If Ajax becomes champion this week, and that chance is quite high, there will be no celebration in the city. The municipality has just announced this. Reason: safety. There are too few security guards available to manage the party. It is allowed to pay tribute in the Johan Cruijff Arena on Wednesday evening after the match, if Ajax becomes champion.
The last celebration dates from 2019: the dream year in which Ajax became champion for the first time in five years, won the cup and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. About 100,000 supporters came to the Museumplein that year.
320 security guards
At the beginning of March, the municipality says it had already tried for the first time to find enough security guards for a possible ceremony. Because 80,000 to 100,000 visitors are expected, a minimum of 320 security guards would be needed. For large events, the requirement would apply for a security guard for 250 visitors.
Twelve different companies would have been approached, but the desired number of security officers would not have been achieved. It was also examined whether service employees, catering or retail security guards, security guards in training or football stewards could work during a possible ceremony, but that would have been ‘not feasible’.
No option
“Ultimately, the triangle and Ajax had to conclude that the Museumplein was not an option for a celebration,” says the municipality. “Visitors, including families with children, must be able to rely on the fact that a ceremony meets all requirements and is organized safely and responsibly.”
Since the turn of the century, Ajax has won the title eight times, but a celebration in the city center is rarely possible: only three times. The four titles that Ajax won between 2011 and 2014 were celebrated at the Arena Park. A party on the Museumplein was banned by the municipality in those years due to incidents of supporters. In 2020, all competitions in which Ajax was still active at that time were aborted due to corona. Last year, when Ajax again won the double, there was no celebration due to corona.