Overview

• The Arnhem-Leeuwarden Court of Appeal suspended KNVB decisions to revoke Vitesse’s professional licence and ordered the club’s immediate readmission to competition.
• Vitesse can return to the second tier even though the season is already underway, with league organizers now tasked with arranging the club’s reinsertion into the schedule.
• Judges said the KNVB acted under significant time pressure and did not exercise the utmost care in imposing the sport’s most far‑reaching sanction, questioning elements of the case.
• The KNVB revoked the licence in July citing financial irregularities and an estimated €14 million debt after earlier penalties that included an 18-point deduction and relegation.
• A local investor group, Sterkhouders, said it remains committed to a rescue plan as Vitesse negotiates restructuring and sustainability conditions with the KNVB after heavy player and staff departures.