2015–16 KNVB Cup

The 2015–16 KNVB Cup tournament was the 98th edition of the Dutch national football annual knockout tournament to determine the winner of the KNVB Cup.
FC Groningen unsuccessfully defended its 2015 title losing in the third round to FC Utrecht, 5–3. Feyenoord successfully pursued its 2016 Cup title on 24 April 2016 at De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam defeating FC Utrecht, 2–1. 45,592 in attendance. They qualified for: the group stage in the Europa League the following season and the Johan Cruyff Shield, the Dutch Supercup match between the Cup winner and the champions of the Eredivisie.

Qualification

Teams qualified for the Cup through the following:

Competition	Number of teams	Round in which they enter
Eredivisie, Eerste Divisie	35	Second round
Topklasse	10	Second round
Topklasse	16	First round
KNVB District Cups	24	First round

Calendar

The calendar is as follows:

Round	Draw date	Date
First round	1 July 2015	26 August 2015
Second round	1 July 2015	22–24 September 2015
Third round	24 September 2015	27–29 October 2015
Round of 16	29 October 2015	15–17 December 2015
Quarter-finals	17 December 2015	2–4 February 2016
Semi-finals	4 February 2016	2 and 3 March 2016
Final	4 February 2016	24 April 2016

Source: Dutch Football Association

First round

Only amateur teams compete in this round. Matches were played on 26 August 2015. Due to heavy rainfall four matches were abandoned during the game and finished one week later on 2 September 2015

Second round

Winners from the first round compete against all professional clubs.

Third round

The 32 winners from the previous round progress to this stage.

Fourth round

The 16 winners from the previous round progress to this stage.

Quarter-finals

The 8 winners from the previous round progress to this stage.

Semi-finals

The 4 winners from the previous round progress to this stage.

Final

The 2 winners from the previous round progressed to the final. The winner of the semi-final match between Feyenoord and AZ is marked as the 'home' team in the final, as that was the first match to be drawn at the draw for the semi-finals.