JONG SPARTA VS. EXCELSIOR PREVIEW

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands (Interstat) — Jong Sparta hosts Excelsior on Sunday, May 17, 2026, in a match organized by the Eredivisie that pits a reserve side against a top-flight club.

Jong Sparta enters on a five-match winless run after a 4-1 loss to De Treffers on Saturday. The defeat followed a 4-0 thrashing at Twente and a 4-2 loss to VV Rijnsburgse Boys, both earlier this month. In the last 10 games, Jong Sparta earned only three wins and has been outscored 24-14. The team’s most recent victory came April 25, a 4-1 home win over Barendrecht.

Excelsior, meanwhile, has struggled to find consistency. The visitors drew 1-1 with Volendam on May 10, their last outing. That result followed a 3-2 win at Groningen on May 2 and a 5-0 demolition of Utrecht on April 26. Over their past 10 league fixtures, Excelsior has three wins, three draws and four losses, with a minus-three goal differential. The team’s strongest performance came against Utrecht, while their defense has been leaky, allowing two or more goals in five of those matches.

The head-to-head record favors Jong Sparta. In their most recent meeting, Sept. 14, 2025, Jong Sparta won 1-0 at Excelsior. That result snapped a run of two previous Excelsior wins.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 2-2 draw, while the same service’s ELO system gives Jong Sparta a 68.40 percent probability of winning. Both projections suggest a tight, competitive match.

After this fixture, Jong Sparta travels to VV Katwijk on Saturday, May 23.

Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. local time at Sparta Stadion Het Kasteel.