Vitesse is in big trouble again. The KNVB (Royal Dutch Football Association) wants to withdraw the professional license of the Arnhem team, just like last year, because they do not comply with the rules of the football association.
The KNVB licensing committee suspects that the American investor Coley Parry has been involved with Vitesse again since the foreign takeover in January, while this is explicitly prohibited by the football association.
Vitesse was given the opportunity to prove otherwise in recent months but consistently submitted incomplete documents to the KNVB. After two point deductions, bringing Vitesse’s total to 39 penalty points, the club from the Keuken Kampioen Divisie (second-tier league) faces the most severe possible sanction.
The KNVB licensing committee rules that Vitesse “despite firm commitments” has continued “to circumvent and evade the licensing system.” According to the body, Vitesse is thus structurally withdrawing from the football association’s licensing system.
The licensing committee’s intended decision means that Vitesse will in principle not be allowed to play professional football next season, but this is not the end of the club. Vitesse may first respond to the decision of the football association.
New twist in drawn-out crisis
If the licensing committee’s decision becomes final, the club can appeal to the KNVB’s appeals committee. This is exactly how Vitesse obtained a professional license last year after a turbulent summer, after it was initially also withdrawn by the KNVB.
Should the club lose the possible appeal procedure, the second oldest professional club in the Netherlands (since 1892) will cease to exist definitively. Vitesse may then continue as an amateur club, but bankruptcy is inevitable.
For Vitesse, the intended decision is a new dramatic turn in a three-year-long financial, administrative, and sporting crisis. The club said in January that it was rid of all problems when five foreigners took over the club, but the opposite turned out to be true.
Soon there were voices that Parry was involved in the takeover by the Americans Dane Murphy and Flint Reilly, the Germans Timo Braasch and Leon Müller, and the Italian Bryan Mornaghi. The latter turned out to be a former classmate of Parry. According to De Telegraaf, Parry even searched for funds for Vitesse with Murphy.
The five foreigners explicitly denied that Parry still had influence on Vitesse. They said that they only contacted Parry at the beginning of this year to buy off Vitesse’s debt to the American. This amounted to 17 million euros at the end of last season.
Owners Circumvented Licensing Committee
Around the takeover, there were no problems yet, because the new owners each took over less than 25 percent of the club’s shares. An investigation is not mandatory in that case according to the KNVB rules.
The licensing committee decided to investigate the possible involvement of Parry in Vitesse, because the committee members had made agreements about this with the club last year. They now conclude that Vitesse has not fulfilled the promises.
The licensing committee also sees other abuses at Vitesse. According to the committee members, the supervisory board of the club was relieved of its position at “a crucial moment” and not replaced. That happened in December, even before the five foreigners took over the club.
The committee also finds that the foundation that had to supervise the shares of Vitesse “could not” do its job “properly”. Stichting Vitesse Voor Altijd (Foundation Vitesse Forever), which included former Ajax chairman John Jaakke, was abolished on the day of the takeover.
Chaos Reigns at Vitesse
Braasch criticized the KNVB’s actions at a long-awaited press presentation last week and said that Vitesse had reached the point of contesting the football association’s decisions. He said he was 100 percent sure that Vitesse would have a professional license next season.
Braasch’s statements did not restore calm on the shop floor. It has been chaos there for months. Trainer John van den Brom was told two weeks ago that he had to leave, while he says he had not heard anything from Braasch for months.
The new owners want to assemble a completely new staff and selection, in which there is little room for club people. Club icon and assistant Nicky Hofs had already received a dismissal letter and assistant Gery Vink, goalkeeper trainer Max de Jong and physical trainer Chima Onyeike must also leave.