Overview
- The KNVB, the Public Prosecution Service and the Justice Ministry agreed on a protocol that requires football matches to be stopped and ended immediately when fireworks are thrown onto the pitch or into other stands.
- National police announced stepped-up enforcement using border checks, camera and drone surveillance and joint operations with foreign forces to seize illegal heavy fireworks before they reach Dutch streets.
- At a public demonstration on defence grounds in Riel, explosives and forensic teams showed how heavy illegal devices such as Cobra’s, flashbangers and nitrate shells cause destructive blasts and severe injuries.
- Clubs and prosecutors are imposing individual punishments like stadium bans and pursuing collective sanctions for repeat incidents, while police are working with postal and parcel companies to disrupt online sales and transport.
- The new measures build on the August 1 consumer-fireworks ban, local surrender points that have collected hundreds of kilos, and an intensified national and international investigation aimed at stopping production, storage and trafficking of dangerous pyrotechnics.