Van 't Schip was born in Fort St. John, British Columbia, and was raised in Powell River, British Columbia, where he grew up playing youth football in the small community before his family moved back to the Netherlands in 1972.

Debuting for the first team on the sixth of December 1981 in a 4–1 win against Haarlem, he spent the next eleven seasons with the club.

After Ajax's UEFA Cup victory, he was transferred to Italian team Genoa, where he played four seasons before ending his career.

He was signed by Australian A-League club Melbourne Heart on 12 October 2009, to be their inaugural coach for the 2010–11 season.

[4] On 1 February 2012, Van 't Schip announced that he would be leaving the Melbourne Heart at the end of the 2011–12 season, citing personal reasons for his decision.

Van 't Schip was recommended by his fellow countryman Johan Cruyff, who was working at that moment on a project with the club.

[8] Van 't Schip was relieved of his duties as coach of Chivas a few days before the start of the Clausura 2013 Season.

[10] On 3 January 2017, Van 't Schip resigned as Melbourne City manager to return to the Netherlands to help care for his terminally-ill father.