Bob Draijer Opens Feyenoord Festival 2026 with a Jump into De Kuip

A solo jump opens the Feyenoord Festival 2026

On Saturday 18 July 2026, Bob Draijer opened the Feyenoord Festival at De Kuip. Not a kick-off from the pitch, but a parachute jump straight into the stadium — solo, in front of a packed crowd that had not seen it coming. On board: a voucher for a helicopter flight from De Kuip, brought down from altitude.

One jumper in the air, a full team on the ground

A stadium landing is the most demanding form of demonstration skydiving. The landing zone is small and enclosed on all sides by stands, and the wind behaves differently between the walls of a stadium than above it.

A solo jump does not mean the jumper is on their own. Every demonstration is preceded by complete preparation: dimensions and obstacles are mapped, wind patterns analysed, and the time slot coordinated with both the event organisation and air traffic control.

Throughout the jump the ground crew stays in contact with the jumper, by radio and through visual signals from the field. What the audience sees as one man in the sky is the result of a team on the ground tracking and guiding the entire approach.

Bob Draijer has made more than 20,500 jumps in over forty years. De Kuip is familiar ground: ParaDemo previously performed here during the Feyenoord championship celebration.

A helicopter flight from the stadium

The voucher Bob brought down is good for a helicopter flight departing from De Kuip — a fitting prize on a day the club traditionally closes with its new signings landing by helicopter on the pitch.

The jump on video

Watch the jump into De Kuip on Instagram

The Feyenoord Festival 2026

The Feyenoord Festival is the club annual open day. On Saturday 18 July, De Kuip and the surrounding grounds were open free of charge to supporters with a ticket, from 11:00 to 17:00. The programme included the Johan Cruijff Court, the Skill Circle, the Goal of Fame and a Ferris wheel overlooking Rotterdam.

By tradition, the club closes the day with the presentation of the new squad, with the new signings landing by helicopter on the pitch of De Kuip. This year those were Charles Vanhoutte, Nacho Ferri and Mika Marmol.

A demonstration jump for your event?

From stadium openings to festivals and corporate events, ParaDemo has been delivering professional demonstration jumps in the Netherlands and abroad for over forty years — including the delivery of a key, a match ball or, as here, a prize for the crowd. Get in touch to discuss the possibilities.