KNVB

Over 70 amateur football clubs in the Netherlands have noticed signals of organized crime trying to get a foothold in the club. These signals include dubious sponsors, people who offer drugs, and sponsors or lenders who want to remain anonymous, RTL Nieuws reports based on its own research.

Former football player Fernando Ricksen died of degenerative muscle disease ALS at the age of 43 on Wednesday. Many of the football teams he played for responded with sadness to his death.

Ricksen was diagnosed with ALS in 2013. He had been staying in a hospice in Scotland since the start of this year and had already announced that he would die there, according to NU.nl. Over the past weeks, the footballer was only able to move his eyes, but could still communicate through a speech computer. 

Rabobank is no longer taking professional football clubs as clients due to "raised to unacceptable risks of money laundering, corruption, fraud and other abuses", NRC reports based on an internal message the bank circulated this summer. Rabobank employees are also no longer allowed "to take on new managerial or supervisory positions" at professional football organizations due to a "potential conflict of interest", the message said. 

The Dutch women's national football team takes on the United States in the 2019 World Cup final on Sunday. An Oranje victory would mean that the party eventually moves from the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon, France, and back to the Netherlands.

As champions, the team would celebrate with a floating parade through the Amsterdam canals on Tuesday, beginning at 4:30 p.m., according to plans announced by the City of Amsterdam. A rally would follow the cruise at Museumplein around 6 p.m.

Dutch football association KNVB is critical of the amount in prize money FIFA made available for the Women's World Cup - a total of around 26.5 million euros. While that is double the amount available four years ago, it is still a pittance compared to the 355 million euros paid to the men after the World Cup in Russia. "Yes, they doubled it, but if you double something that is nothing, it is still nothing", KNVB director Jan Dirk van der Zee said to the Telegraaf.

The Dutch national football team advanced to the Nations League final after a victory over England in Portugal on Thursday. Oranje beat the English team 3-1 at Estádio D. Afonso Henriques in Guimarães, thanks to two goals scored in extra time, NU.nl reports.

England's one and only goal was a penalty scored by Marcus Rashford, after a foul by Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt. He lost the ball in his own sixteen and then committed a foul on Rashford. De Ligt made up for that mistake by scoring Oranje's first goal in the second half. 

Amsterdam football club Ajax discussed various proposals with the family of footballer Abdelhak Nouri, who sustained permanent brain damage after collapsing during a practice match last year. Among other things, the club offered permanent care for Nouri by nurses on Ajax's payroll, the Telegraaf reported on Tuesday.

Underage teenagers can order beer from most sports clubs in the Netherlands without any problems. The vast majority of sports club canteens do not check IDs before serving alcohol to young people, according to a study commissioned by the government, NOS reports.

Over 82 percent of football clubs sell alcohol to underage teenagers. Less than 19 percent of hockey clubs check IDs. Tennis clubs and sports halls did not perform much better, with 24 and 25 percent respectively checking IDs. 

Wesley Sneijder is saying goodbye to international football, he announced on Sunday. The decision was made in consultation with new coach Ronald Koeman.  He hopes to play one last match for the Dutch national team. "It is my wish - and that is known by the KNVB - to say goodbye to my fellow internationals and the Oranje fans in a beautiful way", Sneijder said to the Telegraaf on Monday.

Ronald Koeman will be signing a contract next week to coach the Dutch national football team up to and including the World Cup of 2022, the Telegraaf reports. The former Barca player reached an agreement with football association KNVB and will sign his contract next Friday. His performance will be evaluated before or after the European Championships in 2020, according to the newspaper.

Koeman confirmed last week that he is in talks with the KNVB. It is expected that he will start coaching Oranje in March already.

Dutch football association KNVB declared 1,461 tickets for the match between Oranje and Sweden invalid because they were offered on resale websites for too high prices. "We want football to remain accessible to everyone", KNVB director Gijs de Jong said to the Telegraaf.