What does the news mean for Vitesse? Will they survive and still play football? Flashscore explain Vitesse's situation, the court's ruling, and KNVB's decision to revoke Vitesse's professional licence.
What happened to Vitesse?
After getting in trouble with ownership structures and failed takeovers, Vitesse were left with a debt of nearly €20 million. Vitesse were sanctioned several times by the KNVB, who deducted a total of 39 points from Vitesse during the 2024/25 season.
For the full story behind Vitesse's troubles, read our timeline article: A timeline of Vitesse's demise: From Russian oligarchs to death sentence
After getting their professional licence revoked in 2024, the KNVB's licensing committee provisionally revoked Vitesse's professional licence for a second time, after which the KNVB definitely revoked it in July, saying the club "have systematically circumvented and undermined the licensing system over long periods of time, despite previous commitments that this would no longer happen."
Vitesse decided to appeal the decision in the Dutch civil court, but the judge ruled in favour of the KNVB. The judge's verdict states the KNVB took a regrettable, but justified decision per the association's licensing rules and provided sufficient motivations for the decision.
What will happen to Vitesse now?
Without a professional licence, Vitesse are not allowed to play professional football anymore. That means they will not play in this season's Keuken Kampioen Divisie, which will continue with 19 clubs. The clubs that were scheduled to play Vitesse will simply get two extra weeks off.
As for Vitesse, the club have already been in contact with the KNVB about playing amateur football. Michel Schayen, the leading figure of Vitesse's current ownership group, hopes the club can continue to play in the Derde Divisie, the fourth tier of Dutch football. Whether or not this is possible is not yet known.
If Vitesse play amateur football, they will no longer play in their stadium. The GelreDome is not the club's property, and the club will not be able to afford the rent. The Arnhem club will therefore likely use Papendal, their training complex, as their new stomping grounds.
Then the most crucial question - will Vitesse survive as Vitesse? The simple answer: we do not know. Vitesse could decide to file for administration, which will mean a new club will be formed, likely with a different name. The club would then start all over again in the tenth tier, the bottom tier of Dutch football.
What will happen to Vitesse's players?
What happens to the current Vitesse players all depends on what the club decide to do.
If Vitesse decide to continue as an amateur club, all players under contract at Vitesse could file a request to terminate their contracts at the club. This is only possible in extraordinary situations, such as the revocation of a professional licence.
If Vitesse file for administration, a curator will attempt to sell the players with marketable value. The remaining players will become free agents.
In any case, Vitesse hope to continue playing football with their U21 squad acting as their de facto senior squad. The club's focus will completely shift to the youth academy.
Will Vitesse ever return to the Eredivisie?
Possibly.
If Vitesse continue as an amateur club, as said earlier, they want to enter the Derde Divisie. In order to return to the professional tiers, Vitesse will have to gain promotion to the Tweede Divisie and enter a so-called accession scheme, a structure built by the KNVB to ensure the continuity of professional football competitions and ensure the continued existence of professional football organisations.
Vitesse would have to apply for a professional licence again via the accession scheme. The KNVB test the clubs' finances, infrastructure, safety, and organisation.
The accession scheme would allow the club to re-enter the Keuken Kampioen Divisie two years after registering, which means it will take at least four years before Vitesse can return to the top tier of Dutch football.