Football
Dutch derby canceled after De Graafschap fans block own team's bus from leaving
Vitesse's derby against visiting De Graafschap was called off on Sunday after away supporters blocked their team's bus from leaving for the game.
Vitesse's derby against visiting De Graafschap was called off on Sunday after away supporters blocked their team's bus from leaving for the game.
The Dutch second-tier fixture was scheduled to kick off at 12:15 p.m. local time, and thousands of home fans were in their seats, but the De Graafschap team never arrived at the GelreDome in Arnhem, Netherlands.
De Graafschap fans were angered after their ticket allocation was reduced from 800 to 500 seats and additional safety conditions were imposed. With a number of fans unwilling to comply, it was decided on Saturday night to ban away supporters entirely.
Fans responded by preventing the team bus from leaving its stadium by blocking its exit and locking the gates to the car park Sunday morning.
"This is truly unacceptable," said Jan Bluyssen, the Dutch FA's manager of competition affairs. "This really isn't possible. I have never experienced anything like this, and we never want to experience it again. This is a crazy situation. People can disagree with something, and everyone can express their opinion. But this is really not the right way."
"No date has been confirmed for the rearranged fixture, while any potential punishment for De Graafschap has yet to be announced. That supporters make football impossible is completely unacceptable," a statement from the Dutch FA read.
"In doing so, they harm their club, their team, the sport, and the thousands of supporters who do come to watch football. In accordance with the regulations, the matter is now being submitted to the disciplinary bodies. The competition board will discuss the exceptional situation further tomorrow. More information regarding the new match date and the consequences will be announced afterwards."
De Graafschap's only communication has been a brief response on social media.
"We are negatively surprised and shocked by today's events," the club posted. "We want to let the initial emotions subside and assess the situation before issuing a further substantive response."