Application rejected
The court ruling is certain: Traditional club is facing the end
08.08.2025 – 10:16 p.m.Reading time: 1 min.
Now it will be very tight for Vitesse Arnheim. A district court probably seals the crash of the former first division into the sporting insignificance. The lawyer of the Dutch Football Association expresses itself drastically.
Vitesse Arnheim has finally relegated from Dutch professional football. After the rejection of the appeal commission of the KNVB, the Midden-Nederland district court also rejected the tradition of the traditional club in the urgent procedure. The responsible judge found that the association’s licensing committee had applied the rules correctly and decided fairly.
The association, founded in 1892, who had signed the German coach Rüdiger Rehm in the summer, reacted “deeply disappointed and dismayed”. In a message, Vitesse said that the future of the club was “still unclear”. One wanted to “carefully check” the judgment and plan the next steps. At the same time, management works with various interest groups to ensure the continued existence of football in Arnheim.
Vitesse had been punished in 2024 due to serious violations of the license regulations with a deduction of 18 points and relegated to the 2nd league for the first time in 35 years. In the second division season, further point deductions and the relegation were followed. “Vitesse had one chance after another, but did not use it. The club has not improved,” said KNVB’s lawyer, according to the broadcaster NOS.