.

As a teenager, little Erik ten Hag had a likeness for dancing. Because of that, his parents (Hennie and Joke) had him enrolled with Dwars dance school, where he learnt the art.

Dance Center Dwars address is at Fazantstraat 26, 7481 BK Haaksbergen, Netherlands.

Aside from his school’s main extracurricular activity (football), young Erik was also good at playing Billiards.

Put simply, he was a versatile kid who was able to adapt to many different school sports functions. Among all sports, Football took precedence and became his calling.

Career Buildup:

In the home of Hennie and Joke ten Hag, there was no time for laziness. If you want something, then you have to work hard to earn it.

However, one thing was certain about career expectations. Hennie wanted his boys to follow in his entrepreneurship footsteps.

Erik ten Hag was different from the rest of his brothers. He never had the entrepreneurship spirit of his Dad.

ten Hag wanted a life on his own on the football field, and that made the whole family worry about his future. He never fancied joining the family’s real estate business.

Erik ten Hag Biography – Football Story:

Bonboys was where serious boys who had pledged their future to the beautiful game meet. These days, people call this academy SV Bon Boys Haaksbergen.

This football academy was Erik ten Hag’s first. Here is a rare photo of a happy-looking Erik in his SV Bon Boys colours.

Approaching his mid-teenage years, Erik ten Hag left his boyhood club academy – Bonboys – for Twente’s academy in Enschede.

From that age (12 or 13), he joined the academy – right until the age of 19 (the year 1989), when he graduated from his youth football career.

Because he spent the majority of his youth at Twente, Erik wanted something different. He moved to De Graafschap in the year 1990.

Centre-back defence was Erik ten Hag’s playing career position. He had his best career year with De Graafschap, where he scored six goals.

Keeping clean sheets and scoring six goals wasn’t the major highlight of his career. Erik ten Hag was among those that helped the club win the 1990-1991 Eerste Divisie title.

This was his first trophy as a player. Here is Erik ten Hag celebrating one of his best career victories.

Later years as a Footballer:

Like some top football managers, the likes of (Graham Potter, Bruno Lage, etc.), Erik ten Hag had many years of silence OR no progress during his playing career days.

The Dutch waited for ten years before winning another title. This time, the KNVB Cup with FC Twente.

Although he retired from his football career at the age of 32, Erik spent more than half of his playing career years with FC Twente.

Thanks to his loyalty, the club (to this day) sees him as one of their legends. The Dutch Boss retired from active playing in the year 2002.

Erik ten Hag Biography – the journey to Managerial Fame:

The Haaksbergen native (after football retirement) used the next ten years of his life to learn apprenticeship – the practice of coaching.

In the year 2012, Marc Overmars (the ex-Duch footballer) employed Ten Hag as manager of his club, Go Ahead Eagles.

Thanks to the knowledge gained over the years, Erik led the club to a rare promotion, one they had waited for in 17 years.

Achieving this feat was a big boost for his CV. Erik ten Hag applied for several bigger jobs until he got one (in Germany) that met his needs.

The 6th of June 2013 was the day Erik ten Hag got a coaching job with Bayern Munich II. Later, he noticed working in Germany wasn’t his calling.

Ten Hag, in 2015 (after winning the Regionalliga Bayern), returned to his country, where he got a much better job offer.

In the summer of 2015, he got the bigger role of Sporting Director and head coach of FC Utrecht.

This job became the game-changer, one that propelled his popularity. First, Erik led Utrecht to fifth place during his first season. Next season, he finished in fourth position.

AFC Ajax Story:

In the year 2017, the Dutch club sacked Marcel Keizer and appointed Ten Hag. In his first season, he led Ajax to the 2018/2019 UEFA Champions League semi-finals.

Surprisingly, that was Ajax’s first since 1997 – during the years of the Legendary Baller, Sunday Oliseh.

If you can remember, that season brought fame to the likes of Frenkie de Jong, Matthijs de Ligt, and Hakim Ziyech. Also, Donny van de Beek, Dusan Tadic, etc.

Erik ten Hag gave Jurrien Timber a rise to Ajax’s first team and made around €300m from the sale of his Big Stars to top-tier clubs around Europe.

Since his glory first year with Ajax, Ten Hag’s reputation has grown into world-class. Let’s not forget, he is the fastest manager in Dutch league history to reach 100 wins with Ajax.

After winning five trophies in two seasons, mega-clubs around Europe began to seek his service.

The Manchester United interest:

At the time of writing Erik ten Hag’s Biography, he had agreed to become the next manager of Man United.

The Haaksbergen native is being tasked to do what David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and Ralf Rangnick haven’t been able to do.

This herculean task is no other than returning the club back to the Sir Alex Ferguson‘s glory days.

The truth is, the Manchester United limbo has lasted long, and this club needs a saviour manager with his character. The rest of Erik ten Hag’s Biography, as we say, is now history.

Who is Erik ten Hag’s Wife:

Aside from her photo, little documentation exists about the woman the Dutch manager is married to. For example, information about Erik ten Hag’s wife’s name.

Also to note, Erik ten Hag’s wife has no Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media accounts.

From what we’ve gathered, we notice one thing is certain. The fact that Erik ten Hag’s Wife is no doubt, his biggest support system.

For reasons unknown, the Dutch football manager has kept her out of the limelight. We’ll give you proof that shows he respects his wife a lot.

About Erik ten Hag’s Daughters:

Although we are yet to unravel the name of his wife, research has it that Erik ten Hag has two daughters.

The Dutch manager, as of 2022, is yet to publicly unveil his daughters to fans. We believe the two ladies are not Erik ten Hag’s daughters – but that of his brother.

We’ll tell you more about Michel ten Hag’s daughters as we progress in Erik’s Biography.

Based on findings, there exists some information that one of Erik ten Hag’s daughters is a horseback rider. She is someone who rides horses not only for pleasure but as a sport.

About Erik ten Hag’s Son:

At the time of writing this Bio, the only male child of the Dutch manager is over 20 years old. Erik ten Hag’s Son, just like his father, is also into football.

Since childhood, he had followed in the footsteps of his Daddy. Now, here is a rare photo of Erik ten Hag’s Son.

Did you know?… Erik ten Hag’s son once had a serious car accident in 2017. That made him put a temporary stop to playing football.

Thankfully, he picked it up again after making a full recovery. In the next section, we’ll tell you what Erik ten Hag did for his son.

Personal Life away from Football:

Who is Erik ten Hag?

To start with, he is a family man (complex but cool), someone who loves to separate his wife and children from his job.

When he began his Ajax job, Ten Hag left his family in Oldenzaal while he moved to Amsterdam. He would come to visit them every week.

Erik ten Hag’s family (his son, wife and daughters) prefer living in their family’s hometown (Oldenzaal), which is much more quieter than Amsterdam.

Responding to his decision to keep his family away from his workplace, Ten Hag once said in an interview.

“The lives of my wife, son and daughters do not have to serve my own life.”

There is no home than Oldenzaal:

Erik ten Hag’s family loves to live in Oldenzaal. This is a small town (where he grew up) about seven or eight miles outside Enschede.

Oldenzaal is near the Dutch-German border. In this town, many families have money, but they are used to not flashing it around.

Oldenzaal is truly a peaceful town and you can’t really distinguish between the rush hour of a Monday morning or a beautiful Sunday morning.

Shockingly, in that town, you are most likely to be in danger of getting knocked down by a mere bicycle rather than a car.

Just like the family of Erik ten Hag, people who come from Oldenzaal often stick around.

The town is a perfect relaxing place for Rich men to raise their families, grow old and retire here. Not to forget, Oldenzaal is always proud of their most famous son – Erik ten Hag.

In fact, now you understand why Erik Ten Hag’s wife and children call this place home. Also, why he always return there whenever he is not needed in Amsterdam?

Put simply, Oldenzaal is the perfect refuge (his escape) from all his managerial pressures.

Ability to harness the stars in young footballers:

Ajax youngsters as of 2022 – the likes of Perr Schuurs, Ryan Gravenberch, and Antony can testify to this.

Ten Hag sees the star in people, and he is an expert when it comes to getting the best out of any footballer. In fact, this is a family trait he inherited from his parents.

Erik ten Hag’s House – A gift for his son:

The Dutch manager always reminds his players that football is extremely important but that the family should always come above their careers.

Contrary to how his Dad wanted him to work for his money, Erik doesn’t prevent himself from spending on his children.

Around 2019, the manager splashed the sum of 136,000 euros to buy a house for his son. This information was revealed by Erik Ten Hag’s son’s neighbours.

The house, in Oldenzaal, is just a five-minute walk from the town centre. What a lovely apartment for that price!

Erik ten Hag Lifestyle:

What can you say of a man who drives an average car? Also, a man who uses his old bag from his former club (Utrecht) while his new club (Ajax)?

For us, we see Erik as a complete antidote to living an expensive lifestyle. Behold, Erik ten Hag’s LifeStyle in a nutshell.

Erik ten Hag Family Life:

As said earlier, the Dutch manager hails from a close-knitted household. Members of his family remain his LIFE, and any other thing (including his job) comes second.

This section of Erik ten Hag’s Biography provides facts about his family. Now, let’s start with Hennie.

Erik ten Hag’s Father:

Hennie ten Hag was born in the year 1943. Erik ten Hag’s Dad is 79 years old as I write this Bio and he is still very healthy.

Even at this age, Hennie goes to the office and attends board meetings. Knowledge and Acquaintances are Hennie’s motto and watchwords.

Erik ten Hag’s Mother:

Joke ten Hag is best known as the woman who married the largest networker in Dutch’s Twente region.

Also very healthy like her husband, Erik ten Hag’s Mum is a homemaker. Back in the day, she enforces the house rules and work ethics among her three boys.

Michel – Erik ten Hag’s Brother:

He was born to his parents – Hennie and Joke ten Hag on the 31st day of August 1968.

Michel is two years older than Erik, his immediate younger brother. Erik ten Hag’s brother (Michel) joined the family company in 1996 after completing his educational training.

Regarding his education, Michel has a degree in civil engineering. Out of the need to care for his family business, he pursued a master’s degree in real estate science (University of Amsterdam). Michel also has certifications in several brokerage/insurance courses.

After graduating from the university (BSc), Michel ten Hag didn’t move straight into the family company.

He decided to get the experience of working elsewhere before joining the family’s business. Michel first worked for Unilever in Poland before joining ten Hag in 2000.

In the year 2007, Michel succeeded his Dad as the chairman of the board of Ten Hag Group.

It happened after Hennie (his Dad) resigned from his position. Hennie teg Hag, for health reasons, decided to step down for his son (Michel) to carry on with his CEO duties.

On his marital status, Michel ten Hag has once divorced and remarried. He has five children with his ex-wife, with their ages from 23 to 15 years (at the time of writing).

Michel lives in Haaksbergen, and he alternates between the town and Oldenzaal, where he grew up.

About Rico – Erik ten Hag’s Brother:

The last born of Hennie and Joke ten Hag is four years younger than Michel and two years younger than Erik.

Rico took his first step in the family company in 2000 after his Dad advised him to complete his education and get experience in the real estate field.

In other to get experience, Rico worked with a large estate agent in North Holland before joining the family business.

Erik ten Hag’s brother (Rico) is often viewed as the closest to his parent, notably his Dad, who has remained his supervisory director.

Erik ten Hag’s Relatives:

Michel’s wife works in the family company as a real estate agent.

She is Erik ten Hag’s sister-in-law with family origins from Oldenzaal, the town Erik spent the most of his childhood.

In 2021, Erik ten Hag’s niece (his older brother’s daughter pictured earlier) completed her real estate training.

With adequate knowledge of the family business, she joined her Mum and Dad at the company.

Untold Facts:

In the final section of Erik ten Hag’s Biography, we’ll serve you more information about him. So, without further ado, let’s begin.

Why Erik ten Hag Family Business existed:

Years ago, the housing market in the Netherlands went dry. There was virtually no housing supply left and too little was built to meet citizens’ needs.

Because of that, the price of houses skyrocketed. Also, wrong political decisions make housing demands not to be monitored.

Erik ten Hag’s Dad (Hennie) came to the country’s rescue. In 1967, Erik ten Hag’s Dad formed the Real Estate and Insurance Agency.

The Erik ten Hag family business among other companies came to salvage this situation. In no time, housing issues were reduced.

Hennie’s company was first named “ten Kate – ten Hag“, and he erected it in Enschede. In 1978, the company opened branches in Zwolle.

Few years after, more branches came in Deventer, Hengelo, Zutphen and Almelo. The story of the Wout Weghorst family is similar.

Erik ten Hag’s Salary (Manchester United):

Our research has it that the Dutch manager’s earnings match that of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was paid £7.8m a year, or £160,000 a week.

This salary is by far bigger than his previous £63,000 a week package – which Erik ten Hag received at Ajax.

Now, this WIKI table shows a breakdown of Erik ten Hag’s salary with Manchester United. The table reveals how much the Dutch football manager makes – up to the second.

Comparing Ten Hag’s salary to that of the average Dutch citizen:

The average person who lives in the Netherlands makes around 3,750 euros per month. Did you know?… such a citizen would need 42 years to make Erik ten Hag’s €160,000 weekly wages.

Since you started viewing Erik ten Hag‘s Bio, he earned this with Man United.

£0

Erik ten Hag Religion:

The Dutch football manager was raised as a Catholic Christian. As a child, Erik ten Hag showed commitment to the catholic church by becoming an Altar Boy or Server.

Even at present, his family still attends the HH Bonifatius en Gezellen in Haaksbergen, Netherlands.

Did Erik ten work with Pep Guardiola?

The time he was manager of Bayern Munich II coincides with when the Spaniard was in charge of the club’s senior team.

So, Erik ten Hag and Pep Guardiola worked in close quarters. So practically, Pep was a Boss to Erik ten Hag, during his time with Bayern II.

Biography Summary:

This table breaks down Erik ten Hag’s facts. Use it to get quick insights into the Football Manager’s Bio.

EndNote:

Erik ten Hag came to the world on the 2nd day of February 1970. The Duch manager was born to his parents – his Mother (Joke ten Hag) and Father, (Hennie ten Hag).

Ten Hag has no sister but an older brother (Michel ten Hag) and a younger brother (Rico ten Hag).

The Dutch football manager is from a wealthy home. Erik ten Hag’s family are proud owners of the ten Hag Real Estate and Insurance Agency in Enschede, Overijssel, the Netherlands. His Dad (Hennie, now 79) began the family company at the age of 23.

As a kid, Erik ten Hag developed the hobby of collecting football cards of his hero (Johan Cruyff) at Leusink’s supermarket.

He was also an Alter boy at this family’s catholic church. The love for soccer (a child) saw little Erik, his brothers and friend starting their own club.

Erik ten Hag received his education at Ludgerus School, which existed before he was born. He began his soccer career with Bonboys and then journeyed his way through Twente, De Graafschap, RKC Waalwijk, Utrecht and Twente before finishing his career at the age of 32.

After working as a coaching apprentice, Erik began managing Go Ahead Eagles. A better job opportunity took him to Bayern Munich II.

After winning the Regionalliga Bayern, he returned to his country to take a job with Utrecht and then Ajax, where he made his name.

Appreciation Note:

Thank you for taking your precious time to read LifeBogger’s version of Erik ten Hag’s Biography.

We care about accuracy and fairness while delivering you the Biography of Soccer Managers. Also, while delivering you stories under our Football Extra Category.

Kindly let us know (via comment) if you notice just anything that doesn’t look right in Erik ten Hag’s Bio.

Please let us know what you think about the Dutch Manager and his amazing story. And on a final note, please stay tuned for more Football Stories from LifeBogger.

Hale Hendrix

Hi there! I am Hale Hendrix, a passionate football enthusiast and writer dedicated to uncovering the untold stories of footballers' childhood and biography. With a deep love for the beautiful game, I have spent countless hours researching and interviewing players to bring to light the lesser-known details of their lives.

ncG1vNJzZmikmZuyo7vGoJyrZpOkunCx0aKiZqyVo3qprcZmmqGhnJm1sLvDZpmip5enrrG02GaqraeirnqnrcKtqmg%3D