Dutch football assoc. revokes Vitesse’s professional license as money woes continue

Dutch football association KNVB revoked Vitesse’s professional license due to the club’s continuing inability to comply with accounting and banking rules. The club has been mired in both debt and controversy due to its years-long relationship with Russian oligarchs, who were placed on European sanctions lists after Russia’s war in Ukraine intensified in 2022.

The professional license is a requirement to participate in paid football leagues and matches in the Netherlands. Clubs are granted licenses for an indefinite period, but they can be terminated when they continuously fail to meet licensing requirements.

“The independent licensing committee of the KNVB has revoked the license from football club Vitesse as of July 9. This was communicated to the club on Monday. The lack of a bank account, the lack of an auditing accountant, and the fact that a balanced budget could not be provided make it impossible for Vitesse’s license to continue for the 2024/2025 season,” the KNVB wrote in a statement on Tuesday morning.

The association had extended the club’s deadline until noon on Monday to remedy the situation after there appeared to be a positive development with new investors and a new ownership structure in mid-May. “A longer postponement is impossible due to the approaching start of the new football season,” the KNVB said in an update.

The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs is also investigating Vitesse for possible sanctions violations and money laundering linked to its former Russian owner, Valeriy Oyf, who took a majority position at the club in 2018. Oyf has close ties with the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, who has been on the European sanctions list since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. And there have long been rumors that Abramovich had an active role in the Dutch football club.

An external report drawn up by law firm Wladimiroff Advocaten showed indications that Abramovich has or has had control over Vitesse and that there are risks of sanctions violations and money laundering, the KNVB previously said.

Vitesse’s management said that a “dream candidate” was close to a deal with the club’s largest creditor, Coley Parry, whose bid to take over the club failed even after he put money into the project. Sources told Omroep Gelderland that the investor is Guus Franke, the 48-year-old from Ewijk who owns the multinational consultancy and investment firm Axiom Partners. Franke lives in Switzerland, where his company is based, but he grew up as a Vitesse fan, routinely attending matches in his youth.

“There have been many reports in the media in recent days about a possible new shareholder. Vitesse provided limited documentation to the licensing committee, but this turned out to be insufficient,” the KNVB said on Tuesday.

“The main objective of the licensing system is to warrant the protect the integrity and continuity of professional football competitions in order to ensure, as much as possible, that the competition proceeds without any interruption whatsoever,” the KNVB notes on its licensing site. The secondary objectives are to ensure the continuity of Dutch professional football by adhering to financial standards, legal regulations, and good governance.

The KNVB also specifically mentions that its licensing is tied to professional football continuity by ensuring clubs maintain physical infrastructure, comply with safety requirements, establish youth development programs, create a proper workforce with legal employment conditions, and maintain social responsibility.