1985–86 Eerste Divisie
The Dutch Eerste Divisie in the 1985–86 season was contested by 19 teams, one more than in the previous season. This was due to FC Emmen entering from the amateurs. FC Den Haag won the championship without losing a single match.
New entrants
Entered from amateur footballRelegated from the 1984–85 Eredivisie
Promotion competition
In the promotion competition, four period winners played for promotion to the eredivisie.Attendances
| # | Club | Average |
| 1 | Den Haag | 8,550 |
| 2 | Heerenveen | 4,011 |
| 3 | Emmen | 3,906 |
| 4 | Willem II | 3,728 |
| 5 | De Graafschap | 3,622 |
| 6 | Veendam | 3,525 |
| 7 | Cambuur | 3,386 |
| 8 | Zwolle | 3,337 |
| 9 | NAC | 2,857 |
| 10 | Helmond | 2,817 |
| 11 | RKC | 2,772 |
| 12 | RBC | 2,692 |
| 13 | Volendam | 2,350 |
| 14 | Vitesse | 2,306 |
| 15 | Telstar | 2,250 |
| 16 | Wageningen | 1,925 |
| 17 | Eindhoven | 1,689 |
| 18 | SVV | 1,436 |
| 19 | DS '79 | 914 |
Source: