Dutch football assoc. ready to link stadium tickets to ID cards; Fans worried
In the coming years, anyone attending a football match in the Netherlands will need to use an app linked to their ID at the entrance, AD reports. While Dutch football association KNVB says the system will help identify misbehaving fans more quickly, many football supporters strongly oppose the idea out of concerns for privacy and data leaks.
The KNVB is working on the development of the Personal Digital Access System (PDT), also known as Identity-Based Access. A physical ticket or a membership card would no longer be required.
“With this system, clubs know exactly who is in the stadium and who is permitted to be there. That creates clarity for everyone,” a KNVB spokesperson told RTL. Several clubs already use digital ticketing systems, but PSV is the first club where the system is also linked to the user personally.
According to the spokesperson, mayors and government authorities strongly support the system. “In addition to potentially reducing collective punishments… it also represents added service and professionalism,” the spokesperson said.
However, some supporter groups strongly oppose it, according to Carli Klijn, spokesperson for the FSV De Feijenoorder supporters’ association. “There is no debate that stadium safety is important, but the main concern is privacy,” Kijn said. "Supporters' associations should be involved and properly informed about this plan.”
At Feyenoord, a digital ticketing system was also tested earlier this season, but app problems and a system failure shortly before a match led the club to revert to physical season tickets.
According to the KNVB, the system could also make ticket transfers more secure, helping combat black-market reselling. But according to a supporters’ collective chair, that creates another issue. “You want to keep the barrier to entry as low as possible, but the opposite is happening.”
