Van Persie

Up In the Sky... It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's...

The Flying Dutchman!

By Andrew Palczewski   |
The Flying Dutchman at work.

Robin van Persie, the Flying Dutchman. (AP | Christophe Ena)

Robin van Persie was just trying to help the Netherlands defeat Spain in their opening Group B match on June 13 – he surely wasn’t looking to become an Internet sensation.

But van Persie managed to do both: his spectacular header didn’t just contribute to the Netherlands’ 5-1 rout of Spain, but inspired thousands of internet memes and earned him the nickname “The Flying Dutchman.”

In the days following his impressive performance, fans around the world have Photoshopped van Persie’s famous shot into various positions and locations…

…from World Cup-related shots…

Take that, Spain! Van Persie over Brazil.

…to pop culture references…

Van Persie leading Peter Pan. Van Persie as Mario. Van Persie, the wrestler.

…to locations around the world…

Van Persie at the Taj Mahal. Van Persie surfing. Van Persie in the skies.

…it’s even inspired a flipbook…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btWXBpcQ138

…and a hashtag – #Persieing!