In 1955, professional football was finally permitted in the Netherlands. Ajax was still far from the international top, as was demonstrated in the European Cup match against Vasas SC, where they were beaten by the Hungarians 4–0 in the Népstadion). Similar European failures followed in 1960, with Ajax being knocked out by the Norwegian amateurs of Fredrikstad FK and in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1961 by Újpest FC of Ferenc Bene.
Ajax achieved some success on the domestic level, earning the first Eredivisie-championship in 1957 and again in 1960 – the 1960 title decided by a playoff after equalling in points with arch-rivals Feyenoord. Ajax cruised to a 5–1 victory with a hat trick by striker Wim Bleijenberg.
Bleijenberg was not the top scorer however. Henk Groot – the younger brother of Cees Groot who scored 100 goals for Ajax in his 5 year stay – arrived in 1959 from Stormvogels and scored 38 goals in 1959/60 and 41 goals in 1960/61. He was a vital part of Ajax in the early sixties, replacing star striker Piet van der Kuil who left for PSV in 1960. Alongside the man who would later become Mister Ajax, Sjaak Swart, Co Prins, Ton Pronk, Bennie Muller and a young Piet Keizer, Ajax added the National Cup in 1961 and the Intertoto Cup 1962 to their trophy cabinet.
Johan Cruijff played at Ajax between 1959–73 and 1981–83, winning 3 European Cups; his #14 is the only squad number Ajax has ever retired. Cruyff came back to manage the club from 1985–88.
After missing out on the championship after a 5–2 defeat against PSV in 1963, Ajax entered a period of decline in the national league. Henk Groot left to Feyenoord that summer, and in 1964/65 they were near relegation. Things improved after former player Rinus Michels replaced Vic Buckingham as the head manager. Ajax managed to secure a midtable spot under Michels; however Buckingham's second tenure saw the introduction of Johan Cruijff during a 3–1 loss at GVAV.
Michels started a revolution in Amsterdam, beginning with the return of Henk Groot and Co Prins, as well as the signing of goalkeeper Gert Bals. Michels built a side around the vision of Total Football, sacrificing players who he considered not to be good enough or fit the style of play. The most notable example of this was defender Frits Soetekouw – replaced by Ajax' new captain Velibor Vasović – whose own goal aided the victory of Dukla Prague in the quarter-final of the European Cup in 1966/67, after Ajax had knocked out Beşiktaş and defeated Liverpool 5–1.
Ajax sealed their second consecutive championship in 1967. They were not as dominant as the previous year, but with a seemingly unstoppable attack they scored no less than 122 goals (still a national record), of which 33 were from Johan Cruijff, at 20 years old already the star player. It was also the season for another important milestone: for the first time in history, Ajax won the double (after defeating NAC in the cup final).
It earned them European Cup qualification, being knocked out by Real Madrid in the subsequent season, with Veloso scoring the winner for Los Merengues in extra time after two 1–1 draws, results which greatly enhanced the reputation of the club.
Ajax won the Dutch title of 1968 overtaking Feyenoord, the league leaders for much of the season, and reached the European Cup final of 1969 in Madrid against AC Milan. In qualifying for the European Cup final Ajax defeated FC Nuremberg in the first round. They were almost knocked out by Benfica in the second, losing 3–1 to them in Amsterdam but winning the second leg in Lisbon 3–1. The decisive third match in neutral Paris was won 3–0 through goals by Inge Danielsson (2) and Johan Cruijff. They repeated this score at home against the next opponent, Spartak Trnava in the next round, but struggled in the second leg qualifying narrowly on aggregate. In the final, Milan – lauded for their excellent defense and counter-attacks – easily won 4–1 with Pierino Prati opening the scoring after seven minutes and going on to score a hattrick, while Velibor Vasović was the only Ajax player on the scoresheet with a penalty. Milan's win was capped by a goal by Angelo Sormani.
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