Thieves steal €15,000 worth of merchandise from football club NEC in Nijmegen
Two men have stolen thousands of euros’ worth of NEC merchandise from the club’s stadium store in Nijmegen. The goods were taken from De Goffertstadion, and the thieves are believed to have made off with about 15,000 euros’ worth of gear.
Among the stolen items were special anniversary shirts for the club’s 125th anniversary, which were set to go on sale for the first time next week. “We will have to disappoint a lot of supporters,” the club’s general manager, Wilco van Schaik, told De Gelderlander. “Those anniversary kits are worth a lot of money, and that’s unfortunate, but what bothers me most is for the staff who worked on these shirts with so much passion. For them, this is a real blow and very hard to swallow.”
In addition to the anniversary shirts, other shirts, socks, shorts, and full kits were also stolen.
Van Schaik told De Gelderlander that the thieves had not broken into the store itself but had taken the items from a storage area deeper inside the stadium. The club believes they may already have recognized one of the suspects.
The two men gained entry by first digging a hole outside the stadium grounds, which allowed them to get past the fences and then break into the stadium. How exactly they did so, Van Schaik would not say. “But they certainly put in the effort.”
The general manager added that the two suspects are clearly visible on surveillance footage, which has been handed over to the police. “We think we do recognize someone, and the police are working on that. We know where to look and hope to recover those shirts in Nijmegen. Whether it’s someone known to NEC or to the police, I can’t say, but we know where to search,” Van Schaik said.
He has also asked the club’s supporters to keep an eye out for the merchandise. “If in the coming days you are offered a lot of NEC clothing, especially the anniversary shirts, please contact the club and the police. It is most likely stolen property.”
Meanwhile, NEC has made a strong start to their anniversary season. The club has won its first two Eredivisie matches, scoring nine goals and conceding just one, which puts them at the top of the table for now.
