Erik Braal (born May 16, 1971) is a Dutch professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach, currently serving as head coach for

Heroes Den Bosch Heroes Den Bosch is a Dutch professional basketball club based in 's-Hertogenbosch. The club plays in the BNXT League since 2021 and in the top basketball division in the Netherlands since 1972. Founded as EBBC in 1951, the club had several sponso ...

. He was the head coach of

Donar Thor (from ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, and fertility. Beside ...

from 2015 until 2020. Braal was the most successful coach ever for the club with seven trophies won.

Career

Braal was head coach of Rotterdam Basketbal for five years, from 2003 till 2008. After that he became head coach of

West-Brabant Giants West-Brabant Giants was a Dutch professional basketball club based in Bergen op Zoom. The club was established in 2003 and dissolved in 2011. The team played its games at Sporthal de Boulevard and its main colors were red and white. History The cl ...

. He led the team to the Dutch Finals for the first time in club history, in 2009–10. In 2011 he signed with

Aris Leeuwarden LWD Basket is a Dutch professional basketball club based in Leeuwarden. Founded as Aris Leeuwarden in 2004, the club competes in the BNXT League, and has competed at the highest national level since its foundation. The team plays its home games at ...

. In 2012–13 he led Aris to the Finals, also for the first time in history. His team surprised everyone by beating heavy favorite

EiffelTowers Den Bosch Heroes Den Bosch is a Dutch professional basketball club based in 's-Hertogenbosch. The club plays in the BNXT League since 2021 and in the top basketball division in the Netherlands since 1972. Founded as EBBC in 1951, the club had several sponso ...

in the semifinals. In March 2014, he signed with Austrian team

Oberwart Gunners Oberwart Gunners, for sponsorship reasons known as Unger Steel Gunners Oberwart, is a professional basketball club based in Oberwart, Austria. The team plays in the Österreichische Basketball Bundesliga and was founded in 1957. The team has won ...

fired Braal during the 2004 / 2015 season due to poor results. In June 2015, he signed a two-year deal with

Donar Groningen Donar, also known as Donar Groningen, is a professional basketball club based in Groningen, Netherlands. The club competes in the BNXT League and its home arena is MartiniPlaza, which has a seating capacity of 4,350 people. Founded in 1951, Do ...

.On 14 April 2020, Donar announced Braal's contract would not be extended in mutual consent. Braal won the most trophies in club history, with seven in total. On 15 June 2021, Braal signed a 2-year contract with

. He won the 2021–22 Dutch national championship with Den Bosch after beating

ZZ Leiden ZZ Leiden Basketball, also known as Zorg en Zekerheid Leiden, is a professional basketball club based in Leiden, Netherlands. The club plays in the BNXT League, the domestic first tier league. Their home games are played at Sportcomplex 1574. Z ...

3–2 in the Dutch finals. In the 2024–25 season, Braal guided Heroes to the double, winning both the Dutch Cup and the DBL finals.

Honours

;

*3×

Dutch Basketball League The Dutch Basketball League (DBL), formerly the Eredivisie, was the highest professional basketball league in the Netherlands, run by the Federatie Eredivisie Basketball (FEB). Since 2021, the league has been replaced by the Belgian-Dutch BNXT Le ...

: (

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

) *3× Dutch Supercup: (2016, 2018, 2022) *4×

Dutch Cup The KNVB Beker (; ), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organised by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside the N ...

: (

, 2024, 2025)

* 2× Dutch national champion: (

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

) * 2× Dutch Cup: (2024, 2025)

Individual awards

*4× DBL Coach of the Year: (2006, 2008, 2017, 2018) *

FIBA Europe Cup The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA Europe's second level competition. Clubs mainly qualify based on their performance in national leagues an ...

Fan Vote Coach of the Year: (

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Braal, Erik Living people 1976 births Aris Leeuwarden coaches Donar (basketball club) coaches Dutch basketball coaches Dutch Basketball League coaches Feyenoord Basketball coaches Heroes Den Bosch coaches Oberwart Gunners coaches People from Werkendam Sportspeople from North Brabant West-Brabant Giants coaches