KNVB stadium bans fall to 704 in 2025/26 season

The KNVB issued 704 nationwide stadium bans in the 2025/26 season, down from 887 the previous season, according to the Dutch football association’s annual safety monitor. The figures cover professional football in the Netherlands.

The most common reason for a ban was throwing objects or liquids, recorded in 100 cases. The KNVB also listed 62 cases of public violence, 61 involving people shielding perpetrators or making them harder to identify, and 54 involving possessing or setting off fireworks. Bans lasted an average of 24 months.

The association said the decline may indicate that fewer people were involved in incidents, arguing that the chances of identifying offenders have risen in recent years, including through more advanced camera systems. The figures alone do not establish that explanation.

Serious crowd disorder led to three of 975 professional matches being abandoned: Ajax v FC Groningen, SC Cambuur v Vitesse and NAC Breda v sc Heerenveen. All three involved large-scale fireworks incidents.

The number of KNVB disciplinary investigations into disorder and clubs’ responsibility was almost unchanged, falling from 161 to 160. Fireworks were recorded in 93 cases. In 88 investigations, the charges were dismissed because, according to the prosecutor, the clubs had nothing to answer for.

KNVB professional football director Marianne van Leeuwen said the season’s figures across all 975 matches offered a more nuanced picture than the impact of individual incidents might suggest. She said football had made progress but also pointed to wider social problems around the sport, calling for national coordination against criminal groups and illegal trade, and legislation suited to practice. [1]