SBV Vitesse

SBV Vitesse (Stichting Betaald Voetbal Vitesse), widely known as Vitesse Arnhem, or simply as Vitesse (Dutch pronunciation: [viˈtɛsə]), is a Dutch professional football club located in the municipality of Arnhem, in the province of Gelderland. Established on 14 May 1892, Vitesse is one of the oldest professional football clubs in the Eredivisie. Since 1998, the club has played its home games at the GelreDome.

Vitesse
Full nameStichting Betaald Voetbal Vitesse
Nickname(s)Vitas, FC Hollywood at the Rhine, Airborne Football Club
Founded14 May 1892 (1892-05-14)
GroundGelreDome
Arnhem, Netherlands
Capacity21,248
OwnerValeriy Oyf
ChairmanYevgeny Merkel
Head coachThomas Letsch
LeagueEredivisie
2019–20Eredivisie, 7th
WebsiteClub website
GelreDome Stadium

Vitesse had its most successful period in the 1990s. Their best result in the Eredivisie was third place in 1997–98. They won the KNVB Cup in 2017 and also reached the final in 1912, 1927 and 1990. Throughout the years, Vitesse established itself as a stepping stone for future world class players like Raimond van der Gouw, Philip Cocu, Roy Makaay, Sander Westerveld, Nikos Machlas, Pierre van Hooijdonk, Mahamadou Diarra, Nemanja Matić, Marco van Ginkel, Davy Pröpper, Wilfried Bony, Bertrand Traoré, and Martin Ødegaard.

History
Vitesse's first squad in 1896.
Vitesse's first squad in 1913.
Against AFC Ajax in the 1970 Dutch Cup match.
Nicky Hofs played for Vitesse 194 matches. He was the cousin of Bennie Hofs and Henk Hofs.
Wilfried Bony was awarded the Golden Shoe for the best player in the Netherlands.

Vitesse, founded in 1892, are the 2nd oldest professional football club still in existence in the Netherlands, after Sparta Rotterdam who were formed in 1888. The roots of Vitesse actually pre-dated Sparta by a year as in 1887, a club with the name "Arnhemsche cricket- en voetbalvereeniging Vitesse" was formed by a group of high school students who played their sport on the Rijnkade, overlooking the River Rhine in the city centre. Reluctant to choose a Latin or English name for the club as they felt those languages were too elitist, they picked the French word Vitesse, meaning "speed".

In 1891 the club disbanded as they were no longer able to find anywhere suitable to play cricket after a Velodrome was built on their usual playing field in the Klarenbeek Park. The following year a group of wealthy students resurrected the sports club, this time with the name AVC (Arnhemse Voetbal en Cricketclub) Vitesse. In the summer they played cricket and in the winter football. In the end of 1892, Vitesse played its first real football match, and in 1894 Vitesse disbanded the cricket branch. In 1895 and 1896 Vitesse became champions of the Gelderland competition. From the foundation of the Dutch national football championship in 1898 until 1954, the title was decided through play-offs by a handful of clubs who had previously won their regional league. Vitesse lost the final of the national championship six times (1898, 1899, 1903, 1913, 1914 and 1915).

In 1912, Vitesse reached the final of the Dutch Cup Tournament for the first time. Vitesse lost the final with 0–2 from HFC Haarlem. In this period Vitesse had top players, likes Willem Hesselink and Just Göbel. This players were also active in the Dutch national team. In 1914 John William Sutcliffe became the first foreign trainer.

During World War II, Vitesse didn't play-official matches because playing football in the open air was forbidden. During the Battle of Arnhem, the residents of the city were forcibly evicted from their homes, allowing the Germans to turn the north bank of the Rhine into a heavily defended line. Residents were not allowed to return home without a permit and most did not return until after the war. The football field and clubhouse was completely destroyed. The damage was repaired in the years after the liberation.

In 1984 it was decided to divide the professional and amateur sections of the club. The professional section was renamed SBV (Stichting Betaald Voetbal – "Professional Football Foundation") Vitesse whilst the amateur section became "Vitesse 1892", which lasted until they disbanded in 2009.

From 1984, Karel Aalbers was the president of SBV Vitesse. Aalbers' goal was to bring Vitesse from the bottom of the Second League (Eerste divisie, now Jupiler League), the league in which the club originated, to the top 40 soccer clubs of Europe. He developed the basic idea for the 'Gelredome', a stadium with a sliding pitch that can be moved out of the building. Later, the same system was applied in Gelsenkirchen (Schalke 04) and in Japan. Events such as pop concerts can be held without damaging the grass. Gelredome opened in 1998. It has a roof that can be opened and closed. It is fully climate controlled as well. In the first season after the opening, Gelredome's attendance rose to 20,000, (from less than 8,000 in the old stadium).

Vitesse made their debut in European competition in 1990. The club won their first match in the first round 1–0 over Derry City.

The club remained financially sound through making notable profits on the transfer market. Players such as Roy Makaay, Sander Westerveld, Nikos Machlas, Glenn Helder and Philip Cocu were sold for large sums of money. Others came to occupy empty player positions, such as Mahamadou Diarra and Pierre van Hooijdonk. Vitesse finished in top 4 positions, made profits and showed a solid balance sheet in the final years of Aalbers' presidency. Also, the club became regular competitors in the UEFA Cup and in 1997–1998 finished third in the Eredivise, its record highest finish to date.

Herbert Neumann was Vitesse's manager over most of these years (1992–95 and 1998–99), while star players included: Nikos Machlas, the first ever Vitesse player to win the European Golden Boot in 1998 when he scored 34 goals in a season; John van den Brom, who played 378 matches for Vitesse during this period scoring 110 goals from midfield; and Edward Sturing, who played 383 matches in defence for Vitesse from 1987 to 1998, as well as receiving 3 caps for the Netherlands national team. Additional stars included Dejan Čurović, who spent six years at Vitesse playing 109 matches as a striker, scoring 41 goals including the first goal in GelreDome. Meanwhile, Dutch forward Roy Makaay spent four years at Vitesse, scoring 42 goals in 109 matches between 1993 and 1997.

Aalbers resigned on 15 February 2000,[1] after the main sponsor, Nuon, threatened to pull the plug if he did not. Nuon, as a public utility company owned by local authorities, had trouble explaining why it invested heavily in Aalbers' ambitious plans. His successor was Jan Koning (former chief of Sara Lee/DE who resigned after four months). In a short period of time, Vitesse began to show negative financial results due to poor deals on the transfer market. The club survived numerous financial crises, such as the last one in 2008, when debts were bought off, under the threat of bankruptcy.

The club was in serious financial trouble, and in August 2010 its majority shareholder agreed to sell the club to the Georgian businessman Merab Jordania. There was rumors that this purchase was engineered by Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. The club underwent a successful transformation into a modern, commercial sports organization and established itself as one of the dominant teams of the Eredivisie.

On 1 July 2012, Fred Rutten signed a contract as the new manager of Vitesse, for the season 2012-13. Rutten left Vitesse after the season, finishing in 4th place. Wilfried Bony ended the season as the Eredivisie's top scorer with 31 goals in 30 matches and was awarded the Golden Shoe for the best player in the Netherlands.

For the 2013–14 season, Vitesse appointed Peter Bosz as its new manager. In November 2013, Vitesse was top of the league in the Eredivisie for the first time since 2006. It was the first time since 2000 they'd been top of the league later than the first week. Halfway through the season, after 17 matches, Vitesse was the leader in the competition. Key players in the squad from this period included Davy Pröpper, Christian Atsu and Bertrand Traoré.

Vitesse announced on 13 June 2016 that Henk Fraser would replace Bosz at the start of the 2016–17 season. In his first full season, won the club first major trophy in its 125-year existence. Fraser defeating AZ by a score of 2−0 in the final of the KNVB Cup, with two goals from Ricky van Wolfswinkel.[2] On 5 August 2017 Vitesse were beaten 1–1 (4–2 pen.) at De Kuip, Rotterdam in the Johan Cruyff Shield final by Feyenoord. In the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League group stage, Vitesse's opponents were Lazio Roma, OGC Nice and Zulte Waregem. Vitesse ultimately finished the group stage in fourth place. In October 2017, Guram Kashia wore a rainbow-striped captain's armband for Vitesse against Heracles Almelo in support of LGBT rights, leading to a backlash in his own country. In August 2018, he became the inaugural recipient of UEFA's #EqualGame award for his act.[3]

Stadium and training facilities
Main articles: GelreDome and National Sports Centre Papendal
GelreDome with closed roof and pitch outside.
GelreDome Stadium
Training accommodation at Papendal

The club plays its home games at the GelreDome stadium, with a capacity of 21,000 seats. The GelreDome was built to serve as a multifunctional stadium suited for sports, concerts and other events. It was the first football stadium in the world to have a retractable pitch, and, after the Amsterdam ArenA, the second stadium in Europe to have a sliding roof. The pitch is surrounded on each side by four covered all-seater stands, officially known as the Edward Sturing Stand (North), Charly Bosveld Stand (East), Theo Bos Stand (South) and Just Göbel Stand (West).

The idea of building a multifunctional stadium, which had more than double the capacity of Vitesse’s old Nieuw Monnikenhuize stadium, came from former Vitesse chairman Karel Aalbers. The ambitious chairman had been playing with the idea from as early as the late 1980s, but it took until 1996 and the prospect of the upcoming Euro 2000 championships for construction to finally begin. The GelreDome opened two years later, on 25 March 1998, with a league match between Vitesse and NAC Breda (4-1). Three international matches of the Dutch national football team were played in the stadium, the first one being on May 27, 1998: a friendly against Cameroon (0–1). The last one, played on April 26, 2000, was also a friendly: a 0–0 against Scotland. In 2019, the Netherlands women's national team, also played their an international (friendly) match at the stadium. Furthermore, the GelreDome was the location for three UEFA Euro 2000 group stage matches, as well as the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship tournament.

Vitesse´s training facilities are conducted at National Sports Centre Papendal, located in the outskirts of Arnhem in woodland surroundings. The training ground consists of several pitches, a number of which have an artificial turf pitch, and extensive training facilities, including a fitness centre. Papendal, a mere twelf kilometers north of the GelreDome, is not only the training facility for Vitesse´s first team; the youth teams play their home matches here as well. Its main field has seating capacity for 500 people. The complex is situated in large wooded area, where the players can prepare in a peaceful and private environment, whilst not being too far from the hustle and bustle of Arnhem's city centre. Papendal is also the base for administration staff, scouting department and all club coaches.

Stadium history
NameYears
Rijnkade / Klarenbeek Park 1887–1891
Molenbeekstraat 1892
IJsclub Boulevard Heuvelink 1892–1894
Bronbeek Royal Palace 1893
Paasweide 1894–1896
Klarenbeek Stadium 1896–1915
Monnikenhuize 1915–1950
Nieuw Monnikenhuize 1950–1997
GelreDome 1998–present

Symbols
Vitesse's crest is composed of an eagle.
Mister Vitesse Theo Bos

Hertog

Vitesse are well known for the American bald Eagle 'Hertog', which is released before the match and flies over the crowds.

Anthems

Vitesse fans are known to be creative and have various songs and chants during matches. Among the most important Vitesse songs are "Geel en Zwart zijn onze kleuren" by Emile Hartkamp, "Ernems Trots" by Joey Hartkamp, and "Bouw mee aan een steengoed Vites!" by Henk Bleker & Enka Harmonie. Vitesse opens its home matches with "Whatever You Want" by Status Quo, and after every home goal "Bro Hymn" by Pennywise is played.

Mr Vitesse

Theo Bos was raised in Arnhem and started playing football from an early age. He began his career at amateur club Sv Sempre Avanti and played from 1979-1983 in the academy of Vitesse. Manager Leen Looijen gave him his professional debut on 13 August 1983 against FC Wageningen; the match ended in a 3–0 victory for Vitesse. Bos spent his entire playing career for Vitesse, making a total 369 appearances in 14 seasons with his club. After his playing career, Bos worked at Vitesse as youth coach, assistant coach and manager. He is therefore considered to be Mister Vitesse. In 2012, the south stand of the GelreDome stadium was named the Theo Bos Stand. Bos died on 28 February 2013 of pancreatic cancer, aged forty-seven. Following his death, a special remembrance to honour Theo Bos took place at Gelredome with around 7,000 Vitesse supporters. As of the 2012–13 season, no player could wear the number 4 shirt at Vitesse after the club decided to retire the shirt out of respect for Theo Bos, "the legendary number four". Dutch defender Jan-Arie van der Heijden was the last player to wear the number. In November 2013, his biography Het is zoals het is ('It is what it is') was published, written by journalist Marcel van Roosmalen. In 2015, a statue of Bos was erected outside of the training complex at Papendal.

Other club legends

Below is a list with members who have established themselves as club legends:

Airborne-match
The 'Airborne memorial' football match

Around September there is an annual 'Airborne memorial' football match. During this annual Airborne-match the veterans of World War II will be honored. The Gelredome is decorated with Airborne flags, both outside and inside the stadium, and at halftime, 120 members of the Royal British Legion played the bagpipes with some other musical guests. Clubsymbol Hertog fly with the typical Airborne colors. The match is traditionally visited by veterans who were fighting in this battle, while a special shirt is worn by Vitesse. The club drop their normal striped black and yellow kit for this special match. Instead they wear claret and blue outfits, the same colours of the 1st Airborne Division, with a 1st Airborne 'winged horse' emblem also etched on the kit. Pictured on the collar sticker is the John Frost Bridge. These shirts are after the match auctioned for charity. In addition, Vitesse wearing a special captain's armband as a sign of recognition and respect for those who have fought for our freedom. In the 2014–15 and 2019–20 seasons, Vitesse played their away games in the same colours of the 1st Airborne Division.

Colours and badge

Originally, Vitesse played in white shirts with a blue sash from inception until 1900, paying hommage to the city’s colours. At the turn of the century, player Reinhard Jan Christiaan baron van Pallandt offered to sponsor the club’s shirts in exchange for Vitesse switching to his family colours of black and yellow. The board were quick to accept, noting that Vitesse, being one of the strongest team in the province of Gelderland, would be vindicated in playing in what could also be considered the province’s colours (the flag of Gelderland is a tricolour in blue, yellow, and black).

The first logo of Vitesse was a shield-shaped crest. In the middle there was a diagonal dividing line between the left yellow face and the right black box. In the left box, "AVC Vitesse" was diagonally written and in the right-hand side, "1892 ", the club's founding year. The old logo was replaced in 1984, the year in which the roads of the BVO branch and the amateur branch separated. The amateur branch retained the logo with limited modification, SBV Vitesse got a new logo.

The new logo of the BVO from 1984 is once again a shield-shaped figure, but it has straight lines at both the top and sides of the logo. At the top is with thick white uppercase Vitesse. Under the name is a double-headed eagle, with left and right half mirrored. Also the colors are mirrored, which is left yellow is black right and vice versa. This double-headed eagle can also be found in the coat of arms of Arnhem. In the middle of the logo is a football positioned.

In the autumn of 2011, a new version of the logo was put into use; A total of 13 changes have been made. For example, the symmetry of the eagle was improved, the black outer edge replaced by a white and in the writing has been made thinner. The football has been altered in terms of appearance as a shadow effect is added and (if the context allows it) the year of creation as text EST. 1892 under the logo can be found.

  • The first Vitesse crest
  • The second crest
  • The third crest
  • 2011–present

Kit manufacturers and sponsors

Since 2019, Vitesse's kit has been manufactured by Nike. Previous manufacturers include Adidas (1982–89), Hummel (1989–90), Bukta (1990–91), Diadora (1991-93), Umbro (1993-97), Lotto Sport Italia (1997–99), Uhlsport (1999–05), Quick (2005–06), Legea (2006–09), Klupp (2009–12), Nike (2012–14), and Macron (2014-19).

The club's shirts are currently sponsored by Royal Burgers' Zoo and The Netherlands Open Air Museum. Previous commercial sponsors have been Akai (1982–83), Oad Reizen (1983–85), Spitman (1985–86), Schoenenreus (1987–89), RTL 4 (1990–1991), PTT Telecom (1991–92), Spaarenergie (1992–93), Nuon Energy (1993–01), ATAG Benelux (2000–01), Hubo (2002–03), Bavaria (2002–03), SBS 6 (2002–03), Sunweb Group (2003–04), AFAB (2004–2010), Zuka.nl (2010–2011), Simpel (2011–12), Youfone (2013–14), Truphone (2014–17), SWOOP (2017–18) and Droomparken (2018–19).

Support
Vitesse fans at the 2017 Dutch Cup Final in Rotterdam.

The supporters of the club are known as Vitessenaren. Vitesse has two independent fan bodies. The Supportersvereniging Vitesse was founded in 1992 and currently consists of 3,000 members. They own a fan base within the GelreDome. The second one, Arnhem Ultras, serve a more specific purpose: to improve the atmosphere in the stadium. Besides the fan unions, there are several sets of fans who work together on tifo choreography, likes VIVO (Vitesse Is van Ons), De Aftrap and VAK 113 among others. Nowadays, Vitesse is supported by one fanatic side: The Theo Bos – South Stand. This stand is responsible for a big part of the atmosphere in the stadium.

Vitesse have attracted around 18,000 people to Eredivisie matches on average in the last years. The record attendance stands at 26,600, achieved in a match against NAC Breda at 25 March 1998. Research showed that about 10,000 season ticket holders from Gelderland, with other significant groups coming from Utrecht, South Holland and North Rhine-Westphalia.

The Vitesse Kids Club was founded by Vitesse in 1998 for children up to 16 years. Every year, the Vitesse Kids Club Day is organized, offering activities for members who are joined by the first team squad. During pre-season, Vitesse also holds an Open Day for people of all ages; the event gives the opportunity for sponsors and new player signings to be presented.

Vitesse fans have established a close friendship with the supporters of FC Petrolul Ploiești and RFC de Liège. Back in the days they had a friendship with Lierse SK till there was a big riot between them at a friendly match in 2011.

Rivalries

Rivalry with N.E.C.

NEC from Nijmegen are Vitesse's archrivals. The two clubs share a long history together and matches between the two clubs are called the Gelderse Derby (Derby of Gelderland). The rivalry between these two clubs goes beyond the football rivalry, it transcends into the city rivalry between the two largest cities of Gelderland: Nijmegen and Arnhem. This city rivalry began when these two cities first received their city rights. The two cities are just 20 kilometres apart, leading to an intense feeling of a cross-town rivalry, heightened by a feeling that local pride is at stake. The meeting between the two teams is still considered to be one of the biggest matches of the season.

The inhabitants of these cities differ extremely in both attitudes and cultures which is clearly reflected on to the football pitch. Vitesse's style of play has long been a source of pride for the supporters, and one of irritation for the NEC fans.

Since 1813, Arnhem has been the capital of Gelderland, historically based on finance and trade. Arnhem is perceived as an office city with modern buildings. Nijmegen, on the other hand, is predominantly a workers' city, with middle and high-income groups in the minority. People from Nijmegen see Arnhem as arrogant and lazy.

Played Vitesse wins Draws N.E.C. wins Vitesse goals N.E.C. goals
Eredivisie 562116196861
Eerste divisie 142661827
Tweede divisie 401339
Eerste klasse 8116923
Tweede klasse 421175
KNVB Cup 502339
Play-offs 641194
Total 97302839117138
Last two results
Venue Date Competition Vitesse N.E.C.
GelreDome 2 April 2017Eredivisie21
De Goffert 23 October 2016Eredivisie11

Rivalries with other clubs

De Graafschap are also a rival of Vitesse, but in terms of tension and rivalry, these matches are not as loaded as the duels with N.E.C. Nijmegen. The rivalry has existed for some time with De Graafschap and stems from various causes, such as the opposition between the large city (Arnhem) and the countryside (Doetinchem).

Further teams who share a rivalry with Vitesse include FC Twente and AFC Ajax. Past rivalries include local derbies between Vitesse and clubs such as FC Wageningen, Go Ahead Eagles, Quick 1888, Arnhemse Boys and VV Rheden. However, the tension between the local sides lessened as the division of the clubs through playing in different leagues over time became greater. Years of not competing in the same league resulted in less frequent match-ups, until tensions finally settled between the local clubs.

Players

Current squad
As of 27 June 2020[4]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 GK Kostas Lamprou
2 DF Julian Lelieveld
3 DF Armando Obispo (on loan from PSV)
5 DF Max Clark
8 MF Sondre Tronstad
9 FW Tim Matavž (vice captain)
10 MF Riechedly Bazoer
11 MF Bryan Linssen (captain)
14 MF Oussama Tannane
15 FW Filip Delaveris
16 FW Roy Beerens
17 DF Eli Dasa
18 DF Tomáš Hájek
No. Position Player
19 FW Hilary Gong
20 FW Nouha Dicko (on loan from Hull City)
21 MF Matúš Bero
22 GK Remko Pasveer
27 FW Charly Musonda (on loan from Chelsea)
28 DF Joshua Brenet (on loan from 1899 Hoffenheim)
29 FW Thomas Buitink
30 DF Danilho Doekhi
32 DF Özgür Aktas
36 MF Patrick Vroegh
37 MF Yassin Oukili
38 MF Richie Musaba
40 GK Bilal Bayazit

For recent transfers, see 2019–20 SBV Vitesse season.

Players out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
GK Jeroen Houwen (on loan at Go Ahead Eagles until 30 June 2020)
DF Khalid Karami (on loan at Sparta Rotterdam until 30 June 2020)
No. Position Player
MF Thomas Bruns (on loan at VVV-Venlo until 30 June 2020)
FW Oussama Darfalou (on loan at VVV-Venlo until 30 June 2020)

Retired numbers
4 Theo Bos, defender (1983–98), posthumous honour
12 Club Supporters (the 12th Man)
13 Vito, the official team mascot

Reserve team (Under-21)

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
2 MF Brend Leeflang
3 DF Özgür Aktas
4 DF Younes Zakir
5 DF Aaron Sieders
6 FW Yassin Oukili
7 FW Lars ten Teije
8 MF Patrick Vroegh
No. Position Player
11 FW Roy Kuijpers
12 GK Joey Kesting
14 DF Paul Fosu Mensah
16 MF Aness Serghini
17 FW Nikolas Agrafiotis
- FW Danny Mühl
- FW Jasper Dahlhaus

Youth teams

The club is famous, however, for it's Youth Academy, which is rated with the maximum of 4 Stars by the KNVB. Many players in professional football in Europe have played at Vitesse in the past including Roy Makaay, Peter Bosz, Marco van Ginkel, Alexander Büttner, Theo Janssen, Erwin Mulder, Eloy Room, Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Davy Pröpper, Piet Velthuizen, Martin Laamers, Nicky Hofs, Mitchell van Bergen and Stijn Schaars. All youth teams will train and play their matches at Papendal.

The Vitesse Academy comprises age-group teams ranging from U8's up to the flagship U19's. The youngest players are scouted at amateur clubs in the direct surroundings of Arnhem. For the age of twelve and older the academy extends its scouting area, mainly to the remaining part of the Netherlands and Germany. In Vitesse's youth efficient and qualified training is done by full time coaches and organized by further employees looking after the administration. Goal of the sporting education is to train the youths from basic to development to performance levels, for them to fulfil the sportive and non sportive demands of professional football.

List of Vitesse coaches

Board and staff

Corporate hierarchy
Position Name
Owner Valeriy Oyf
Supervisory Board Yevgeny Merkel (Chairman)
Valeriy Oyf
Henk Parren
Board of the Vitesse-Arnhem Foundation Henk Parren (Chairman)
Peter van Bussel
Gerrit Jan Steenbergen
Advisory Council Cor Guijt
Bert Roetert
Jan Snellenburg
Directors Pascal van Wijk (General director)
Johannes Spors (Technical director)
Olivier Smit (Marketing director)
Ambassadors Edward Sturing
Marc van Hintum
Theo Janssen
Nicky Hofs

Management hierarchy
Position Staff
Technical director Johannes Spors
Head coach Thomas Letsch
Assistant coach Jan Fiesser
Joseph Oosting
Goalkeeper coach Rein Baart
Fitness coach / Recovery trainer Jan van Norel
Video analyst Dennis van der Meulen
Head of academy Edward Sturing
Chief scout Marc van Hintum
Under-21 coach Nicky Hofs
Under-18 coach Theo Janssen
Under-16 coach Patrick Ax
Under-15 coach Richard van der Lee
Under-14 coach Frank van Kouwen
Under-13 coach Mitchel Jansen
Under-12 coach Jos Dietrich
Under-11 coach Bart van Rooijen
Under-10 coach Ken van den Broek

Owners

After Karel Aalbers left, the financial situation for the club became dire. This downfall almost led Vitesse into bankruptcy in 2008, as they weren’t able to pay back loans given by their sponsor AFAB Geldservice B.V. Eventually the club arranged a deal that saw AFAB’s owner, Maasbert Schouten, gain 100% of Vitesse’s shares. Schouten immediately expressed his intent to sell the club, which opened the window for Merab Jordania to buy Vitesse. When Jordania, a former Dinamo Tbilisi player and owner, bought the team in 2010, Vitesse became the first Dutch club in history with a foreign owner. In 2013, Russian businessman Alexander Tsjigirinski bought the club from Jordania. In May 2018 a new acquisition took place at Vitesse. Valeriy Oyf became the new majority shareholder of Vitesse. The Russian oligarch, who was part of the Board of Directors of Vitesse from 2016, took over the shares of Tsjigirinski.

Chairmens

The first chairman was Frans Dezentjé. Willem Hesselink was chairman of the club from 1917 to 1922 and was appointed honorary chairman in 1962. Although Vitesse's coaches have come from all over Europe, the club's chairmen have been mostly Dutch, with Merab Jordania and Yevgeny Merkel as the only exceptions. The name of Karel Aalbers is inseparably linked to Vitesse. Although a club’s success is never the work of a single man, nonetheless, the former chairman’s part in the sportive and professional growth of Vitesse may be labelled as truly exceptional. Karel Aalbers handled the chairman’s gavel from 1984 to 2000.

Honours

Domestic
Runners-up: 1897–98, 1898–99, 1902–03, 1912–13, 1913–14, 1914–15
Third place: 1997–98
European competition: 2011–12, 2014–15, 2017–18
Winners: 1976–77, 1988–89
Runners-up: 1959–60, 1973–74
Promoted: 1970–71
Winners: 1965–66
Winners: 2016–17
Runners-up: 1911–12, 1926–27, 1989–90
Runners-up: 2017

Regional
  • Eerste klasse Oost
Winners: 1896–97, 1897–98, 1902–03, 1912–13, 1913–14, 1914–15, 1952–53
Promoted: 1954–55
  • Tweede klasse Oost
Winners: 1922–23, 1940–41, 1943–44, 1945–46, 1949–50
  • Gelderland Competition
Winners: 1894–95, 1895–96

International
1/8 final: 1990–91, 1992–93
Group stage: 2017–18
Group stage: 1978–79

Club Awards
Winners: 1989–90
  • Gelderland Sportsteam of the year
Winners: 2017–18

Personnel honours

European Golden Boot

The following players have won the European Golden Boot whilst playing for Vitesse:

Dutch Footballer of the Year (Golden Boots)

The following players have won the Dutch Footballer of the Year whilst playing for Vitesse:

Johan Cruyff Trophy

The following players have won the Johan Cruyff Trophy whilst playing for Vitesse:

Eredivisie Top Scorer

Eerste Divisie Top Scorer

Rinus Michels Award (Manager of the year)

UEFA's #EqualGame Award

Vitesse in Europe
Vitesse in the Europa League.
Theo Bos – South Stand.
  • Group = group game
  • Q = qualifying round
  • 1R = first round
  • 2R = second round
  • 3R = third round
  • 1/8 = 1/8 final
Season Competition Round Country Club Score Goalscorers Vitesse
1978–79 Intertoto Cup Group Hellas Verona 2–1, 0–2 Bursac, Hofs / (-)
Group RWDM 0–5, 0–2 (-) / (-)
Group Troyes 5–3, 2–1 Bleijenberg (2), Heezen, Mulderij, Bosveld / Bleijenberg, Beukhof
1990–91 UEFA Cup 1R Derry City 1–0, 0–0 Loeffen / (-)
2R Dundee United 1–0, 4–0 Eijer / Latuheru (2), Van den Brom, Eijer
1/16 Sporting CP 0–2, 1–2 (-) / Van Arum
1992–93 UEFA Cup 1R Derry City 3–0, 2–1 Van den Brom (2), Van Arum / Straal, Laamers
2R KV Mechelen 1–0, 1–0 Van den Brom / Cocu
1/16 Real Madrid 0–1, 0–1 (-) / (-)
1993–94 UEFA Cup 1R Norwich City 0–3, 0–0 (-) / (-)
1994–95 UEFA Cup 1R Parma 1–0, 0–2 Gillhaus / (-)
1997–98 UEFA Cup 1R Braga 2–1, 0–2 Čurović, Trustfull / (-)
1998–99 UEFA Cup 1R AEK Athens 3–0, 3–3 Laros, Perović, Machlas / Machlas (2), Reuser
2R Bordeaux 0–1, 1–2 (-) / Jochemsen
1999–00 UEFA Cup 1R Beira-Mar 2–1, 0–0 Van Hooijdonk, Grozdić / (-)
2R Lens 1–4, 1–1 Van Hooijdonk / Kreek
2000–01 UEFA Cup 1R Maccabi Haifa 3–0, 1–2 Martel, Peeters, Amoah / Amoah
2R Internazionale 0–0, 1–1 (-) / Peeters
2002–03 UEFA Cup 1R Rapid București 1–1, 1–0 Peeters / Peeters
2R Werder Bremen 2–1, 3–3 Amoah, Verlaat (o.g.) / Levchenko, Claessens, Mbamba
3R Liverpool 0–1, 0–1 (-) / (-)
2012–13 Europa League Q2 Lokomotiv Plovdiv 4–4, 3–1 Van Ginkel (2), Reis, Bony / Van Ginkel, Van Aanholt, Bony
Q3 Anzhi Makhachkala 0–2, 0–2 (-) / (-)
2013–14 Europa League Q3 Petrolul Ploiești 1–1, 1–2 Reis / Van der Heijden
2015–16 Europa League Q3 Southampton 0–3, 0–2 (-) / (-)
2017–18 Europa League Group Nice 0–3, 1–0 (-) / Castaignos
Group Lazio 2–3, 1–1 Matavž, Linssen / Linssen
Group Zulte Waregem 0–2, 1–1 (-) / Bruns
2018–19 Europa League Q2 FC Viitorul Constanța 3–1, 2–2 Matavž, Linssen, Beerens / Matavž, Linssen
Q3 FC Basel 1893 0–1, 0–1 (-) / (-)

UEFA Current ranking
As of 20 June 2019[5]
RankCountryTeamPoints
153Brøndby IF7.500
154Vitesse7.000
155Dundalk F.C.7.000

Dutch Cup finals
Season Opponent Result Place Date
1911–12 HFC Haarlem 0–2 R.A.P.-terrein, Amsterdam 26 May 1912
1926–27 V.U.C. 1–3 Monnikenhuize, Arnhem 19 June 1927
1989–90 PSV Eindhoven 0–1 De Kuip, Rotterdam 25 April 1990
2016–17 AZ 2–0 De Kuip, Rotterdam 30 April 2017

The winners of the cup compete against the winners of the Eredivisie for the Johan Cruijff Shield.

Johan Cruyff Shield
Season Opponent Result Place Date
2017 Feyenoord 1–1 (2–4 pen.) De Kuip, Rotterdam 5 August 2017

Club records
Highest transfer fee received: Wilfried Bony to Swansea City for £12 million. (2013)

Domestic results

Below is a table with Vitesse's domestic results since the introduction of the Eredivisie in 1956.

Domestic Results since 1956
Domestic league League result Qualification to KNVB Cup season Cup result
2019–20 Eredivisie 7th  – 2019–20 quarter-final
2018–19 Eredivisie 5th  – 2018–19 quarter-final
2017–18 Eredivisie 6th (5th after EC play-offs) Europa League (Q2) (winning EC play-offs) 2017–18 first round
2016–17 Eredivisie 5th Europa League 2016–17 winners
2015–16 Eredivisie 9th  – 2015–16 second round
2014–15 Eredivisie 5th (4th after EC play-offs) Europa League (Q3) (winning EC play-offs) 2014–15 quarter-final
2013–14 Eredivisie 6th (8th after EC play-offs)  – (losing EC play-offs) 2013–14 round of 16
2012–13 Eredivisie 4th Europa League 2012–13 quarter-final
2011–12 Eredivisie 7th (6th after EC play-offs) Europa League (winning EC play-offs) 2011–12 quarter-final
2010–11 Eredivisie 15th  – 2010–11 round of 16
2009–10 Eredivisie 14th  – 2009–10 third round
2008–09 Eredivisie 10th  – 2008–09 third round
2007–08 Eredivisie 12th  – 2007–08 second round
2006–07 Eredivisie 12th (10th after IC play-offs)  – (losing IC play-offs) 2006–07 third round
2005–06 Eredivisie 11th (10th after IC play-offs)  – (losing IC play-offs) 2005–06 second round
2004–05 Eredivisie 7th  – 2004–05 third round
2003–04 Eredivisie 16th  – (surviving promotion/relegation play-offs) 2003–04 round of 16
2002–03 Eredivisie 14th  – 2002–03 quarter-final
2001–02 Eredivisie 5th UEFA Cup 2001–02 second round
2000–01 Eredivisie 6th  – 2000–01 semi-final
1999–2000 Eredivisie 4th UEFA Cup 1999–2000 semi-final
1998–99 Eredivisie 4th UEFA Cup 1998–99 quarter-final
1997–98 Eredivisie 3rd UEFA Cup 1997–98 quarter-final
1996–97 Eredivisie 5th UEFA Cup 1996–97 quarter-final
1995–96 Eredivisie 5th  – 1995–96 second round
1994–95 Eredivisie 6th  – 1994–95 second round
1993–94 Eredivisie 4th UEFA Cup 1993–94 third round
1992–93 Eredivisie 4th UEFA Cup 1992–93 round of 16
1991–92 Eredivisie 4th UEFA Cup 1991–92 round of 16
1990–91 Eredivisie 5th  – 1990–91 quarter-final
1989–90 Eredivisie 4th UEFA Cup 1989–90 final
1988–89 Eerste Divisie 1st Eredivisie (promotion) 1988–89 quarter-final
1987–88 Eerste Divisie 9th promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion 1987–88 first round
1986–87 Eerste Divisie 7th  – 1986–87 quarter-final
1985–86 Eerste Divisie 8th promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion 1985–86 first round
1984–85 Eerste Divisie 17th  – 1984–85 second round
1983–84 Eerste Divisie 11th  – 1983–84 first round
1982–83 Eerste Divisie 10th  – 1982–83 second round
1981–82 Eerste Divisie 8th  – 1981–82 second round
1980–81 Eerste Divisie 8th  – 1980–81 first round
1979–80 Eredivisie 17th Eerste Divisie (relegation) 1979–80 round of 16
1978–79 Eredivisie 14th  – 1978–79 second round
1977–78 Eredivisie 9th  – 1977–78 quarter-final
1976–77 Eerste Divisie 1st Eredivisie (promotion) 1976–77 second round
1975–76 Eerste Divisie 5th promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion 1975–76 first round
1974–75 Eerste Divisie 3rd promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion 1974–75 first round
1973–74 Eerste Divisie 2nd promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion 1973–74 second round
1972–73 Eerste Divisie 3rd  – 1972–73 second round
1971–72 Eredivisie 18th Eerste Divisie (relegation) 1971–72 first round
1970–71 Eerste Divisie 3rd Eredivisie (promotion) 1970–71 second round
1969–70 Eerste Divisie 7th  – 1969–70 second round
1968–69 Eerste Divisie 3rd  – 1968–69 quarter-final
1967–68 Eerste Divisie 5th  – 1967–68 group stage
1966–67 Eerste Divisie 8th  – 1966–67 first round
1965–66 Tweede Divisie 1st (group A) Eerste Divisie (promotion) 1965–66 group stage
1964–65 Tweede Divisie 4th (group A)  – 1964–65 first round
1963–64 Tweede Divisie 9th (group B)  – 1963–64 first round
1962–63 Tweede Divisie 6th (group A)  – 1962–63 second round
1961–62 Eerste Divisie 10th (group A) Tweede Divisie (relegation) 1961–62 fourth round
1960–61 Eerste Divisie 4th (group A)  – 1960–61 group stage
1959–60 Eerste Divisie 2nd (group A) promotion/relegation play-offs: no promotion not held not held
1958–59 Eerste Divisie 10th (group B)  – 1958–59 no participation
1957–58 Eerste Divisie 5th (group A)  – 1957–58 fourth round
1956–57 Eerste Divisie 7th (group B)  – 1956–57 second round

Statistics
(As of 23 May 2020) EredivisieEerste DivisieTweede Divisie
Matches played
 1182852120
Matches won
 45737957
Matches drawn
 33421534
Matches lost
 39125829
Goals for
 18021450221
Goal against
 16401192165
Seasons
 35254
Best ranking
 3 (1997–98)1 (1976–77, 1988–89)1 (1965–66)
Worst ranking
 18 (1971–72)17 (1984–85)9 (1963–64)

Club topscorers by season

Player of the Season

Vitesse's Player of the Season award is voted for by the club's supporters. It was first introduced in the 1989–90 season.

Year Winner
1990 Theo Bos
1991 René Eijer
1992 Martin Laamers
1993 Phillip Cocu
1994 Glenn Helder
1995 Chris van der Weerden
1996 Arco Jochemsen
1997 Edward Sturing
1998 Nikos Machlas
1999 Sander Westerveld
Year Winner
2000 Michel Kreek
2001 Victor Sikora
2002 Dejan Stefanović
2003 Matthew Amoah
2004 Nicky Hofs
2005 Abubakari Yakubu
2006 Youssouf Hersi
2007 Danko Lazović
2008 Piet Velthuizen
2009 Paul Verhaegh
Year Winner
2010 Piet Velthuizen
2011 Slobodan Rajković
2012 Alexander Büttner
2013 Wilfried Bony
2014 Christian Atsu
2015 Davy Pröpper
2016 Guram Kashia
2017 Ricky van Wolfswinkel
2018 Mason Mount
2019 Martin Ødegaard
Year Winner
2020–

Most appearances

All competitions
Bos spent his entire career for Vitesse, making a total of 429 appearances in 14 seasons with his club. He is therefore considered to be Mister Vitesse.
Van der Gouw is a former Dutch goalkeeper who played most of his career for Vitesse. He amassed a total of 294 matches. In 2009, he was appointed as goalkeeping coach of Vitesse.
Ranking Name Position matches First season Last season
1. Theo Bos DF 429 1983/1984 1997/1998
2. Edward Sturing DF 383 1987/1988 1997/1998
3. John van den Brom MF 378 1986/1987 2000/2001
4. Martin Laamers MF 354 1986/1987 1995/1996
5. Raimond van der Gouw GK 294 1988/1989 1995/1996
6. Guram Kashia DF 292 2010/2011 2017/2018

Eredivisie
Ranking Name Position matches First season Last season
1. Guram Kashia DF 244 2010/2011 2017/2018
2. Davy Pröpper MF 133 2009/2010 2014/2015
3. Eloy Room GK 128 2008/2009 2016/2017
4. Piet Velthuizen GK 125 2006/2007 2015/2016
5. Jan-Arie van der Heijden DF 123 2011/2012 2014/2015
6. Renato Ibarra FW 122 2011/2012 2015/2016

Europa
Ranking Name Position matches First season Last season
1. Theo Bos DF 17 1983/1984 1997/1998
2. John van den Brom MF 17 1986/1987 2000/2001
3. Raimond van der Gouw GK 16 1988/1989 1995/1996
4. Theo Janssen MF 16 1998/1999 2013/2014
5. Martin Laamers MF 16 1986/1987 1995/1996
6. Bart Latuheru FW 15 1989/1990 1995/1996

Top goalscorers
John van den Brom played at Vitesse from 1986 to 1993, and from 1996 to 2001. He came back to manage the club from 2011 to 2012.

All competitions
Ranking Name Position Goals Period
1. Jan Dommering FW 168 1929–1948
2. John van den Brom MF 110 1986–2001
3. Gerrit Langeler FW 91 1916–1925
4. Kees Meeuwsen FW 89 1929–1954
5. Henk Bosveld MF 82 1968–1979
6. Boško Bursać FW 78 1974–1980

Eredivisie
Ranking Name Position Goals Period
1. Matthew Amoah FW 61 1998–2006
2. John van den Brom
Nikos Machlas		 MF
 60 1986–2001
1996–1999
3. Wilfried Bony FW 46 2011–2013
4. Roy Makaay FW 42 1993–1997
5. Bryan Linssen FW 41 2017–2020
6. Dejan Čurović FW 41 1994–2000

Europa
Ranking Name Position Goals Period
1. Bryan Linssen FW 4 2017–2020
2. Bob Peeters FW 4 2000–2003
3. John van den Brom MF 4 1986–2001
4. Marco van Ginkel MF 3 2010–2013
5. Nikos Machlas FW 3 1996–1999
6. Tim Matavž FW 3 2017–2020

Vitesse All Stars
The daily newspaper De Gelderlander conducted a survey in which fans voted Henk Bosveld (r.) as the best Vitesse-player of the twentieth century.
NamePosNatYears at ClubGamesGoals
Bert JacobsCoach1988–1993N/AN/A
Just GöbelGK1909–19241160
Willem HesselinkDF1892–19197938
Theo BosDF1983–19984291
Edward SturingDF1987–19883833
John van den BromMF1986–2001378110
Theo JanssenMF1998–201424230
Dik HerbertsFW1947–195922049
Toon HuibertsFW1951–196846971
Henk BosveldFW1968–197919182
Nikos MachlasFW1996–19999270
Dejan ČurovićFW1994–200010947

Other teams

Vitesse II

Vitesse's reserve team (Under-21) currently plays in the Beloften Eredivisie. It plays its home matches at Papendal and it is coached by Joseph Oosting.[6] The team is composed mostly of professional footballers, who are often recent graduates from the highest youth level (Vitesse U19) serving their first professional contract as a reserve, or players who are otherwise unable to play in the first team.

Honours

The team's honours:

Amateur team

In 1984 it was decided to divide the professional and amateur sections of the club. The professional section was renamed SBV (Stichting Betaald Voetbal – "Professional Football Foundation") Vitesse whilst the amateur section became "(AVC) Vitesse 1892", who played their home matches at the Sportcomplex Valkenhuizen. In total, the club has won 5 trophies; one Derde Klasse title, one Vierde Klasse title, one Zesde Klasse title and two Arnhem Cups. On 2009, Vitesse 1892 was declared bankrupt. The amateur section has produced a number of professional players including Andy van der Meijde, Nicky Hofs, Léon Hese, Erwin van de Looi en Theo Janssen.

Vitesse Legends

Vitesse Legends are a beneficiary team that was initiated by Ben Snelders, Leo de Kleermaeker and Dik Herberts in the nineties, competing in at least one match a year, usually in the name of charity and/or to bid farewell to retiring former Vitesse players. The team is made up of various members of the Club van 100 of Vitesse who will come out of retirement for this match to face the current Vitesse squad. Past participants have included Theo Janssen, Marc van Hintum, Edward Sturing, Ruud Knol, Remco van der Schaaf, Nicky Hofs, Erwin van de Looi, Glenn Helder, Philip Cocu, John van den Brom, Theo Bos, Martin Laamers, Michael Dingsdag, Roberto Straal, Frans Thijssen, Dejan Čurović, Jhon van Beukering and Huub Loeffen.

National team players
Willem Hesselink.

A number of Vitesse players have represented the Dutch national team, the first official international being Willem Hesselink. He was one of the founders of Vitesse in 1892 at age 14. In 1905 he started in the first ever home match of the Netherlands national football team, a 4–0 victory against Belgium. Some historians attribute one of the goals scored to him. Just Göbel played 22 matches for the Dutch team, being best remembered for his numerous saves during the 2–1 win over England's amateurs and his bronze medal in the football tournament of the 1912 Summer Olympics. The record number of Vitesse players for the Netherlands was three, which occurred on two occasions in 1989. The following players were called up to represent the Dutch national team in international football and received caps during their tenure with Vitesse:

Notable former players

See also

Literature
  • Van Mierlo, Joost: Verspeelde Energie. Vitesse en Nuon, verslag van een explosieve relatie. SUN, Nijmegen 2001, ISBN 9789058750327.
  • Molenaar, Arjen: 111 Jaar Vitesse. De sportieve geschiedenis van Vitesse 1892-2003 Vitesse, Arnhem 2003, ISBN 9090173005.
  • Van Roosmalen, Marcel: Je hebt het niet van mij. Een tragi-komisch verslag over de soap bij Vitesse. Hard gras, Amsterdam 2006, ISBN 9046800962.
  • Van Roosmalen, Marcel: Het Jaar van de Adelaar. Hard gras, Amsterdam 2009, ISBN 9789046805664.
  • Van Roosmalen, Marcel: Geef me nog twee dagen. Hard gras, Amsterdam 2011, ISBN 9789071359446.
  • Bierhaus, Peter: Vites! 9 verhalen over onvoorwaardelijke liefde voor Vitesse. Ctrl-E, Arnhem 2011, ISBN 9789081345781.
  • Remco, Kok: Een Arnhemmer is niet voor Ajax. Lecturium, Zoetermeer 2014, ISBN 9789048431816.
  • Reurink, Ferry: Elke dag Vitesse. 125 jaar clubgeschiedenis in 366 verhalen. Kontrast, Oosterbeek 2017, ISBN 9789492411990.

Notes and references
  1. Ritsema, André (16 February 2000). "Aalbers moet bij Vitesse weg als voorzitter". NRC Handelsblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 September 2008.
  2. "Van Wolfswinkel fires Vitesse to first major trophy". Goal.com. 1 May 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  3. "Guram Kashia: Georgia captain becomes first recipient of Uefa #EqualGame award". BBC Sport. 22 August 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  4. http://www.vitesse.nl/en/first-team/selection
  5. "Uefa current ranking". uefa.com. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  6. "3. Liga / U 23 > Trainer". Werder.de. Retrieved 7 December 2010.

Official websites
  • Vitesse.nl Official website of Vitesse Arnhem (in Dutch and English)
  • GelreDome.nl Official website of stadium GelreDome
  • UEFA.com The Vitesse Arnhem Story

General fan site

News sites
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