One of the Netherlands’ oldest clubs, Vitesse Arnhem, lost a final bid to save their professional license on Friday and were effectively kicked out of the league, sparking fan protests.
The Central Netherlands Court rejected the club’s appeal to overturn a decision by the Dutch Football Association (KNVB) to revoke their professional license.
Dutch media showed images of scuffles in Arnhem city center as supporters gathered. One journalist was slapped, the Algemeen Dagblad newspaper reported, as anger was directed against the media.
Photo: EPA
The court upheld the KNVB decision after the soccer association said the club had circumvented and undermined the licensing system for years and had spurned repeated opportunities to regularize their affairs, including debt reported to be about 14 million euros (US$16.3 million).
The club, established in 1892, had been sanctioned last year and relegated to the Dutch second division because of financial irregularities, which the KNVB said included the absence of a bank account and controlling accountant, and that no conclusive budget could be provided.
Vitesse were the first Dutch club to have foreign owners in 2010 when Georgian businessman Merab Jordania took over the club, with Russian Valeriy Oyf becoming the majority owner in 2018.
The club’s financial fortunes changed drastically after sanctions that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The decision meant yesterday’s scheduled match against Almere City was cancelled and leaves the Dutch second division with 19 clubs.
Vitesse said in a statement that they were “devastated” by the verdict.
“What the future holds is unclear,” it said. “The club is exploring options and continues to talk to stakeholders to safeguard football in Arnhem.”
Vitesse, who were four-time runners-up in the Dutch league, but never won the championship, would be forced to either continue as an amateur club or cease to exist.
The Dutch league has two divisions, but there is no mandatory promotion and relegation between the second tier of the professional competition and the amateur ranks.
“The worst-case scenario has come true,” Arnhem Alderman for Sports Affairs Bob Roelofs said. “This is a tragedy for the city, for the supporters, for Vitesse. The city has lost a large part of its DNA.”
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