The Dutch football association has referred the cancellation to disciplinary bodies after De Graafschap supporters stopped their team from traveling following a ban on away fans.
Vitesse’s November 8 home derby against De Graafschap was called off after visiting supporters blocked their own team’s bus from leaving for the match. The Dutch football association, the KNVB, said it was submitting the matter to disciplinary bodies under its regulations.
The cancellation followed a ban on De Graafschap supporters attending the Dutch second-tier game. Supporters blocked the bus exit and locked the gates to the stadium parking lot that morning, ESPN said.
The match was scheduled for 12:15 local time (15:15 Yerevan time) at GelreDome in Arnhem. Thousands of home supporters were already seated, but De Graafschap never arrived. The visiting club is based in Doetinchem and has an established rivalry with Vitesse; their meeting is known as the Gelderland derby.
De Graafschap supporters were angered after their ticket allocation was cut from 800 to 500 and additional safety conditions were imposed. The club said Arnhem’s local authority coordination body decided on 7 November to ban its supporters from the game.
ESPN reported that some supporters were unwilling to comply with the additional safety conditions before the away-fan ban was imposed.
De Graafschap said the remaining disagreement concerned how supporters’ group banners and related display materials had to be delivered in advance, and how many supporters could accompany them. The club said it had agreed to full inspection of the materials and arrangements for safe entry, but proposals for transporting and accompanying the banners did not produce an agreement.
The club disputed Arnhem authorities’ characterization of its efforts, said it took match safety seriously and called for an evaluation. Before the match, it urged supporters to respect the ban and stay away.
De Graafschap said it was shocked by the events and would assess the situation before giving a fuller response. Vitesse thanked those already at the stadium and said it wanted any rearranged match to take place with home supporters present and away supporters excluded.
No replacement date has been confirmed and no potential punishment for De Graafschap has been announced. The KNVB said its competition board would discuss the situation on 9 November, with further information on the match date and consequences to follow.
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