De Klassieker away fan ban, 10 years on | OneFootball

Almost 10 years after Amsterdam and Rotterdam’s mayors agreed with the KNVB to keep away supporters out of De Klassieker to curb violence, the ban remains. According to Football Oranje, Ajax’s board have backed a fan-led boycott and will not travel to Rotterdam for this season’s KNVB Cup semi-final.

The restriction, intended to last five years, has been repeatedly extended. It followed a series of flashpoints, alongside increasingly frequent offensive and anti-Semitic chanting, that made the fixture a national concern.

Key moments included the 1997 Battle of Beverwijk, when an Ajax fan was beaten to death by Feyenoord supporters, the 2004 attack on Feyenoord’s reserves that left Jorge Acuña in hospital, and 2005’s rioting and property damage, which officials televised to identify those involved. The 2009 ban was viewed as a necessary temporary step.

Any lifting of restrictions became harder after the 2014 KNVB Cup final at De Kuip, when Ajax fans launched fireworks on to the pitch following a 5-1 defeat to PEC Zwolle.

Tensions rose again in 2015 when Ajax fans blamed Feyenoord supporters, unconfirmed, for burning down their clubhouse. Police foiled a planned revenge attack, arresting one Ajax fan for possession of dangerous weapons. In 2016 an effigy of Feyenoord goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer was hung, prompting a stadium ban.

Three years on from that sanction, there are still question marks over when away fans might return. Ajax’s stance will attract attention at the KNVB, but a swift resolution looks unlikely.

Source: Football Oranje