Vitesse only has enough money for another week and a half; bankruptcy looms

Football club Vitesse still has money in its bank account for about a week and a half, but it will not be able to pay its salaries and bills after that point. The Arnhem club’s CEO, Edwin Reijntjes, said during a press conference on Wednesday that filing for bankruptcy is a genuine possibility.

He is working closely to find a solution with Guus Franke, the prospective new owner who could take control of the club as the organization has to sever its ties with its Russian backers. The club has been mired in financial trouble for years.

The Dutch football association, KNVB, revoked Vitesse’s professional license for the coming season on Tuesday. The club still has an opportunity to appeal.

Franke is a multimillionaire who found success with his globally known consultancy firm. He has already reached a deal with American investor Coley Parry, whose attempt to takeover Vitesse failed earlier this year. Parry had already provided Vitesse with a loan to keep the club afloat, and he and Franke have negotiated about how that debt burden will be handled, Reijntjes said.

The next few weeks should show whether Franke and Vitesse can reach an agreement regarding the club's takeover. This is needed for the club to have a chance of keeping its license next month when it appears in front of the appeal committee.

Reijntjes said that time is the biggest stumbling block in reaching an agreement with Franke, who is a Vitesse fan and owner of the investment company Axiom Partners. "We are having good talks about current situations and liquidity problems. But I do not know how quickly we can close the deal. Guus Franke has assured me several times that he is confident."

Vitesse thought they had found a savior in Parry, but the licensing committee could not find enough evidence of where his money came from, so they blocked the takeover in February. Reijntjes does not yet know whether Franke meets the conditions. That is also something that will have to be figured out in the coming weeks.