Sparta Rotterdam were founded on 1 April 1888 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, making them the oldest professional football club in the country. The club began as a cricket and football society formed by a group of students, and within a few years had established themselves as a genuine force in Dutch football. They were among the first clubs to join the national football association and helped shape the early structure of the game in the Netherlands — introducing innovations such as goals with crossbars and nets, the header, and brightly coloured shirts inspired by a visit to Sunderland in England in 1899. Those red and white stripes paired with black shorts have remained Sparta's identity ever since.
The club's first golden era came in the early twentieth century, when they won the national championship in 1909, 1911, 1912, 1913, and 1915 — a period of dominance built in part with the help of English coach Edgar Chadwick. A sixth title followed in 1959, and the club also claimed the KNVB Cup three times (1958, 1962, and 1966). For over a century, from their founding until the 2002–03 season, Sparta played continuously in the top flight without a single relegation — a record of sustained presence that defines much of the club's identity.
Sparta are one of three professional clubs based in Rotterdam, alongside Excelsior and Feyenoord, with matches between them constituting the Rotterdam Derby. The club plays its home games at Het Kasteel (The Castle), a stadium in the Spangen district of west Rotterdam that has been their home since 1916. In recent seasons Sparta have competed in the Eredivisie, continuing a long tradition as one of Dutch football's most historically significant clubs.