Judge: Dutch football assoc. was allowed to strip Vitesse's professional license
Dutch football association KNVB acted within its rights when the organization decided to strip sports club Vitesse of its professional license, a court ruled on Friday. A preliminary relief judge at the Midden-Nederland District Court announced from the bench that the KNVB Licensing Committee did not violate the association's regulations when it decided to take away the Arnhem football club's license to play in either of the two top Dutch divisions, the Eredivisie and the Eerste Divisie. The news was met with sadness from the club's fans that had gathered on the Korenmarkt in Arnhem.
Vitesse has been in hot water with the KNVB for more than three years for failing to meet financial and accountancy rules, prompting questions about whether the Arnhem club had violated European sanctions against Russia, the stability of its cash flow, and if the team was covertly being operated by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. The matter over the club's professional license was escalated to the KNVB Appeal Committee, which issued a decision last week upholding the withdrawal of the license.
The decision now means that Vitesse will be forced to either continue as an amateur club, or cease to exist. Dating back to 1892, Vitesse is one of the oldest clubs in the Netherlands, although it only won its first, and only, prize at the highest level of Dutch football in 2017.
But winning the KNVB Cup in 2017 started a chain of events prompting questions into their operations. They became the first Dutch club to have foreign owners in 2010 when Georgian businessman Merab Jordania took over the club with Valeriy Oyf also taking an ownership stake. Later, Alexander Chigirinsky was also involved in the club, before Oyf became majority owner in 2018.
All three men have reportedly close ties to Abramovich, the former owner of Chelsea. Vitesse was able to benefit from Chelsea loan players over the years, but this became an issue in 2022 when Russia intensified its invasion of Ukraine, and Abramovich was among those targeted by European sanctions.
Further, investigative reports in 2023 suggested Abramovich used an extraordinarily complex structure to funnel roughly 117 million euros into Vitesse. The KNVB was forced to investigate in 2010 and 2014 the true nature of the oligarch's relationship to the Arnhem club. This became more controversial as both Vitesse and Chelsea were in the Europa League during the 2012-2013 and 2018-2019 seasons, a potential violation of football regulations as one individual may have held ownership stakes in rival clubs.
The club was relegated to the second division, the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, after the KNVB deducted 18 points from Vitesse's Eredivisie results in 2024. “The Arnhem club receives this punishment because it has repeatedly failed to meet the requirements of the licensing regulations over a longer period of time,” the KNVB wrote that April.
“The amount of the sanction is based on the exceptional seriousness and extent of the violations of the licensing system. This includes providing incorrect information that was important for the forensic investigation into possible violations of sanctions legislation, and withholding information important for the assessment of Vitesse’s continuity.” The Eerste Divisie is currently named the Keuken Kampioen Divisie due to a sponsorship deal.
Since 2022, Vitesse has been in extreme financial trouble because of the loss of cash flow. Talks with the Common Group, led by Coley Parry, collapsed after the KNVB blocked the deal. This was then followed by Dutch businessman Guus Franke pulling out of a deal to take over the club.
The club now has a group of local entrepreneurs, called the Sterkhouders, who had agreed to take over the club. Vitesse released a statement after the verdict. "We have done everything possible in recent times to meet the set requirements, working closely with investors and other stakeholders,” said Michel Schaay, Chairman of the Sterkhouders. “That this has been deemed insufficient is painful for us, above all for our supporters, employees, and the city of Arnhem.”
The province of Gelderland said it is “extremely regrettable” that Vitesse will not have its professional license reinstated. “Especially since the club has been of great significance to many for such a long time, not only in a sporting sense but also socially and economically for the city and region,” said Commissioner of the King Daniël Wigboldus.
Vitesse's players left the training ground after the decision telling reporters of their disappointment. The club's captain, former Oranje international Alexander Buttner called it a "disgraceful decision." Defender Mees Krekels described the reaction within the club: “Of course, we had it in the back of our minds that this could happen, but in the last few days, everyone was feeling positive. The whole club was excited. The Vitesse staff gave everything, and now I see them crying. That hits me deeply.”
Kreekels also explained the next events for the players. “We packed up our things at the training complex, including our football boots, and now we’re going home. In the club car, which I’ll return later.” After a sigh he added: “It’s over.”
The news hit hard for Vitesse's supporters. “This is a very tough blow. I don’t have much more to say right now; we really need to let it sink in," said Susanne Wichhart, the chairwoman of the Supporters Association Vitesse. She understands why Vitesse supporters, like those at the Korenmarkt, are reacting emotionally to the news. “We’re all very emotional. I am too.”
The KNVB released a statement after the verdict. "We fully understand that this is painful and a very difficult moment. It is important to emphasize that the clubs, together with the KNVB, have established rules to safeguard the integrity and continuity of the competitions. We fully support the decisions of these committees, and the court has also ruled that there is no reason to suspend their decisions."
Vitesse's attorney, Berry van Drunen, has said that the club will look into the possibilities after they have dealt with the disappointing news.
